The Pope blessed my marriage 4 months ago. As a newlywed, here's what I've learned so far... -Love is a non-negotiable: Love is doing the good will of the other. Meaning intention and behavior is above all. So, ACTION is what truly matters, not feelings/emotions (even if they are valid). This idea bleeds into everything else. Example 1: Work is demanding and I need to work my best regardless of my current condition: sickness, physical pain, or feelings have been hurt). Since all work is for the Lord. That's what makes a good servant of God. Example 2: My son has embarrassed me many times in public. Normally a lot of other parents treat their kids less during the moment or take their frustrations out on them. This is called resentment and placing feelings/emotions above what actually matters. This is a great opportunity to teach him. Communication Improvement: Our communication style has changed. We removed filler words whenever we're addressing each other. Be as straightforward as possible to remove confusion. Example: Filler / vague: “I don’t know… you’re kinda being rude and it’s just making me feel some type of way.” No filler + verbs: “Lower your voice. Speak slower. Repeat your point without sarcasm.” This improves patience and forces the other person to be accountable for what they are communicating, resulting in helping each other improve. We try communicating like this before addressing a serious conversation: 1. Compliment - For a compliment to come off authentic it has to be true and during the moment. 2. Question - Ask for clarification with no negative connotation. 3. Reinforce - Reinforce her/him even if the belief or thought is wrong. ( Be on her/his side ) 4. Concern - Now with context address your concern. 5. Resolve - Solve the situation together. This form of communication resolves any bad conflict. I am still trying to get better. Only through repetition/consistency will this improve. This is a life-time commitment that comes with sacrifice. Being married young is an investment that compounds over-time.

Within the Catholic Church, something decisive is occurring, not in theory but in practice, not in press releases but in parish halls, chancery offices, seminaries, and sanctuaries. More and more traditional Catholic churches are no longer merely uneasy with LGBTQ activist groups and ideologies operating under Catholic roofs; they are actively refusing them entry, removing them where they already exist, and drawing unmistakable boundaries where ambiguity once lingered. This is not hypothetical. It is happening now, quietly, steadily, and with increasing confidence. Across dioceses, pastors and bishops are recognizing that LGBTQ groups, philosophies, and ideological frameworks are not neutral pastoral aids but carry with them an entire moral anthropology fundamentally incompatible with Catholic teaching. As a result, parishes are declining to host LGBTQ advocacy meetings, refusing the use of parish facilities for identity-based ministries that reject chastity, and prohibiting pride symbolism or activist literature on church property. Parish bulletins are being cleaned, resource tables cleared, and websites revised so that nothing remains that implies Church endorsement of ideologies that contradict the Catechism. In some parishes, ministries once operating under euphemistic titles such as “inclusion” or “affirmation” have been formally dissolved after review by diocesan authorities. Resistance takes many forms, and it is growing. Some churches resist by policy: written diocesan directives now explicitly state that parish ministries must conform to Catholic moral teaching in both doctrine and practice, and that groups promoting sexual identities or behaviors contrary to Church teaching may not meet on church grounds or represent themselves as Catholic. Other churches resist by structure: parish councils and ministry leaders are required to sign statements of fidelity affirming adherence to Catholic teaching, making it impossible for activist groups to remain without openly contradicting the faith they claim to inhabit. Still others resist by formation: priests preach clearly on human sexuality, confession is emphasized, and catechesis is strengthened so that confusion has less room to take root.