Catholic, first time pregnant and have questions

[JenDox]

I am Catholic, I LOVE the Church, and have been growing in my faith for the last 6 years, via study groups and EWTN.

My husband and I have been married 7 1/2 years, and for the last 1 1/2 years we have been practicing NFP. We are so excited and delighted to be 9 weeks pregnant!! We are so thankful for NFP! But now we have some questions about being Catholic and pregnant and we do not know where to turn for good Catholic guidance.

1. Does the Church permit sex while I am pregnant?
2. When I receive the Eucharist, is my baby receiving it too?
3. Know of any good Catholic pregnancy resources (sites, books, etc)?

 

[Karin]

I am Catholic, I LOVE the Church, and have been growing in my faith for the last 6 years, via study groups and EWTN.

My husband and I have been married 7 1/2 years, and for the last 1 1/2 years we have been practicing NFP. We are so excited and delighted to be 9 weeks pregnant!! We are so thankful for NFP! But now we have some questions about being Catholic and pregnant and we do not know where to turn for good Catholic guidance.

1. Does the Church permit sex while I am pregnant? **YES…unless your Medical Doctor states otherwise for medical reasons! **
2. When I receive the Eucharist, is my baby receiving it too?
   **YES…if you are recieving so are they **

Congratulations!!!

 

[Feanaro_s_Wife]

I am Catholic, I LOVE the Church, and have been growing in my faith for the last 6 years, via study groups and EWTN.

My husband and I have been married 7 1/2 years, and for the last 1 1/2 years we have been practicing NFP. We are so excited and delighted to be 9 weeks pregnant!! We are so thankful for NFP!

Congratulations!!! Hubby and I had been married for 6 1/2 years when we found out we were expecting (after also using NFP for approx 1 1/2 years!!!)

---

But now we have some questions about being Catholic and pregnant and we do not know where to turn for good Catholic guidance.

This forum is a good start (but also double check the advice you receive here just to be sure it’s in line with Church teaching) Also, drop into the “parenting” forum to connect with other pregnant Catholic mommies (you are a mommy now!!!) and us first timers (my sweet Lily is six months old already).

1. Does the Church permit sex while I am pregnant?

Yes. But there are no different “rules”. If something was not morally ok before you were pregnant, it’s not ok now for any reason (sex must always unite husband and wife even though there is no possibility of conception for you at the moment). I don’t want to go into too much detail.

1. When I receive the Eucharist, is my baby receiving it too?

I would guess yes, but am not 100% sure. Your baby is receiving everything else that you ingest (or inhale) good or bad…

1. Know of any good Catholic pregnancy resources (sites, books, etc)?

Not a pregnany book, but I do suggest you and hubby read “good news about sex and marriage” by Christopher West (if you haven’t already done so) because it really puts into simple terms what can take awile for a new or returning Catholic to understand (and after baby arrives you won’t have time to read the newspaper, nevermind a book, lol).

---

Malia

 

[lizaanne]

I’m not a mom, so can’t help with resources, etc., but just wanted to say congratulations!!!

How very happy and exciting for you!

~Liza

 

[CatholicSam]

Congratulations When is your baby due?

Whenever I received Holy Communion while pregnant, I would ask Jesus to baptize my baby with His Precious Blood. I used to think, even if the baby isn’t receiving Holy Communion in the same way that I am, He’s very, very close! And even just sitting in the presence of the Holy Eucharist has been known to change people’s lives, just imagine the graces coming to your baby who is just a few inches away from your stomach! I also felt a little sorry for my newborn who would not be receiving Holy Communion again for a few years. I sometimes kiss my babies while the Host is still in my mouth and ask Jesus to bless them in a special way.

The book “Your Labor of Love” by Agnes M. Penny is a Catholic spiritual guide for pregnant women. I found it very uplifting and it sounds like the sort of thing you’d be looking for. It really helped me to unite the various ups and downs of pregnancy to the life experiences of Jesus and Mary.

 

[queen_anne78]

There is a small prayer book called “Mother’s Manual” (there is a “Father’s Manual” as well) by A. Francis Coomes, S.J. It is published by William J Hirten Co., Inc.

Both are small books of prayers that all are perfect for families…the prayers are sweet and slightly old-fashioned sounding, and at the back are some essays on such topics as breastfeeding, when and how to tell your children about “life” as it says (as in procreation ), a series of meditations on the vocation of a wife/husband. I have found great joy in this little book, it was given to me as a wedding gift back in May

 

[annb]

1. Know of any good Catholic pregnancy resources (sites, books, etc)?

Not Catholic per se, however…

For breastfeeding, check out www.lalecheleague.org and the book The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding.

I also recommend several books by Dr. Sears, including The Baby Book & The Family Nutrition Book.

Henci Goer’s The Thinking Woman’s Guide to a Better Birth is one of my favorites. Ina May Gaskin writes some good birth books as well.

I also recommend www.hypbirth.com

 

[Jennifer_J]

I am Catholic, I LOVE the Church, and have been growing in my faith for the last 6 years, via study groups and EWTN.

My husband and I have been married 7 1/2 years, and for the last 1 1/2 years we have been practicing NFP. We are so excited and delighted to be 9 weeks pregnant!! We are so thankful for NFP! But now we have some questions about being Catholic and pregnant and we do not know where to turn for good Catholic guidance.

1. Does the Church permit sex while I am pregnant?
2. When I receive the Eucharist, is my baby receiving it too?
3. Know of any good Catholic pregnancy resources (sites, books, etc)?

1. Yes, of course, unless your doctor states otherwise
2. I don’t know if the baby actually receives Jesus, but technically, the baby would recieve the “accidents” (bread and wine). This might be a good question for the Ask an Apologist section. I’d be interested to know the correct answer.
3. There are tons of pregnancy related site, but probably not many just Catholic in nature. Here are some general sites that are good:
   kellymom.com
   lalecheleague.org/
   catholicmom.com/
   catholicmoms.com/
   askdrsears.com (The Pregnancy Book, The Birth Book and The Baby Book are great)
   spinningbabies.com/

(don’t forget the parenting forum here! )

Here are 2 Catholic sites:
mothersruleoflife.com/
catholicbreastfeeding.org/

Breastfeeding and Catholic Motherhood by Sheila Kippley
sophiainstitute.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=SIP&Product_Code=04-3

Breastfeeding and Natural Child Spacing by Sheila Kippley ccli.org

God bless you on this exciting journey!
Jennifer
mom of 1 boy and 4 girls, blessing #6 due in July

 

[maria29]

Congrats on your little one growing inside of you I was going to recommend the “What to Expect” series. I think if your looking for a basic place to start its a good one. I like how they broke every month down into facts…

 

[Gamera]

Congratulations!

1. Does the Church permit sex while I am pregnant?

Sure. But good luck with that … be prepared for some modifications. Still, “with God all things are possible.”

1. When I receive the Eucharist, is my baby receiving it too?

No, I wouldn’t think so … hasn’t the form of bread and wine changed because of digestion, thereby ending the Presence?

1. Know of any good Catholic pregnancy resources (sites, books, etc)?

Not specifically Catholic, but “What to Expect When You’re Expecting,” and anything by Dr. Sears.

 

[Feanaro_s_Wife]

Sure. But good luck with that … be prepared for some modifications. Still, “with God all things are possible.”

.

**LOL, then I have to say some extra prayers of thanks as God was with us right up until the night before our precious daughter was born. **

---

**To the OP, prepare for the worst, but expect the best **is a great motto for getting through pregnancy and childrearing:thumbsup:

 

[Jennifer_J]

I’m going to go against the flow and NOT recommend the What to Expect series. I personally don’t like them at all. They are very mainstream parenting and not open to natural parenting ideas (such as attachment parenting–co sleeping, babywearing, responding to baby, no cry it out, etc). You and your dh will have to figure out what kind of parenting you will do. You might check them out at the library before buying them.

Your Pregnancy Week by Week is pretty good at letting you know what’s happening each week and any of the the Dr Sears books I mentioned earlier are helpful.

Parenting with Grace is good by Greg Popcak
Ray Guarendi’s You’re a Better Parent than you Think

Jennifer

 

[lotusblossom]

I am Catholic, I LOVE the Church, and have been growing in my faith for the last 6 years, via study groups and EWTN.

My husband and I have been married 7 1/2 years, and for the last 1 1/2 years we have been practicing NFP. We are so excited and delighted to be 9 weeks pregnant!! We are so thankful for NFP! But now we have some questions about being Catholic and pregnant and we do not know where to turn for good Catholic guidance.

1. Does the Church permit sex while I am pregnant?
2. When I receive the Eucharist, is my baby receiving it too?
3. Know of any good Catholic pregnancy resources (sites, books, etc)?

Congratulations!!!

1. Yes, definitely, but like a previous poster mentioned, the same “rules” of morality still stand .
2. I don’t think so, but I can tell you that whenever I come back from receiving to my pew and kneel to pray (or half-kneel now that my tummy is too large to kneel completely in our church) the baby jumps around and kicks, so I think he knows Christ is present in my body.
3. I honestly don’t know of any specifically Catholic ones. I do own a book called Holiness Is for Housewives, which is supposed to be really good, but I haven’t picked it up yet, so we’ll see . I’m planning on checking out some of the sites from previous posters as well .

 

[kage_ar]

There is a small prayer book called “Mother’s Manual” (there is a “Father’s Manual” as well) by A. Francis Coomes, S.J. It is published by William J Hirten Co., Inc.

Both are small books of prayers that all are perfect for families…the prayers are sweet and slightly old-fashioned sounding, and at the back are some essays on such topics as breastfeeding, when and how to tell your children about “life” as it says (as in procreation ), a series of meditations on the vocation of a wife/husband. I have found great joy in this little book, it was given to me as a wedding gift back in May

Second reccomend for those little books!

 

[JenDox]

Thank you to everyone! I appreciate all the wisdom, advice, and congrats!! We are soooo excited about our new little one. As of last Friday, I am 10 weeks along (10 weeks gestational, 8 weeks fetal) and our baby is due August 27th.

I will look into all the books mentioned and I am sure I will find some solid Catholic pregnancy and parenting guidance!

Again, thank you all and God bless!!

 

[Sandi]

You may think this is irrelevant, but it’s nice your baby will be born during the summer months; that means you can have birthday parties outdoors and those are much easier to manage. (I speak from experience )

But now the important part: CONGRATULATIONS! This can be the sweetest time of your life. Revel in it and enjoy this wonderful blessing and enjoy and cherish your baby. Wait till you start looking forbaby furniture and clothes; that was so exciting. Have you had an ultrasound yet?

 

[Beno]

Like another poster replied, I don’t believe that your baby is receiving Jesus in the Eucharist. The True Presence ceases to be once the accidents (the appearances) of bread and wine cease to be. Plus, add to the fact that you and your child have 2 separate souls and blood supplies. However it seems absolutely reasonable to ask the Jesus you receive to bless you and your child. Peace, joy and God’s love to you and your family!