BY DANNY MAY, SPECIAL TO THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC
With this year being the 50th anniversary of Pope Paul VI’s encyclical Humanae Vitae, the Diocese of Owensboro Office of Marriage and Family Life is especially excited to promote and draw attention to Natural Family Planning (NFP).
NFP refers to natural methods to determine fertile and infertile times in a women’s monthly cycle. Couples trained in NFP make daily observations and record the results on a chart to help them plan to either achieve or postpone pregnancy. When taught by a certified instructor and used according to instructions, couples practicing NFP see 96 percent to 99.5 percent effectiveness rates when using NFP to space their children or plan their family size.
Since couples practicing NFP say the communication required to practice NFP is very life-giving for the marriage, and because NFP aligns with the teaching of the Catholic Church, one of the goals of our office is to constantly make NFP more readily accessible to as many couples as possible throughout the diocese. We strive to do that by providing instruction in both the Billings and Creighton methods.
When trying to achieve pregnancy, 98 percent of couples with normal fertility achieve a pregnancy in the first six months using the Creighton Model. Of those with fertility complications, 20 percent to 40 percent were able to achieve by simply charting and up to 80 percent were able to achieve when they received medical treatment in conjunction with charting. Our diocese is very fortunate to have a Creighton “Center” right here in our diocese to instruct clients either face-to-face or remotely anywhere in the diocese. Contact Suzanne Padgett through the Office of Marriage and Family Life webpage (owensborodiocese.org/natural-family-planning) for more information.
The Billings Ovulation Method is a simple, highly effective fertility management system. Backed by more than 50 years of clinical research and more than 850,000 hormonal assays, Billings helps couples understand the state of their combined fertility to achieve or space pregnancy. The information can be used to monitor reproductive health.
Our diocese has trained Billings teachers ready to see clients in Bowling Green, Paducah, Hopkinsville, Owensboro, and as of April, Leitchfield! To learn more, contact Martha Winn through owensborodiocese.org/natural-family-planning.
Billings instruction is also offered in Spanish in Sebree, Owensboro, Mayfield, Bowling Green, and Hopkinsville. Contact Patti Gutiérrez through owensborodiocese.org/natural-family-planning for more information.
If you have questions or would like to learn more about NFP, contact your parish priest or visit the Office of Marriage and Family Life webpage.
Danny May is the director for the Office of Marriage and Family Life for the Diocese of Owensboro. Contact him at danny.may@pastoral.org.
Copyright © 2018 Diocese of Owensboro/The Western Kentucky Catholic