The Mystery and Meaning of Marriage |
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Catholic Engaged Encounter Weekend offers couples a unique opportunity to look at their commitment to each other in a deeper way as they prepare for marriage. It gives them the opportunity to focus exclusively on each other for a weekend in peaceful surroundings, free from the pressure and distractions of the outside world.
Though Catholic in origin, this experience is open to any engaged couple wanting to prepare for a deeper, more meaningful life together. The Weekend is an in-depth, private, personal, marriage preparation experience within the context of Catholic faith and values.
Are you recently engaged? Civilly married and wanting to have your marriage blessed? Just beginning to talk about marriage, but interested in learning more? Congratulations! This is an exciting time for you, and the parish wants to support you as you prepare for this wonderful life change.
The process of preparing for the Sacrament of Matrimony is one of growth and discovery. Preparing for a sacrametnal marriage at will help you build the best possible foundation for life-long marriage. You will explore the meaning and purpose of marriage, the gift of sexuality, and the true meaning of responsible parenthood. You will also discover that, as you grow in your relationship with Christ, you will be able to love each other better. The better you love each other with Christ-like love, the more joy you will discover in your marriage. preparing for marriage does take some time, but the rewards are well worth the effort.
Please call Fr Ross at (907) 474-9032 if you have any questions about marriage or about the process of preparing for marriage.
The Catholic Church has a very genuine and pastoral concern for its members and their growth in holiness. Essential to this is their sacramental life in the Church. Consequently, the Church wants to be involved in their preparation and celebration of the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony.
The Church teaches that marriage, within God’s plan, is an intimate partnership of life and love. The Church expects a man and a woman to commit themselves to each other for life. They are to be faithful to each other and be open to children. Husbands and wives render mutual help and service to each other through an intimate union of their persons and of their lives. In short, marriage is a union of two persons, an interpersonal relationship which includes the sharing of the whole of their lives. This commitment of spouses presumes sufficient maturity, freedom, knowledge, and psychological capacity.
CatholicMarriagePrep.com offers an online course of instruction to prepare you for marriage as an alternative to the video based Beloved classes offered at Sacred Heart Cathedral. The course consists of a total of nine assignments (worksheets).
The work is done in two steps:
At the end of the course, you will receive a certificate of completion is uploaded to your profile.
Teaching Method:
Please counsult the priest at Sacred Heart for more information to insure that the online marriage prep is what is best in your particular cirmstance. For more information, please go to catholicmarriageprep.com/online-pre-cana-info The cost is $194.00 per couple.
There is a misconception that an annulment is simply a Catholic divorce; nothing could be further from the truth. Divorce is a civil law procedure in which one or both persons decide to end an existing marital contract.
An annulment is different. The Catholic Church teaches that once a sacramental marriage is constituted by the valid, mutual consent of the couple, only death can break the marriage covenant. Marriage is forever. An annulment is an official judgment on the part of the Church that (1) there was an impediment that prohibited a valid marriage, or (2) a defect of the consent of one or both parties rendered the marriage consent invalid.
The book, Together for Life, is available at the parish to help you pick readings and plan for a Catholic Wedding Liturgy. The infomation is also available online at TogetherForLifeOnline.com
Natural family planning (NFP) is fertility awareness, which is simply knowledge of a couple’s fertility. It is a means of reading the body’s signs of fertility and infertility; applying this knowledge through the Sympto-Thermal Method (STM) is over 99% effective in postponing pregnancy. A married couple’s virtuous application of this knowledge either to try to achieve a pregnancy or to postpone a pregnancy is called responsible parenthood.
Practicing NFP is 100% natural — there are no drugs, chemicals or devices involved, which is one reason many today find it to be a positive and refreshing alternative to contraceptive methods. NFP honors our dignity as persons by respecting the natural rhythms and functions of the body. It is very common to hear couples who use NFP speak of an increased awe and respect for femininity and their mutual fertility, and a greater sense of empowerment through self-knowledge.