This is NFP Awareness Week, a time to educate – or re-educate – ourselves on the blessing of natural family planning (NFP) which not only supports Catholic beliefs about married love but because it’s “All Natural! Good for the body. Great for the soul!”

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has designed a variety of resources for parishes to celebrate God’s design for married love and the gift of life. The theme for the week, “All Natural! Good for the body. Great for the soul!” was inspired by Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si wherein the Holy Father emphasizes the beauty and importance of developing an authentic ecology that encompasses all of creation, including man: “Learning to accept our body, to care for it and to respect its fullest meaning, is an essential element of any genuine human ecology.” (LS 155)

This national education campaign is designed to raise awareness of natural family planning and to celebrate the blessing of marriage and family. As the bishops have written, NFP is supportive of Catholic beliefs about married love because it “respects the God-given power to love a new human life into being.”

The dates of this year’s Natural Family Planning Awareness Week (July 19th –25th, 2014) highlight the anniversary of the papal encyclical Humanae Vitae (July 25) which articulates Catholic beliefs about human sexuality, conjugal love and responsible parenthood. The dates also mark the feast of Saints Joachim and Anne (July 26), the parents of the Blessed Mother.

Resources (e.g., the 2015 NFP Week poster, web banners, prayers, homily notes, bulletin inserts, etc.) and ideas for celebrating and promoting NFP Awareness Week in your area can be found on the USCCB’s NFP Program website.

For more information, contact nfp@usccb.org.

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