ENDOW Testimonial by Nina Bryhn

With my husband, Bobby, and our three children, I converted to the Catholic faith on April 15th, 2006.  I had the privilege of going through RCIA with the remarkably bright and profound, yet ever humble, Fr. John Riccardo of St. Anastasia Church in Troy, Michigan.  Our catechesis was impeccable, and our exposure to the teachings of the church was both deep and wide.  So when I heard of ENDOW and subsequently started the class on Letter to Women in the fall of 2006, my expectations were that I might get to read some good writings, and perhaps make a friend or two in my local parish; nothing earthshaking by any means.  Little did I know that ENDOW would radically alter my life, my perception of my vocation, and my joy in daily living through the faith as explained by our Holy Father John Paul II in his Letter to Women and later in the beautiful Mulieres Dignitatem.  As a physician, I had often taken issue with the Catholic Church before my conversion, and though I had come to appreciate the church's deep love   of women after my RCIA classes, I was not prepared for the impact delving into the writings of the church on the subject of authentic femininity would have on me.  I found that the Church's teachings on the nature and dignity of women far surpass any feminist manifesto, go deeper than any sociological treatise and cut across age, station in life, race and vocation to reach the true feminine genius in its God-given reality for each and every woman born.  ENDOW brought me an unimaginable joy and a deep peace in my daily vocation as mother, wife and daughter which stay with me to this day.  I am now fortunate enough to serve as a facilitator for ENDOW, and I cannot recommend this program enough.  You will find classes on a letter written directly to all women from John Paul II, on the doctors of the church, on encyclicals, and on the Blessed Mother, as well as study guides designed to illuminate the mystery of God's enduring love for us as women.  There are also classes designed for middle- and high-school girls to help them understand the true beauty and genius of being created female.  I hope you will join in and embark on this wonderful journey into womanhood with all of us, your sisters in Christ.