About TOBET

– Mission

– Membership

– Speakers

– Guidelines

– Contact Us


Talks

– Summary

– Teens/Youth

– Singles

– Married Life

– Celebate Life

– Applied to a Theme

– Series


Calendar

– Interactive Calendar

– Upcoming Events

– Past Events


Donations

– About Your
    Donation

– How to Donate


Additional Links

– TOBET Links

– Other Useful Links



TOBET
4507 Lone Star Dr.
Carrollton, TX 75010
972-849-6543

info@tobet.org

 

 

Mothers of Young Children

By Annie Vining MTh, President TOBET

Mothers of Young Children is a reflection given to around 50 members of the Familia group at St Michael's in Bedford TX on March 13, 2004.

© 2004

The Gift of Self as the Path to Holiness in the Life of a Wife and Mother: Holiness for Homemakers
  1. The Universal Call to Holiness of Vatican II
    1. Holiness is not just for priests and nuns
    2. Holiness is through the gift of self which makes us more like God and thus more ready for heaven
    3. In celibacy is done by giving sexuality to God directly, in marriage is given to God through one’s husband
    4. The more like God’s love/gift of self our love is, the closer it will bring us to heaven and happiness
    5. God’s gift of self is ffff (full, free, faithful, fruitful)
  2. The Gift of Self as it is lived out in marriage
    1. Through the sacrament of marriage we are “consecrated for love”. (GS)
    2. By this sacrament we are incorporated into the love Christ has for the Church. This is the glue that holds us together. + oo =)
    3. We make present the love Christ has for everyone.
    4. This is how we evangelize the world, not by leaving it to do ministry only in the Church, but by being leaving in it, to infiltrate
    5. The husband/wife relationship is the foundation of the family: the image of God as the Trinity
    6. For this relationship to be strong, we must be able to make gifts of self (often in a sacrificial way) like God’s
    7. For example, though there are smaller ways, let us look at sex

          Sexual relations between husband and wife are sacramental (they ratify the marriage covenant the first time and renew it later)…..when they are gifts of self that are ffff.
    8. NFP: opens the door for us to make gifts of self that are ffff
      1. if used generously
      2. makes possible that the love of God is present, fights satan, build the kingdom
      3. thus the pope encourages us to have sex often!
      4. less than 4% divorce rate
    9. contraception: closes the door to make a gift of self by making it impossible to give yourself fully or fruitfully
      1. for this reason contraceptive sex cannot image God’s love
      2. without the glue, a 50% divorce rate
      3. this robs us of our power to love and grow toward heaven and happiness, fight satan, build God’s kingdom
      4. this is why satan wishes to distort the area of sexuality the most (i.e. homosexual marriage, abortion, contraception, masturbation, porn, etc.)
    10. NOTE: often there is confusion about the difference between cont. and nfp
      1. they do have the same good end: regulation of births
      2. they go about it in very different ways
      3. i.e. killing bank tellers to donate money to nuns or working hard to get it in order to donate it are very different actions
      4. contraception is just the same: many times it kills babies while nfp takes discipline and effort, virtue
    11. by following this pattern of the gift of self in smaller ways, we run along the path to holiness
      1. i.e. being will to do what needs to be done, rather than what is considered “your job”
      2. like mow the lawn, assemble shelves, fix things around the house (plumbing), doing taxes (see Popcak’s book)
    12. This is for both men and women: we must evangelize our husbands. for husbands that don’t agree:
      1. don’t forget that you are never required to do something that is wrong
      2. you can create a favorable environment for him to convert to the truth that will set him free (this is truly loving him) by prayer, firmness, and not nagging
      3. you can share with him the Chris West cd
      4. encourage him to find out why the Church teaches what it does
      5. have them email svining@tobet
      6. Maria’s and Chasity
    13. wives are receivers of love, in body and in soul (they reflect one another): eph 5 “submission.”
      1. this is not a passive receiving
      2. it is done in a way that returns the love, a giving of self for the other
      3. it is also setting the stage for the man to initiate: positive attitude, no “headaches”, making a home that is a domestic church, etc
    14. to really grow in holiness, an idea is to take St. Paul’s idea to its limit:
      1. husband is in a sense in the person of Christ
      2. motto: to Jesus through (husband)
  3. Giving yourself as a mother
    1. we give ourselves very tangibly through our bodies: nursing, pregnancy, jungle gym, no sleep, energy carrying them, holding them, rocking them, chasing them trying to keep them out of danger or trouble
    2. we give ourselves to them spiritually by being examples of sainthood: if they are to become saints (which is our job) how will they do it if we don’t set the example? We become saints by praying (M Theresa’s secret)
    3. When we give ourselves we are conformed to the image of Christ who gave of himself in a ffff way for our sake, thus making us fit for heaven
    4. This is why he told us: take up your cross and follow me
    5. We give ourselves ffff when we do so joyfully, freely without grudges, patiently, fully and faithfully all the time, and fruitfully
    6. Remember: whatsoever you do to the least of my people, that you do….
    7. Through the way we do the things we must do:
      1. Care for them
      2. Prepare them for a vocation
      3. Form them spiritually, mentally, and physically
      4. We can examine our behavior by 1 Cor 13 and inserting our name
  4. Conclusion
    1. While we may have other ministries, our husband and kids are our primary mission, our apostolate, the way we evangelize the world
    2. Vat. II calls us to be leaven society (not to flee the world into the fortress of our homes or the church)
    3. We do this by sharing our “spiritual treasures” with other families (vat II) and by setting a good example as a family when we go out
    4. We have been consecrated for love to show the world by the harmony in our families what God has ready for those who love Him
    5. As Jesus put it: “Father may they be one, even as we are one, that the world may believe that you sent me.”


Annie Vining can be contacted at avining@tobet.org

The Theology of the Body Evangelization Team can be reached at info@tobet.org
 

© 2005
+/-