Marriage Preparation Ministry
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The Catholic Church teaches that marriage is the permanent, faithful union of one man and one woman. Young couples embark on their faith journey learning what it means to live a sacramental life together through the marriage preparation program.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) states “So that the ‘I do’ of the spouses may be a free and responsible act and so that the marriage covenant may have a solid and lasting human and Christian foundations, preparation for marriage is of prime importance.” (CCC 1632)
For this reason, it is important that couples who wish to be married in the Catholic church are properly prepared with sufficient time for reflection and discernment. Additionally, it is the norm that couples who wish to marry in the Catholic church are not first married in a civil ceremony. The wedding in the Catholic church is the sacramental and civil marriage at the same event.
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The Diocese of Raleigh Marriage Preparation Ministry is always seeking married couples who wish to serve as examples of strong sacramental marriages for our engaged couples. Our program offers a wide variety of ways married couples can volunteer including:
- Registration
- Food and Hospitality Assistance
- Sacramental Marriage sharing talk
- Communication & Conflict Resolution sharing talk
- Finance, Careers, and Stewardship sharing talk
- Natural Family Planning and Couple Intimacy sharing talk
- Five Love Language sharing
- Facilitating a workshop
Time Commitment: Only a few times per year. Saturday workshops are normally from 8:30a.m to 4:00p.m. Volunteer couples may serve in a variety of activities such as registration, hospitality, or present a 30-45 minute sharing talk on a topic tailored to their own personal experiences as husband and wife. Couples can volunteer for as few as one or two workshops per year or more.How to Qualify: Couples must be in a marriage recognized by the Catholic Church for at least 3-5 years. Engaged couples love to observe volunteer couples who have celebrated landmark anniversaries of 25 years or more of marriage!Child Care: If child care needs are a concern, the diocese may reimburse volunteer couples for child care expenses incurred while assisting with the workshop.What engaged couples say…- “The workshop gave us a chance to talk about our marriage instead of our wedding day, reaffirming how we are on the same page.”
- “Issues covered reaffirmed my shared beliefs with my fiancée. I learned more about him and how to deal with issues that we’ll confront in our future.”
- “I learned a lot about myself and my fiancée. It’s been an important stepping stone for great future discussion between my fiancée and me.”
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