Did you know that the family is the Center of the New Evangelization? St. John Paul II in his epic Apostolic Exhortation, Familiaris Consortio (On the Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World), had this to say about the mission of the family:
…the family has the mission to become more and more what it is, that is to say, a community of life and love…we must say that the essence and role of the family are in the final analysis specified by love…the family has the mission to guard, reveal and communicate love, and this is a living reflection of and a real sharing in God’s love for humanity and the love of Christ the Lord for the Church His bride[i]
Modern Natural Family Planning (NFP) methods were developed during the 1960s in the midst of the sexual revolution. Although NFP brought a new understanding of love, sexuality, gender roles, fertility appreciation, openness to life and intimacy, it did not have a language to articulate these benefits to the culture. Dr. Mary Shivanandan says St. John Paul II’s landmark work on the Theology of the Body (TOB) provides a new voice and a new language for Natural Family Planning. In her article Natural Family Planning and the Theology of the Body: A New Discourse for Married Couples
Marriage: Love and Life in the Divine Plan, a Pastoral Letter by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. USCCB: Washington, D.C., 2009. 58 pages. ISBN: 978-1-60137-092-1. Reviewed by Dennis & Rose Wingfield, June 5, 2016.
Calling Couples to Christ 