By Elsa Baughman
JACKSON – Fourteen Hispanic couples attended the first of two classes on Natural Family Planning (NFP) using the Sympto-thermal Method on Saturday, Jan. 17, at the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle. Fausto and Lourdes Ramírez, a certified instructor couple from the Couple to Couple League, (CCL), led the seven-hour session. CCL is a Catholic organization devoted to teaching this NFP method.
This is the first time this program is being offered in Spanish in the Diocese of Jackson thanks to the efforts of Angelica Mazy, a member of St. Peter Parish, and the Office of Family Ministry. Mazy had been searching on her own for an organization that could help her and other Spanish-speaking couples deal with this issue in a Christian way.
Mazy, who has three children, acknowledged that her conscience had been bothering her because she had a small child and wanted to postpone another pregnancy without the use of artificial methods. “Abraham and I were desperate,” she noted.
She heard about Couple to Couple on the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) and made contact with the company. Couple to couple put her in contact with the Ramírez family, who travel the country teaching NFP.
When Mazy approached her pastor, Father Anthony Quyet, for permission to offer the class he asked her to bring the chancery offices of Family Ministry and Hispanic Ministry into the planning process. Jennifer Eidt, director of the Office of Family Ministry, requested that the class be open to any couple in the diocese so others could take advantage of the opportunity.
Mazy said she and the other 13 couples are still learning this process, which requires patience of both husband and wife. “This method also teaches the husbands about the woman’s menstrual cycle and the need to be caring and understanding during their fertile days,”  she said.
She especially enjoyed a documentary they watched about the theology of the body which emphasizes respect for men and women as blessed partners in procreation. “This part was very important because it helps men to think in a different way about women and to realize that their wives are a part of their lives. I was delighted with the content of this video,” she added.
Eidt said she was very pleased that the opportunity for a NFP training in Spanish presented itself thanks to Mazy’s persistence to follow something that was on her heart.
“My hope moving forward is twofold,” she said. “One, that others in the community will see the importance of this teaching thanks to the witness Angelica and the other couples offer. And then maybe, one of those couples will feel called to the ministry to become trained as certified educators.”
NFP classes using the BOMA method are offered in English on a regular basis. In Jackson Call Debbie Tubertini at 601-607-3073; in Oxford call Mary Leary at 901-848-8193; in Starkville call Angie Petrolina at 662-617-1936; in Tupelo call Lailah Valentine at 662-401-3584 and in Cleveland call Valerie Antici at 601-597-6560.