Condom Distribution Shown to Increase Teen Pregnancy Rates

Last updated on: June 21, 2016 at 8:19 am By Rachael Popcak and Dr. Gregory Popcak

A new study finds that schools with condom distribution programs in the 1990s seem to have actually increased the rate of teenage pregnancies. “We find that access to condoms in schools increases teen fertility by about 10 percent,” the researchers concluded. According to National Review, the study by two Notre Dame economists fills a gap in research on school contraceptive programs since there was little previous work on condom distribution programs in high schools. Researchers Kasey Buckles and Daniel Hungerman used 22 school districts in 12 states,... Read more

RIP Mary White, One of the Seven Original Catholic Founders of La Leche League, Dies at 93.

Last updated on: June 17, 2016 at 7:47 am By Rachael Popcak and Dr. Gregory Popcak

From WSJ. When Mary White and six other moms from the Chicago suburbs started an organization to encourage breastfeeding in 1956, they had to be careful about naming it. “They couldn’t say ‘breast,’” said Clare Daly, one of Mrs. White’s daughters. Newspapers, they were sure, wouldn’t publish notices about meetings involving such a crude term. Looking for something more discreet, they settled on La Leche League, derived from the name of a Roman Catholic shrine in Florida (Popcak Note: see... Read more

DR. GREG AND LISA POPCAK AWARDED FR. RICHARD HOGAN AWARD BY COUPLE TO COUPLE LEAGUE

Last updated on: June 16, 2016 at 5:12 pm By Rachael Popcak and Dr. Gregory Popcak

Lisa and I are honored and grateful to have been chosen to be the 2016 recipients of the Fr. Richard M. Hogan Award from the Couple to Couple League International (CCLI). CCLI is internationally recognized for their tireless work in promoting the Catholic vision of love, in particular by educating and supporting couples in the effective use of Natural Family Planning (NFP). According to CCLI, the Fr. Richard M. Hogan Award is given to those who have excelled in the... Read more

Got Guilt? Peace of Mind for Scrupulous Souls

Last updated on: June 14, 2016 at 6:01 pm By Rachael Popcak and Dr. Gregory Popcak

Rhonda Ortiz at Integrated Catholic Life has an excellent piece on how to recognize and fight against scrupulosity. Here is her description of the three types of scrupulosity. 1. Scrupulosity Resulting from Idealism Developmental scrupulosity is a byproduct of a deep faith experience, such as conversion or growing awareness of God, particularly in adolescence. In the process, a person can become overly-sensitive and overly-reactive to sin. The person worries about “doing it wrong” and overcompensates by trying to do “it” perfectly, whether... Read more

“How Do You Teach Your Boys Not To Rape?” Asks Mom

Last updated on: June 8, 2016 at 3:20 pm By Rachael Popcak and Dr. Gregory Popcak

In a Facebook thread on the Brock Turner rape case, a mother posed the provocative question that serves as the title of this post, “How do we teach boys not to rape?” It is a remarkable question. But, I believe there is a simple and solid answer. The Opposite of Love St. John Paul the Great reminded us that the opposite of love is not hate, but use. When we love someone, we build them up, we make them feel... Read more

Cosmo and Vice Magazine Say Public Waking Up to Dark Side of The Pill

Last updated on: June 2, 2016 at 9:18 am By Rachael Popcak and Dr. Gregory Popcak

There have been two major secular articles in the last several months–one in Cosmopolitan and the other in the online pop mag Vice–that explore why women should think twice about their casual acceptance of the Pill. I encourage everyone to read the articles (with the qualifier that the are both fairly graphic and use potentially offensive language) and promote the articles far and wide. People need to know about the truth of how the Pill is wrecking both women’s health and relationships and... Read more

Q&A: WHY DO CATHOLICS HAVE SO MANY STUPID RULES ABOUT MARRIAGE & WEDDINGS?

Last updated on: June 1, 2016 at 1:57 pm By Rachael Popcak and Dr. Gregory Popcak

It’s wedding season and the following question popped up on a Facebook thread I participated in. There were a lot of solid responses offered, but the questioner mentioned that he felt my response made the most sense to him, so I thought I would share the interaction. QUESTION: My girlfriend is a Protestant and her mother recently asked her a question that I haven’t been able to find much information on. She asked, “Why can’t a Protestant and a Catholic... Read more

Why Isn’t Married Sex “Hot”? And Should It Be?

Last updated on: May 18, 2016 at 9:25 am By Rachael Popcak and Dr. Gregory Popcak

At PsychCentral, Dr. Linda Hatch has a thought provoking article that gets at the heart of the difference I draw in my book, Holy Sex! , between eroticism, which is sex that is hyper-focused on pleasure to the exclusion of intimacy, and what I call “Holy Sex“, which sees pleasure as the fruit of the emotionally and spiritually intimacy that a couple cultivates in a marriage. She says, Hot sex is the sugar high of sexuality. It is sex that is... Read more

Pornography: A Public Health Crisis

Last updated on: May 11, 2016 at 9:36 am By Rachael Popcak and Dr. Gregory Popcak

The question is no longer just about the morality of porn. The science shows it is a public health crisis. From the Chicago Tribune The thing is, no matter what you think of pornography (whether it’s harmful or harmless fantasy) the science is there. After 40 years of peer-reviewed research, scholars can say with confidence that porn is an industrial product that shapes how we think about gender, sexuality, relationships, intimacy, sexual violence and gender equality – for the worse.... Read more

A Crisis In Catholic Fatherhood

Last updated on: May 5, 2016 at 12:11 pm By Rachael Popcak and Dr. Gregory Popcak

A recent caller to my radio program said that she and her husband weren’t on the same spiritual level. He didn’t go to mass or pray with her. He zoned out when she talked about the faith. As a result, her children were starting to buck her efforts to form them in the faith. The problem, as she saw it, was that “he’s a convert so it just isn’t reasonable for me to expect him to be in the same... Read more