Putting the Crunchy Back in Catholic

God created man in His image; in the Divine Image He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them, saying: "Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that move on the earth." Genesis 1: 27-28

I realized that having "crunchy" in my About Me section should probably necessitate postings of a granola nature, especially considering how much things that go "crunch" are a part of our daily lives. :)

What does it mean to be a "crunchy Catholic"? Well, firstly, unlike many other Catholic labels these days, it certainly isn't something that exists apart from full unity with the Magisterium of Holy Mother Church. Really, its more like "crunchy" AND Catholic, since so many of the little things in the 2nd Lt. household have some granola mixed in. And, most of things that I refer to when I say that I've got a little crunch aren't those that affect theology or anything so profound. Although, I will remind everyone that:
Cute, huh? However, even though things like cloth diapering, family beds, ecological breastfeeding, Diva Cups, organic (when possible!), wooden toys, homebirth (hopefully!), walking to the store to save gas, slings, and pseudo-attachment parenting are not listed in the Catechism, I do firmly believe that our family has made these choices because of -- not in spite of or unrelated to -- our commitment to our faith and our desire to raise our children in the spirit of joy and faithfulness that the Church desires for her children. For us, natural things are simpler things, more "Franciscan things," if you will, and help us to control our desire for more "stuff." Slings, bfing, co-sleeping and the like are ways that we bond together as a family, using things that God has already given us at our disposal for this very purpose - things like physical contact, bonding hormones and plain ol' time.

That being said, it is also true that certain things that have come to be seen in the mainstream as "crunchy" are in reality, calls by the Gospel to live as the stewards of creation that God entrusted to our care in Genesis. Recycling and buying cage-free meat/eggs (when available and affordable for families) are part of what it means to take care of creation. Reducing our waste and reusing things when possible flow from this as well - how many large families can tell you how they save themselves money and the earth more junk by resuing, thrifting, and just buying less? Honestly, I think large families are some of the best examples of good stewardship simply because circumstances dictate that nothing else is possible!

Someone from the job which must not be named once told me - in response to my repeated request for a recycle box for the reams of trash paper we went through in a day - that she would rather her children learn the faith than recycle. Umm, since when are those two things somehow diametrically opposed? Caring for God's creation shouldn't be something apart from the rest of our children's catechism. Obviously, we must take care that God's creation does not become a god in and of itself, but that is certainly not the default approach. Good Catholics take good care of that which God has given them - be it children, material possessions, or the world in which we live. People are ALWAYS more important than things, and baby boys and girls trump baby whales and polar bears without any contest, but as long as our priorities remain infused with the grace and wisdom of the Holy Spirit, there is no good reason why we can't be Catholic with some crunch thrown in.

EdtdTA: http://conservation.catholic.org/
Here is a great crunchy Catholic website a friend recommended!

Blessed Kateri, Pray for us!