Ways to Live the Catholic Faith in Your Family
Archdiocese of Dubuque Family Prayer Resources Web Page
July 4 - Independence Day
July 25 - World Day for Grandparents and Elderly
 Pope Francis announced the First World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly to be celebrated on Sunday, July 25, 2021. The day will be celebrated every year on the fourth Sunday of July to coincide with the feast of Sts. Joachim and Anne, Jesus’ grandparents. The theme for this year's celebration will be "I am with you always" (Mt 28:20). Learn more here. Read more about this special day on the USCCB website. Find Grandparenting resources here.
 July 25-31 - Natural Family Planning Awareness Week
This year's theme is: "To Have, To Hold, To Honor."
The dates of Natural Family Planning Awareness Week highlight the anniversary of the papal encyclical Humanae Vitae (July 25) which articulates Catholic beliefs about human sexuality, conjugal love, and responsible parenthood.
Summer Kits for Catholic Families
Summer is the perfect opportunity for families to build and share faith. Sadlier Religion is offering free summer kits, providing many ways for your family to make it a faith-filled summer, including:
- Practical yet meaningful ways to put the Year Amoris Laetitia into practice
- Sessions to talk about faith and ways to live it out
- Prayers for every summer occasion, including everyday moments
- Simple activities and inspiring stories to build discipleship and cultivate gratitude
Year Amoris Laetitia Family Kit
Offer families practical and meaningful ways to grow in faith together during the Year Amoris Laetitia Family. Available in both English and Spanish.
Family and Faith Summer Kit
Bring families together to talk about and live out their Catholic faith during eight sessions that integrate saints, Catholic identity, missionary discipleship, and prayer. Available in both English and Spanish.
Summer Prayer Kit
Discover family prayers for every summer occasion—from everyday moments to seasonal holidays.
Available in both English and Spanish.
Family Faith Summer Kit
Share simple activities, prayers, and stories that reflect the joy of summer, cultivate gratitude, and inspire discipleship. Available in both English and Spanish.
July and Summertime Ideas for Families:
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Year of St. Joseph
 On the 150th Anniversary of the Proclamation of St. Joseph as "Patron of the Universal Church," Pope Francis has proclaimed a "Year of St. Joseph," with his apostolic letter Patris Corde ("With a Father's Heart"). During this year, the pope invites us to:
* increase our love for St. Joseph.
* implore his intercession.
* imitate his virtues and zeal.
Click here for resources from the Archdiocese of Dubuque.
Additional resources can be found here:
United States Council of Catholic Bishops (USCCB): Prayers, Videos, Consecration to St. Joseph
Loyola Press: Prayers, activities, reflections, and more!
Our Sunday Visitor: "The Year of St. Joseph"
Diocese of Charlotte: Monthly themes, prayers, and activities
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Year of the Amoris Laetitia Family
March 19, 2021 (the Feast of St. Joseph) marked the five-year anniversary of the release of Pope Francis’ Apostolic Exhortation on Marriage and Family Life entitled Amoris Laetitia (“The Joy of Love”). To celebrate this anniversary, Pope Francis has declared a Year of the Amoris Laetitia Family from March 19, 2021 through June 26, 2022 when the World Meeting of Families will take place in Rome. Learn more about this year, read a statement by Archbishop Jackels, and find resources for celebrating it, by visiting: https://dbqarch.org/year-of-amoris-laetitia.
Additional Resources can be found here:
United States Council of Catholic Bishops (USCCB): News, events, and resources
Loyola Press: Prayers, videos, parish resources, and more!
Catholic Current: Resources for marriage, parenting, family life, NFP, dating, podcasts, and more! |
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Website Highlight
Passionately Catholic
 Passionately Catholic, created by Anthony Digmann, is a new apostolate dedicated to Catholic evangelization. Anthony is an enthusiastic Catholic speaker, author, and educator who is committed to illuminating the truths fo the Catholic faith and the Church's mission to all generations.
Passionately Catholic also has a brand new YouTube channel that is making a positive Catholic impact! Short videos explore topics that are fun, relevant ,and appealing, and are meant to evangelize, educate and inspire! Topics include finance, dating, marriage, parenting, health, apologetics, Saints, Catholic teaching, and more!
It’s easy and free for you to subscribe to the channel HERE (be sure to click the “All” bell icon so YouTube notifies you every time we post a new video). Subscribers and video interactions are essential to keep Passionately Catholic going and growing. Subscribing and enjoying the videos is FREE.
If you cannot subscribe on YouTube, click HERE to join the email list, and receive one FREE full-length talk and a couple of FREE chapters from Anthony's favorite book! You will also receive occasional updates, inspirational messages, and other freebies.
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Book of the Month
Sign of Contradiction
Contraception, Family Planning, and Catholicism
by Anthony J. Digmann
 Sign of Contradiction is the most comprehensive Catholic resource on family planning available. This is a book of inestimable value for conceiving the beauty of God's vision for marital sexuality and the consequences of thwarting it. It includes exploration of marital relationships, history, health, feminism, ecology, divorce, Theology of the Body, Catholic Social Teaching, and more. Many people today haven't rejected Catholic teaching on contraception, they haven't even considered it. In Sign of Contradiction, Digmann explains how there is no better time than the present to proclaim Catholic teaching on sexuality. He draws on scientific research on Natural Family Planning and contraception done since Paul VI's encyclical Humanae Vitae and the testimony of users of both NFP and contraception, and masterfully provides an overview of the theological debate that will be useful to teachers, catechists, and all Catholics. (from www.amazon.com)
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Movie Pick
Maria Goretti
 The story of Saint Maria Goretti is retold in this beautifully made film from Italy. It tells of the plight of the poor laborers of the time, struggling to survive in a swampy area with rampant malaria and extreme poverty. Luigi and Assunta Goretti keep their faith despite the hardship, and instill in their children a deep love for God. Their daughter Maria especially is devout. But tragedy strikes more than once: sickness and death affects the Goretti family, and then their young neighbor Alessandro does the unthinkable… This film, made on location and filled with authentic detail, stars Martina Pinto as Maria, Flavio Insinna (Saint John Bosco) as the brave local Passionist priest, Luisa Ranieri and Massimo Bonetti as her parents, and Claudia Koll as the Countess Mazzoleni. (from ignatiuspress.com)
- This movie is available to sign out from the Education Resource Center (#DV 30300).
- Purchase a DVD of this movie here.
- The movie can be streamed with a subscription to FORMED.org.
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Interest in Pinterest
July Pinterest Highlights for Families
from the Archdiocesan Education Resource Center: www.pinterest.com/dbqarch
Check out these July Pinterest topics focused on the family!
- Theology of the Body for Children
- Theology of the Body for Youth
- Theology of the Body for Adults
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All Are Welcome
Make Summer Fun and Engaging!
Summertime brings special time for family and fun. For families with special needs, summertime can be filled with change and anxiety. Children and youth with special needs will find it much easier to enjoy the summer if you make them part of the planning.
- Creating a summer schedule with structured activities can help the whole family reduce anxiety and set expectations. Try incorporating these helpful hints into your summertime plans:
- Keep a routine by blocking off time in segments.
- Include an activity that doesn't have a set "finished time."
- Include quiet time and time for conversation.
- At the end of the day, review the great memories you've made, and set a schedule for the next day.
- Coming up with activities to fill a day can be the challenging part, so check out some fun summertime things to do with your family here.
May the summer offer fun and relaxing moments for your family!
Nominate Your Parish/School for the Embracing Inclusion Award
Any Parish/School/College in the archdiocese which advocates for inclusivity of persons with disabilities is eligible to receive the Embracing Inclusion award. Awards will be given for Best Program or Project for fuller inclusive participation in the life of the faithful, and Best Improvement to Property providing greater accessibility. The awards will be presented at the annual Celebration of Life Mass celebrated in the parish receiving the award, with the parish pastor or a representative accepting the award at the end of Mass.
The nomination form can be found HERE. Nominations will be accepted through August 1.
For additional information and resources for inclusion of persons with diverse abilities, please contact Lynne Chapman at l.chapman@dbqarch.org or 563-556-2580, ext. 246.
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Prayers and Reflections
Prayer for Summer
Creator of all,
we thank You for summer!
Thank You for the warmth of the sun and the increased daylight.
Thank You for the beauty we see all around us,
and for the opportunity to be outside and enjoy Your creation.
Thank You for the increased time we have
to be with our family and our friends,
and for the more casual pace of the summer season.
Draw us closer to You this summer.
Teach us how I can pray
no matter where we are, or what we are doing.
Warm our souls with the awareness of Your presence,
and light our path with Your Word and Counsel.
As we enjoy Your creation,
create in us pure hearts
and a hunger and a thirst for You.
Amen.
© Author unknown
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Upcoming Events
 Natural Family Planning Virtual Summit
In celebration of Natural Family Planning Awareness Week, which is July 25-31, the Archdiocese of Dubuque will host a NFP Virtual Summit for anyone who would like to learn about what NFP is and why it is beneficial. The event will take place via Zoom on Sunday, July 25th from 2:30-4:30 PM and includes a keynote talk by Archbishop Jackels, breakout session talks by local experts and married couples, opportunities to network and ask questions, and more. Please register for this FREE virtual event at: nfp.dbqarch.org/nfp-virtual-summit.
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Archdiocese of Dubuque
Marriage & Family Life Office
1229 Mt. Loretta Ave.
Dubuque, IA 52003
(563) 556-2580, x233
www.dbqarch.org/family-life
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