Motherhood group at Greenwood parish open to all Catholic women

Women who restarted a local chapter of the Confraternity of Christian Mothers at Our Lady of the Greenwood Parish in Greenwood pose in the parish church on May 13 after receiving a blessing from Father Jose Neri, the parish’s parochial vicar. (Photo by Jennifer Lindberg)

By Jennifer Lindberg

GREENWOOD—Their faces showed they were glad to be there: a group of women with newborns to grandchildren sharing their faith, hopes and dreams with a new ministry encouraging them in their vocation as mothers.

The group has laid fallow for a long time, since 1958 when the chapter of the Confraternity of Christian Motherhood ceased to exist at Our Lady of the Greenwood Parish in Greenwood.

The group has been re-established and met for Mass, fellowship and prayer at the parish on May 13, the feast of Our Lady of Fatima.

The Confraternity of Christian Mothers is a nationwide association that promotes the Catholic education of children through motherhood. Members join their hearts in prayer with the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The group also has a strong devotion to Our Lady of Sorrows.

“We are all about teaching our children, and the best teaching is by example,” said Paula Beechler, who is spearheading the local chapter of the Confraternity of Christian Motherhood that is also open to women of other parishes.

“Sometimes we struggle as mothers and feel alone,” said Hannah Ford, vice president of the group. “We want women to know they have a place here and are welcome here. We can learn from other moms who have been there. It creates a support system.”

The evening included a cozy combination of food set at a pretty table and easy conversation about shared struggles and successes as mothers or grandmothers.

Ford, who has two young boys, said she is still trying to figure out a good bedtime routine which elicited some creative advice from the older moms.

One mom talked about putting little jingle bells on her son’s ankles at bedtime and chasing her children around the house in a bedtime game that would wear them out. Other moms shared advice on keeping a tidy home, such as the “tornado clean-up” where they set the timer for two minutes to make cleaning the house a fun game instead of a chore.

They also spoke about more serious issues, such as how to be more present to their children by shutting off their cell phones or making special family times.

One mom shared the idea of “Sunday sundaes.” She makes special ice cream sundaes every Sunday to illustrate how the day is set apart for Catholics and to create a fun, family tradition on that day as well.

One of the confraternity’s main objectives is to help mothers know that their prayers and good works have inestimable value. A Christian mother and her children share in the grace and merits of the prayers and good works of all the other members as if she had performed them herself, Beecher said.

The benefits of this support system led Beecher to organize the group after attending a retreat early last December at Our Lady of the Greenwood Parish led by Capuchin Franciscan Father Joseph Tuscan, the current national director of the confraternity, which is headquartered in Pittsburgh.

It was what Beecher, the mother of two adult children, was looking for and needed. She’d tried a Bible study, but wanted deeper connections with Catholic women—especially other mothers as a way to share the joys, fears and struggles of motherhood.

Father Jose Neri, parochial vicar of Our Lady of the Greenwood, helped the women kick off their meeting with a special blessing for mothers.

“I think a group like Christian Mothers can be super beneficial for mothers because it allows them to share their experiences as persons in a common vocation, namely, motherhood,” said Father Neri. “A group like this also allows mothers to create a Christian fraternity while they learn from one another and support each other. In a group like this, mothers are able to share the struggles and joys of motherhood.

“But above all, Christian Mothers allow them to do this and much more as they share and practice their faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Father Neri also blessed medals with the Pieta image that is important to the newly formed group.

This Pieta image by Michelangelo of the Blessed Virgin Mary holding Christ’s lifeless body after he was taken off the cross is a powerful reminder of the intercession of the Virgin Mary.

The group, which meets monthly, already has their year planned. Upcoming events include speakers presenting on Natural Family Planning and the Gabriel Project, and a day retreat at Mother of the Redeemer Retreat Center in Bloomington.

“In all our troubled times, we know we are all here for each other,” Beechler said. “We are very blessed to be mothers and teach our children. They are our future and the Church’s future.”
 

(For more information on the local chapter of the Confraternity of Christian Mothers, contact Paul Beechler at paulabeechler@gmail.com or 217-638-7433. For more information about the national organization, go to www.christianmothers.org.) †