One of the nicest things in the book-writing process for me was when Terry Polakovic, the Executive Director of Endow, offered to write the foreword to Blessed, Beautiful, and Bodacious. She writes, “Pat and I both seek to communicate that when women appreciate and nurture their “feminine genius” through prayer and faith-filled living, they are equipped to do the urgent work of transforming the culture into a civilization of love.”
I am so grateful to have Terry’s endorsement, and one way to express my thanks is to tell you about why I asked her to write the book’s forward, and it’s simple: I have long been a fan of Endow’s book club-style of evangelization and catechesis for women to know and learn about the feminine genius, and their dignity and vocation as women.
Terry writes about Endow’s mission on their website:
We are blessed as women. And our blessing contains many mysteries that God reveals to us along our journey of life and faith. I still remember my “aha” moment when I read Pope John Paul II’s Letter to Women and realized that God made every woman, including me, with dignity and worth. That defining moment was a revelation that moved me to help establish Endow. Since then, I have been thrilled to meet Catholic women and girls who are discovering the fullness of our faith—perhaps for the very first time.
I met Terry by phone back in 2009 when she agreed to be interviewed for one of my earliest Among Women podcasts. We struck up a friendship then, and a few years later we were finally able to meet in person out in the Denver area when I was traveling with my husband on business. I’m so grateful for her enthusiasm for the book and to meet this beautiful leader, who has been recognized for her service to women by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI himself!
Recently, Gina Warner reviewed Blessed, Beautiful, and Bodacious for Endow readers…
“If”.
For women, the word just might be our greatest deterrent to loving ourselves in the here and now.“If I could just lose 10 lbs.”
“If I get that job.”
“If he would just apologize.”Because if we spend too much time in the ifs, we miss what is: that we are blessed, beautiful, and as Pat Gohn puts it, bodacious (her melding of “bold” and “audacious”). The author regales this message in her recent book.
Pat Gohn’s Blessed, Beautiful, and Bodacious is likely to initially spark interest among readers simply by its testimony that the Catholic Church has been “singing the praises of women out loud”. But where it truly penetrates hearts is in the lively, three-part dissection on Catholic womanhood she provides to illuminate this truth.
Where some authors fall short when it comes to unpacking theology in a manner that is accessible to all, Gohn manages to accomplish heartily. Through her injection of personal stories that are marked with spirited wit and an ever-enthusiastic grip with which she holds her faith, Gohn makes the theology of Catholic womanhood understandable and straight-forward.
To read the rest of the review, go here.
Here’s where you can order Blessed, Beautiful, and Bodacious at a discount, now thru July 31, 2013. Be sure to use the special offer code listed!
Endow offers book studies, special events, resources and more! If you’re a woman, be sure to look for Endow in your diocese, and if it is not already there, or offer to bring it to your diocese by contacting Endow! (There’s even a Girl Genius series for youth!)
Thank you Endow,
and Terry Polakovic,
for your incredible support of my book!
