03/26/2006

Mother’s Day 2006: A Call to Catholic Action

LINCOLN, Nebraska, March 25 -- On May 14, 2006, the Family Life Office of the Diocese of Lincoln, NE, and The Leaven, a Catholic lay apostolate, will co-sponsor a grassroots-inspired celebration in honor of the spiritual maternity inherent to the unique, feminine nature and vocation of women.

Project Mother’s Day 2006 will feature keynote speaker Colleen Hammond, author of rapidly-selling Dressing With Dignity (www.DressingWithDignity.blogspot.com). The fashion show event will include petitions to merchants, asking them to provide tastefully feminine, modest clothing for women and their daughters.

"Secular sexuality vis a vis immodest fashions, contraception, and abortion make a mockery of women. Though I always knew that immodest fashions were insulting, it wasn’t until I read Colleen’s book that I realized immodest fashions are tied to a multi-faceted affront to our sacred dignity," says Juliana Davis, co-founder of The Leaven.

On her blog, former model and Weather Channel anchor Hammond highlights only top designers’ fashions which demonstrate that modesty doesn’t mean looking unisex, manly, or boring. Her concept of feminine design meshes with the philosophy of recently canonized feminist Edith Stein, whose book, Woman, describes the uniquely distinct character of feminine gender.

Juliana and Alton Davis founded The Leaven in 1987 to promote the joyful truth of Paul VI’s 1968 encyclical Humanae Vitae (On Human Life). "Meeting Colleen Hammond and additionally, Dr. Dominic Pedulla, founder of The Edith Stein Foundation, has changed the way we view our apostolate. In Stein’s work, Dr. Pedulla has realized an explanation for the impact of birth control on women’s health, holistically. (www.the-edith-stein- foundation.com)." spokesperson Davis believes.

"Dr. Pedulla does for Humanae Vitae what St. Luke, also a physician, does for the Gospels. The encyclical isn’t a handy instruction manual that people will just pick up and read. When women read his observations, we realize that that’s precisely the way we feel, but we didn’t know why until we heard it from a layman’s perspective. He puts things in terms that meet us where we live," the feminine Davis believes.

Sponsors planned the event for Mother’s Day in hopes that others will take similar public initiatives nationwide to celebrate and defend the beauty of womanhood in honor of Mary, the Mother of Jesus. They’ve chosen St. Edith Stein and Our Lady of Guadalupe as patronesses for its success.