The Holy Family with the Infant St. John the Baptist by Bartolome Esteban Murillo

May 1 was the feast of St. Joseph the Worker.

Dear Friends,

What a beautiful month is May! Here in the northern hemisphere spring has arrived, and the world is bursting with new life. For Courage and EnCourage members in the southern hemisphere, autumn has come, with its own kind of beauty as leaves change and days grow shorter. And our members who live close to the equator are surely enjoying the beautiful tropical climate that always makes me happy to visit them, whatever the time of year!

Even more beautiful than the glories of the natural world, we are surrounded this month by joyous moments of the Church's liturgical year. May begins with the feast of Saint Joseph the Worker, and concludes with the feast of the Visitation. The life of the family bookends the month, as we contemplate Our Lady visiting her husband's workshop, and the home of her cousin Elizabeth, bringing the glorious presence of her Son with her, close to her own Immaculate Heart. And here at the middle of the month, we rejoice in the Ascension of the Lord and pray fervently for a new outpouring and stirring up of the Holy Spirit who was given to the Church at Pentecost, and given to each of us at our Baptism and Confirmation.

Both Our Lady and Saint Joseph set an example for us as we strive to grow in virtue, and especially in the virtues of chastity and purity of heart. As Saint John Henry Newman wrote, to have a pure heart "is to love nothing on earth [as much as] God, or except for His sake." Such a heart "is ever looking for its Beloved who is in heaven ... loving earthly friends very dearly, but in their proper place, as God's gifts, and His representatives, but loving Jesus alone with sovereign affection, and bearing to lose all, so that she may keep Him." A pure heart puts all else second so that God comes first, and maintains that silent, sacred space at its center where the Holy Spirit can come and make his dwelling.

I am very much looking forward to seeing you at our Annual Courage and EnCourage Conference, which will open on the evening of Thursday, July 15, and close on the afternoon of Sunday, July 18. Now that many parts of the country are experiencing some relief from the worst of the pandemic, I hope that many of our members, chaplains and friends will be able to attend in person. We will meet for the first time at Benedictine College, in Atchison, Kansas, just north of Kansas City, Kansas, and just a few hundred miles from the geographic center of the continental United States. For those who would prefer not to travel, and for our many members and friends overseas, we will have opportunities to participate online, both in English and in Spanish. More information appears elsewhere in this newsletter.

In the meantime, let us continue to pray for one another, asking especially for the intercession of Our Lady and Saint Joseph, and for the mercy and grace that flows from the Sacred Heart of Our Lord, who has placed our humanity in the very heart of the Trinity.

The Catholic News Agency published a story about the conference with details about the event and an interview with Father Bochanski who said, “It is exciting that, by focusing our attention on Saint Joseph, our Courage and EnCourage apostolates will be united with the heart of the universal Church, which is celebrating the Year of Saint Joseph together in many ways. … Saint Joseph is a model, an encouragement, and an intercessor for our members who strive to make a sincere gift of themselves and bear much fruit as disciples.”

Visit conference page (speakers, schedule, registration, and more)

Courage executive director, Father Philip Bochanski, was interviewed by Catholic Philly for a follow-up to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith's statement on the impossibility of the Church offering blessings for same-sex unions. The wide-ranging conversation included the unity of body and soul, sexual identity, chaste living with the experience of same-sex attractions, and pastoral care.

Read "Same-sex unions …deny ‘unity of body and soul" at CatholicPhilly

We recently got some good news from our members in the Philippines:

Dr. Greg Bottaro is a Catholic Psychologist who directs the CatholicPsych Institute. Before getting his doctorate, he spent four years living as a Franciscan Friar, under the mentorship of Fr. Benedict Groeschel, CFR, where he formed a spirituality based on Abandonment to Divine Providence which he now applies to psychological principles in his practice.

Dr. Botarro's talk will be on the subject that he addresses in the book he co-authored, Consecration to St. Joseph Through Jesus and Mary, which dives deeply into the "life and meaning of St. Joseph and Our Lady as they relate to our integrated human journey growing closer in union with Jesus Christ," viewing the "Holy Family through the lens of St. John Paul II's Theology of the Body." He will also be speaking in a breakout session on "St. Joseph: Pillar of Families."

Sign up for a free email version of Dr. Bottaro's Consecration to St. Joseph

View Dr. Bottaro's video introduction to the Consecration to St. Joseph

Read Dr. Bottaro on St. Joseph and the "masculine genius" (more on podcast)

The last two posts on The Upper Room blog featured Courage members from opposite sides of the globe, testifying to the universal nature of our mission. First, Edwin Valles, from the Philippines, shares his powerful testimony in a post entitled "St. John Paul II, Divine Mercy, and Me": "I would often describe that first Courage meeting to be a visitation moment. I was like Elizabeth; something within me leapt for joy. I knew with deep certainty that this is where God wants me to be and this is how he answered my lifelong prayer."

Next, Manny Gonzalez, an American college student, offers warm words of encouragement in his post, "You Are Not Alone": "My friend, you are so loved … you belong here in the Catholic Church … you are not carrying this cross by yourself."

If you would like to subscribe to the blog, just click the "Update Profile" link at the bottom of this email and follow the instructions. When you get to the "Update your profile" page, check the box for the "Courage Blog."

Father Dan Healy, the spiritual director for Courage Philippines, celebrated a Mass with members on the Third Sunday of Easter. His homily focused on the disciples' encounter with the resurrected Jesus in his glorified body, which also reveals the dignity and destiny of our bodies. "When Jesus reveals the glory of the body, he is showing us his goal for us. … We are asking God with confidence for freedom from our sins so that our bodies, too, may shine with divine glory on the last day. … The Courage journey is a Lenten journey — it's difficult work of self-mastery — but it is also an Easter journey, a journey of joyful expectation of glory."

Listen to Fr. Healy's homily (speaks about Courage starting at 18:45)

~ Yvonne

~ Bob

Courage friend, Peter Herbeck of Renewal Ministries, offers sound advice in a video and an article for parents troubled about their children leaving the Lord. He talks about why it's happening and then outlines a multifaceted spiritual approach to what can be done about it.

Courage member, Manny Gonzalez, who recently wrote an uplifting post for the Courage blog, responded to the question, "How can EnCourage members relate to their loved ones so as to establish the best possible loving relationship?"

Courage Internacional website in Spanish

This day of presentations for priests, deacons, and seminarians includes talks on the following foundational topics as they relate to same-sex attractions:

(Clergy track is free. Fee charged for full conference participation.)

Last month Courage associate director, Father Colin Blatchford, wrote a post on the Truth & Love blog about how God's covenants with man encounter him in his nature as a composite of body and soul. A Courage member wrote the next post in response to Father's post: "By living a chaste life, I am living in accordance with God’s covenant, both in my external actions and in my inner life. By seeking first to love God — keeping his commandments — and humbly repenting when I fall short, I have found a deep sense of peace that the wisdom of the world never provided."

To subscribe to the Truth & Love blog, just click the "Update Profile" link at the bottom of this email and follow the instructions. When you get to the "Update your profile" page, check the box for the "Truth & Love Blog."

For the first time, this summer's Courage and EnCourage conference will feature a special four-part series dedicated to the subject of sexual identity discordance for the benefit of parents of children with this experience. One of the speakers will be Deacon Patrick Lappert, M.D, a Courage board member and chaplain as well as a plastic surgeon, who has spoken to many audiences about the phenomenon of gender dysphoria with his unique perspective of medical science informed by Catholic anthropology. The Person & Identity Project prominently features him on their medical resources page in a most informative video, "The Gender Revolution: A Medical Perspective."

Father Nathan Reesman, the Chairman of the Board of Courage, wrote an insightful commentary on how the push to enshrine an unquestioning embrace of transgenderism in civil law runs contrary to the classical understanding of human nature. "It is the Church’s role as the guardian of the authentic understanding of human nature to speak clearly for the sake of the present generation and for the generations to come."

* For an explanation of the expression, "sexual identity discordance," and coverage of the subject, see the new Handbook for Courage and EnCourage Chaplains starting on page 81.

We hope to move forward with the in-person events listed on our 2021 calendar, while always being mindful of the health and wellbeing of our members. Please be aware that, as the situation surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, we may be required to postpone, cancel, or move these events online. If you have any questions or concerns, you may review our statement, or contact us here. Watch our events calendar for updates.