Wrap Up: NFP Awareness Week!

Did you know about NFP Awareness Week?

"Natural Family Planning - All Natural! Good for the Body. Great for the Soul!"

Natural Family Planning (NFP) Awareness Week, a national campaign to celebrate God's design for married love and raise awareness of NFP methods, is July 19-26, 2015. The slogan for this year was inspired by Pope Francis' recently released encyclical in which he states, "Learning to accept our body, care for it and respect its fullest meaning, is an essential element of any genuine ecology" (LS 155).

Natural Family Planning (NFP) is an umbrella term for several safe, natural and effective methods that can be used for both achieving and avoiding pregnancy. It is true family planning. NFP is not the "Rhythm" or Calendar Method. NFP methods teach couples how to observe and interpret the woman's signs of fertility and infertility and take into account the unique nature of a woman's menstrual cycle. NFP is a holistic approach to family planning. It is not contraceptive for it does nothing to suppress or block conception. Instead, couples adjust their behavior according to their family planning intent using the naturally occurring signs and symptoms of a woman's cycle. In the Archdiocese, couples have access to instruction in all methods of NFP. In addition, specialized services are available for couples living with reproductive disorders and for both the post-partum and peri-menopausal times of transition.

• Click here to obtain a NFP brochure and more information about Archdiocesan services and programs.
  
• Click here to see listings of local teachers, schedules, and contact information.

**This FlockNote was originally published by Danielle Olson of the Office of Lifelong Faith Formation of the Archdiocese of Boston, and can be viewed here.