U.S.

It’s now easier for couples to learn about NFP

By Joyce Duriga | Editor
Sunday, June 28, 2015

When the archdiocese’s Marriage and Family Ministries office launched its online marriage preparation program in 2010 it sought to meet the needs of couples that lived apart and that were trying to fulfill the commitment to marry in the church. The program follows the outline of the regular archdiocesan PreCana program, but rather than having a guide couple lead the discussion on topics such as handling finances and raising children, those topics were covered on video.

In response to that, many people requested an online program for natural family planning, which is the Catholic Church’s only acceptable option for regulating birth naturally. According to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, “natural family planning is an umbrella term for certain methods used to achieve and avoid pregnancies. These methods are based on observation of the naturally occurring signs and symptoms of the fertile and infertile phases of a woman’s menstrual cycle.”

That component launched in 2014, first in English and later in Spanish, and follows the Billings Ovulation Method — one of the several NFP methods practiced today, said Maria Garcia, natural family planning coordinator for the office.

Since the beginning of 2015 until May, 733 couples took the online class, an average of more than 100 per month. That’s the same amount of couples they would have done in a year face to face, Garcia said.

This number includes couples from around the United States and other countries.

“The response to our online NFP class has been amazing,” said Frank Hannigan, director of the Marriage and Family Ministries office. “We thought there would be a good response because online learning is very attractive to young couples, and because it is a deeply personal topic that couples may not be comfortable discussing in a large group setting.”

The online class has three video presentations: an introduction by Cardinal George, NFP witness of a young couple who tell how NFP has helped their marriage; and the Catholic connection to NFP and health benefits. Couples also download a copy of Humane Vitae — Pope Paul VI’s encyclical that affirms the church’s teaching about natural birth and eschews chemical contraception; a booklet explaining the Billings Ovulation Method; and information identifying basic female reproductive organs. There is a quiz after each section.

At the end, if they want to continue, they call the archdiocese and Garcia pairs them up with teachers.

NFP online costs $49 for the three classes. Couples can repeat the class for a full year. “We never turn anyone away,” Garcia said.

The office offers a discount if a couple signs up for both marriage prep and NFP online.

If they want to go on to learn more about NFP, a certified instructor charges a one-time fee of $120.

Even though young couples who prefer to do things online are the primary users, there are others.

“For instance, I had a request from someone in Costa Rica to be paired with a teacher long distance to go over the method. I offered to find her a teacher in Costa Rica,” said Garcia, who has access to teachers throughout the world through her contacts with the Billings Method. “She said ‘No, I prefer long distance. I feel more comfortable talking to someone who doesn’t know me.’”

Overall, NFP is a positive option for women.

“We know that all chemical contraception have side effects,” Garcia said. “This is a way that the woman especially can protect her health.”

It’s also an effective way to regulate births, Hannigan said.

“It is a 99 percent effective method for postponing or achieving pregnancy while appreciating God’s gift of fertility with no side effects or environmental impact,” he said.

The information discovered about a woman’s body is knowledge every woman should have. “It’s not just that we need to take care of our reproductive organs as females it’s that it helps you monitor your overall health,” Garcia said. “Through the observations that women make as part of the method you can find out a lot about your overall health that if you had not been charting these things you would have never known that you had these issues.”

For more information, visit www.learnNFPonline.com.

Topics:

  • marriage
  • family planning
  • contraception

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