Christian Vocations

by McCarty, Michele M.

• ISBN13: 9780159507124
• ISBN10: 015950712X
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1999-01-01
• Publisher: OUR SUNDAY VISITOR INC

Table of Contents

Finding Your Path in Life	viii
Finding your way	2	(2)
Why you are here	4	(1)
The power of love	5	(1)
Vocation---our call to love	6	(1)
It's time to choose	7	(1)
Loving yourself	8	(5)
How do you learn to love yourself in a healthy way?	9	(1)
Building self-esteem	10	(2)
Assessing your self-esteem	12	(1)
Loving God and others	13	(2)
Loving God	13	(1)
Loving others	14	(1)
In summary	15	(1)
Choices and Commitments	16	(22)
Ministry--commitment to serve	18	(3)
Attitude adjustment	19	(1)
Being successful	20	(1)
Discerning life choices	21	(6)
Life's values: What really counts?	23	(2)
What do you need to be happy?	25	(1)
Remaining faithful	26	(1)
Facing reality	27	(10)
Choosing your occupation	27	(3)
What are you good at?	30	(1)
Making ends meet	31	(3)
Are you a tightwad or a spendthrift?	34	(1)
Managing your time	35	(2)
In summary	37	(1)
Loving Another	38	(26)
What is love?	40	(6)
Who cares?	41	(2)
Living love's essentials	43	(1)
The Solomon choice	44	(1)
How caring are you?	45	(1)
Being in love	46	(5)
Understanding attraction	46	(3)
Distinguishing love from infatuation	49	(1)
Love or Infatuation?	50	(1)
Friendship	51	(6)
Choosing friends	52	(1)
Being a good friend	53	(1)
Making and losing friends	54	(1)
Between friends	55	(2)
The special concerns of homosexual persons	57	(6)
Responding in love	59	(3)
On being a gay teenager	62	(1)
In summary	63	(1)
Growing in Love	64	(22)
Intimacy in relationships	66	(4)
What intimacy means	67	(2)
What's your intimacy IQ?	69	(1)
Growing in intimacy	70	(5)
How romantic are you?	74	(1)
Obstacles to love and intimacy	75	(4)
Through your eyes	78	(1)
Losing someone you love	79	(6)
The grief process	79	(2)
After it's over	81	(3)
Picking up the pieces	84	(1)
In summary	85	(1)
Communication---Key to Intimacy	86	(26)
Building communication skills	88	(6)
Talking it over	89	(1)
Improving communication	90	(3)
Crossed wires	93	(1)
Communication styles	94	(3)
How you say it	94	(2)
Making contact	96	(1)
Body language	97	(5)
The messy room	98	(1)
Listening	99	(2)
Feelings	101	(1)
How do you feel about it?	102	(1)
Disagreements	102	(2)
How well do you handle communication conflicts?	103	(1)
Disagreeing---DOs and DON'Ts	104	(7)
Touchdown or fumble?	106	(2)
How and when to compromise	108	(1)
Curfew conflict	109	(1)
The fallen domino	110	(1)
In summary	111	(1)
The Single Life	112	(22)
Living the single vocation	114	(6)
A valuable vocation	115	(1)
Single ministries	116	(3)
Single by choice	119	(1)
Loving in the single vocation	120	(8)
Dating and romance	120	(2)
What about on-line romances?	122	(2)
Being realistic about relationships	124	(3)
Cinderella and Prince Charming	127	(1)
Sexual intimacy	128	(5)
Intimacy and chastity	130	(3)
In summary	133	(1)
The Challenges of Being Single	134	(28)
Misconceptions of the single life	136	(5)
The hidden message	140	(1)
Unhealthy relationships	141	(3)
Come back	145
Challenges of being single	144	(17)
Coping with loneliness	144	(2)
Living together	146	(4)
A man's dilemma	150	(1)
Why are live-in relationships less likely to last?	151	(3)
Catholic teaching regarding cohabiting	154
A woman's dilemma	153	(3)
A priest's dilemma	156	(2)
You and the single life	158	(2)
Views of the single life	160	(1)
In summary	161	(1)
Ordained and Consecrated Vocations	162	(24)
The consecrated life	164	(6)
Discerning a vocation	165	(2)
The challenges and rewards	167	(2)
Might you be happy in an ordained vocation or in the consecrated life?	169	(1)
Being a priest	170	(6)
The Sacrament of Holy Orders	170	(2)
Among the people	172	(1)
The challenges and rewards of being a priest	173	(3)
Being a permanent deacon	176	(3)
One path to the priesthood	178	(1)
What is religious life?	179	(6)
Living the religious life	181	(4)
In summary	185	(1)
The Meaning of Marriage	186	(26)
What marriage means	188	(6)
Why marry?	188	(2)
Marriage in the Jewish-Christian tradition	190	(1)
Covenant---Promise of lasting love	191	(2)
The covenant choice	193	(1)
Preparing to marry	194	(7)
The reasons people marry	195	(1)
Requirements for marrying	196	(2)
What about the law?	198	(1)
Being ready to marry	199	(2)
Assessing compatibility	201	(7)
Compatible partners	206	(2)
Engaged to marry	208	(3)
Second thoughts	210	(1)
In summary	211	(1)
The Sacrament of Marriage	212	(26)
The history of Christian marriage	214	(7)
Jesus' revolutionary view of marriage	214	(2)
Marriage among the early Christians	216	(2)
Marriage in the Middle Ages	218	(1)
Christian marriage in later centuries	219	(1)
``With this ring...''	220	(1)
The sacramental meaning of marriage	221	(6)
Marriage between baptized Christians	221	(2)
Irreplaceable	223	(1)
The different meanings of marriage	224	(2)
I do?	226	(1)
Inter-Church and inter-faith marriage	227	(5)
The importance of religious freedom in marriage	227	(3)
Celebrating marriage as a Christian sacrament	230	(1)
The positive side of inter-faaith and inter-Church marriages	230	(1)
The religious dilemma	231	(1)
The marriage ceremony	232	(5)
Marrying in the Church	233	(1)
What the wedding ritual means	234	(2)
What does this wedding seem to celebrate?	236	(1)
In summary	237	(1)
The Challenges of Married Life	238	(34)
Living the marriage covenant	240	(5)
Adjusting to married life	240	(1)
Roles and responsibilities	241	(1)
Expectations	242	(2)
Who's responsible?	244	(1)
Living marriage as a sacrament	245	(3)
Being married	246	(1)
Images of marriage	247	(1)
Addressing problems	248	(3)
An ounce of prevention	249	(1)
Dual-career couples	250	(1)
Being unfaithful	251	(8)
Reviving a troubled relationship	254	(4)
The typical tensions	258	(1)
When marriages crumble	259	(10)
Catholics who divorce	259	(2)
Divorce and annulment	261	(2)
A gift not shared	263	(4)
Relationship portraits---Is something missing?	267	(2)
Dealing with the difficulties of divorce	269	(2)
In summary	271	(1)
Family Life	272	(22)
The importance of family	274	(5)
The family's history	274	(4)
Catholic teaching on family lifestyles	278	(1)
Choosing to have children	279	(4)
If you had it to do over...?	280	(1)
When teenagers have children	281	(1)
Teenage parenthood	282	(1)
Having children	283	(7)
Pregnancy and prenatal care	283	(2)
Giving birth	285	(1)
Adoption and foster parenting	286	(2)
Preparing to be a parent	288	(1)
Would you make a good parent?	289	(1)
Helping children grow	290	(3)
What's wrong with grownups?	292	(1)
In summary	293	(1)
Responsible Family Planning	294	(26)
Family planning decisions	296	(10)
The choice of children	298	(1)
Catholic teaching on family planning methods	299	(2)
Family planning and fertility awareness	301	(5)
Upholding life	306	(13)
Abstinence and continence	306	(3)
Abortion	309	(3)
How would you handle it?	312	(1)
Infertility and reproductive technologies	313	(2)
Catholic guidelines on reproductive technologies	315	(3)
Designing kids	318	(1)
In summary	319	(1)
The Challenges of Family Life	320	(17)
Troubled families	322	(7)
Domestic abuse	323	(1)
The mother's dilemma	324	(3)
Alcoholism and drug abuse	327	(1)
I always thought...	328	(1)
Family troubles	329	(3)
Single, split, and step-parenting	329	(1)
Caring for elderly relatives	330	(1)
Serious illness or job loss	331	(1)
Building family unity	332	(3)
My advice to parents	334	(1)
In summary	335	(2)
Glossary	337	(4)
Index	341