***This is the final post of a three-part series chronicling the spiritual journey of our marriage. Born and raised a devout Catholic, I didn’t take my faith as seriously in college and began dating a pro-choice agnostic. This is the story of how we balanced the yoke. If you’ve ever wondered if a Catholic can marry an agnostic without compromising the Catholic’s faith, read on. Our story may help you discern whether a marriage of “mixed cult,” or between a baptized and unbaptized party, is a good idea.
Read Part I and Part II to get up to speed!
Well, we got pregnant again, and I suffered a temporary setback. I remember throwing my pregnancy test against the wall, and yelling that I just couldn’t do this. I literally threw temper tantrum while my five month old slept soundly. My husband just stared at me – I have a feeling he was trying to figure out how my hissy fit factored into my Catholic belief of being “open to life” and babies being a blessing. Though he was happy about a new baby, he announced that he would be getting a vasectomy (he announced that he was seriously considering a vasectomy). I was crushed. I knew this was against God’s plan for our marriage, and that it would only cause more heartache in the long run. I also remembered thinking maybe, just maybe, I should get some formal instruction in this NFP thing, because clearly I wasn’t getting something right. I decided right then that every prayer and every bit of suffering of the next nine months would be offered for Superman to change his mind about his vasectomy. I began to pray and open my heart to God in ways I never had before. I began to ask for His will to be done, not my own.
Pray. Work. Motherhood. 