Listen to your Mother.....WISDOM from Archbishop Charles Chaput.....

Who must we follow during times of confusion?

Who must be our reliable guide?

In a recent article titled "In Culture of Confusion, Church the Only Reliable Guide" in CNA Archbishop Charles Chaput says "Over the centuries, the Church has often called her people to reflect on the 'Four Last Things'—death, judgment, hell and heaven. She has a good reason for doing so. Life is brief. And all of us, whether rich or poor, unknown or famous, will very soon encounter the Four Last Things, directly and personally......They’re very real, and they matter eternally....." Let us take time to LISTEN, to pay attention and to be lovingly shepherded......read the Archbishop's full article here.

Come learn what our Mother, the Church, teaches us by participating in an ENDOW study.....click here to see all the choices.

Terry Polakovic, ENDOW’s co-foundress and executive director, to receive Papal Award: Cross Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice....

CONGRATULATIONS to TERRY!

The Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice (For the Church and Pontiff) is a special award from our Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI - given for exceptional service to the Church. Archbishop Chaput describes the award this way: "This is a uniquely important recognition. It comes directly from the Holy See. It is one of the highest honors the Holy Father can bestow on an individual. Pope Benedict, in his authority as Pontiff, grants the Cross in gratitude for sustained and exemplary witness to the Catholic faith and service to the Church."

“A devoted wife, mother and leader, Ms. Polakovic has served Catholic causes for many years,” the archbishop wrote.

“(The award) represents the work of so many different people who have dedicated themselves to the ENDOW program,” Polakovic said. “Countless people have spent thousands and thousands of hours on this project, so this award is really for them.”

Terry will be joined by others as she receives her award from Archbishop Chaput on November 7 at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Denver. (See full article from the Denver Catholic Register here).

Please pray in thanksgiving for all that Terry has worked so hard for in our Church and especially in ENDOW. Praise be to God for all she has done and for this very special recognition!

Archbishop Charles Chaput calls for resistance to world’s intolerance of Christianity.......

In a recent address given by Archbishop Charles Chaput in Slovakia on Liberty and Mission titled “Living Within the Truth: Religious Liberty and Catholic Mission in the New Order of the World” the Archbishop says “Our societies in the West are Christian by birth, and their survival depends on the endurance of Christian values. Our core principles and political institutions are based, in large measure, on the morality of the Gospel and the Christian vision of man and government. We are talking here not only about Christian theology or religious ideas. We are talking about the moorings of our societies -- representative government and the separation of powers; freedom of religion and conscience; and most importantly, the dignity of the human person.......In practice, however, we see that without a belief in fixed moral principles and transcendent truths, our political institutions and language become instruments in the service of a new barbarism. In the name of tolerance we come to tolerate the cruelest intolerance; respect for other cultures comes to dictate disparagement of our own; the teaching of ‘live and let live’ justifies the strong living at the expense of the weak....... We live in a time when the Church is called to be a believing community of resistance. We need to call things by their true names. We need to fight the evils we see. And most importantly, we must not delude ourselves into thinking that by going along with the voices of secularism and de-Christianization we can somehow mitigate or change things. Only the Truth can set men free. We need to be apostles of Jesus Christ and the Truth he incarnates. So what does this mean for us as individual disciples? Let me offer a few suggestions.........” Please take the time to read Archbishop Chaput’s full address here.

Check out the Manhattan Declaration

By Eileen Love

This time of year we are treated to lots of retrospectives highlighting the year’s big events. We remember who made news, which awards were given, what the bestsellers were and which movies drew the biggest crowds. Isn’t it mind-boggling to reflect on all that can happen in a 12 month period? But all events are not equal. Some things - though paraded in front of us constantly - are frivolous and time-wasting. Is it part of being well-informed to be able to recite the details of the latest Hollywood breakup? Seems a lot of “investigative reporting” is of this type.
On the other hand, there have been many discussions this year on things that will have a lasting impact. These issues require our attention. We can’t afford to be ill-informed on decisions that will affect our lives, our freedoms and future generations. Some of the issues being debated these days threaten to undermine the Judeo-Christian ethos that is part of the fabric of America.

As we say in our ENDOW studies, “Whenever people gather to discuss the problems that ail humanity, the voice of the Church should be heard. “ That is why I am grateful for the recently released Manhattan Declaration. This letter is a formal statement by members of Orthodox, Catholic and Evangelical churches to speak out in defense of the sanctity of life, the institution of marriage and religious liberty. The hope is that people who agree with these important words will sign off on this document to signal our agreement and lend our voices and names to the declaration.

Denver’s own Archbishop Chaput was not one of those who personally had a hand in drafting the document (the Catholic voice was provided by Professor Robert P. George of Princeton) but he was pleased to sign off on it. In a recent interview with Catholic News Agency, Chaput said, “Now and always, we need to trust in God; and then we also need to act. Right here, right now, in this country, the work of organizing and struggling in the public square for what we believe belongs to us. That means all of us, and each of us.” Access his article at the Catholic News Agency's website here.

In this midst of this time of preparation for Christmas festivity, do yourself a favor and carve out a few minutes to read the Manhattan Declaration at www.manhattandeclaration.org. Amidst all the media coverage of all that’s gone on this year, it would be a shame to overlook this. It really is a bright spot.

It was the Holy Spirit

By Terry Polakovic

So, what inspired you to start ENDOW? I get this question fairly frequently, both from people who are actually interested and from those who are not. The truth is, it was the Holy Spirit. Even though it is certainly an option, it just isn’t easy to say “no” to the Holy Spirit.

Eight years ago, I knew there were a few things in my life that could use some tweaking, but I didn’t necessarily think I needed an entire overhaul. The Holy Spirit thought differently. Out of nowhere, He started introducing all of these new people into my life. I was a bit uncomfortable at first because they spoke a completely different language. Their conversations revolved around Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body, the “New Feminism”, and a woman’s conference that had been held in Beijing. At the time I remember thinking how appropriate that was, since all of these concepts seemed like Chinese to me.

However, I was drawn into these conversations in a way that I had never been drawn to anything before. As an avid reader, I could recognize a good book when I saw one. Unexpectedly, however, my literary tastes started changing. Even the most riveting novel didn’t compare to the writings of Pope John Paul II. There was so much to read and I just couldn’t read fast enough. I started looking at every single thing differently.

By God’s grace, the same thing was happening to a couple of the women whom I had only recently met. That is the goodness of God; He sends you exactly what you need. I needed people who were being transformed in the same way I was. It would have been too frightening for me to go through it alone.

The three of us didn’t know very much, but we knew that what we were experiencing was real. We wanted to share it with other women, and we were just naïve enough to think we could. There is a saying, “God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called.” That is what He did for us. Again, thanks be to God. He sent all of the right people – an excellent Archbishop, the Religious Sisters of Mercy and literally thousands of women who were as hungry as we were. He sent us great authors, a great staff, and lots of good counsel. There is something beautiful about being a little bit clueless. You have to depend on other people. I am not saying it has all been easy, but every bit of it has been worth it.

As I said earlier, each one of us has the option of saying “no” to the Holy Spirit, but I wouldn’t recommend it. My life today is so much better than I could have ever imagined. I will be forever grateful that He thought me worthy of this gift called ENDOW.