Catholic Fire

By Pat Gohn. Release Date: March 25, 2013, Ave Maria Press, Notre Dame, Indiana, Paperback or Kindle. Available from Ave Maria Press, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Catholic  book stores. Reviewed by Jean M. Heimann, M. A. Theology, wife, mother, freelance writer, and oblate with the Community of St. John. In 1989, a friend from my parish choir introduced me to a document that would change my life – Mulieris Dignitatem —Blessed John Paul II’s famous encyclical On the Dignity and Vocation of Women . It was this document that dispelled all my misconceptions about how the Church actually viewed the modern woman and it was John Paul II’s words which enhanced my self-esteem, altered my attitude toward the Church, and positively impacted my mission in life. Today, it is Pat Gohn’s wonderful book Blessed, Beautiful, and Bodacious: Celebrating the Gift of Catholic Womanhood that has bathed me in grace and renewed my spirit once again. In it, Pat shares her personal life exper...

This week’s Catholic Carnival is up at This That and the Other Thing . The theme for this week is "The Word of God in the Life and Mission of the Church". Here are a few of my favorite posts there: Denise's post "The Insidious Creep of Evil" in which she writes about pre-natal diagnosis and its all too frequent bedfellow--abortion . Shawn's post " The Glory of Woman", which is about womanhood and femininity , as conveyed through the writings of Pope John Paul II and by Alice von Hildebrand. Kate Wicker's post "Baby's First Close-up", in which shares her first picture of her little one, as well as her thoughts and her feelings. There are some wonderfully inspiring posts at this week's carnival , so be sure to check out all of them!