EVANGELISATION THROUGH MARRIAGE AND FAMILY Dr Brigid McKenna Director, Office of Life Marriage and Family Archdiocese of Hobart
The Christian family …not only rec ecei eive the love of Christ and become a saved ed community, but they are also called upon to co comm mmunica unicate te Christ’s love to their brethren, thus becoming a saving community”. John Paul II. Familiaris Consortio , 49.
Evangelisation to engaged/married couples and their families Evangelisation by married couples and their families
Part one: Making missionary disciples
“…we must not underestimate the evangelising potential represented by a couple’s request that their marriage be celebrated in the Church. Few human situations are as favourable to the proclamation of the Gospel and to an encounter with Christ as the event of the love between a man and a woman, which allows them to experience something of the God who is love.” Ouellet, Communio , Summer 2014
Two-fold purpose of marriage preparation “…in order to eliminate as far as possible the difficulties that many married couples find themselves in, and even more in order to favour positively the establishing and maturing of successful marriages". …"journey of faith, which is similar to the catechumenate ", and a presentation of the fundamental Christian truths that may help acquire or strengthen the maturity of the faith of the persons contracting marriage. Preparation for the Sacrament of Marriage, Pontifical Council for the Family, 1996
Who’s coming
McCrindle (2015); ABS (cat. 3310.0)
Only 1/8 of Catholics in Australia are at Mass on a typical weekend 2/3 of Catholic marriages involve a Catholic and a non-Catholic spouse
Why are they coming
Catholic Marriages Tasmania 1995-2015 400 370 350 300 269 250 230 200 161 150 100 78 50 0 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015
Blessing?
“ As Catholics, our biggest pastoral struggle is also our greatest pastoral opportunity. Couples, parents or families who have little or no connection to the Church regularly come knocking on our doors seeking baptism or marriage. If we as a Church can navigate these waters well, we will be able to harvest what amounts to be the low-hanging fruit of the New Evangelisation .” Fr James Mallon, Divine Renovation
Holy Matrimony: A sacrament like no other?
In natural marital love husband and wife open themselves to a mystery that precedes them, embraces them, and elevates them beyond themselves. Jose Granados
The “Celebration of Marriage and Evangelisation of Non- believing Baptised Persons” ( Familiaris Consortio , n.68)
The sacrament of Matrimony has this specific element that distinguishes it from all the other sacraments: it is the sacrament of something that was part of the very economy of creation ; it is the very conjugal covenant instituted by the Creator "in the beginning."
…the decision to commit by their irrevocable consent their whole lives in indissoluble love and unconditional fidelity, really involves, even if not in a fully conscious way , an attitude of profound obedience to the will of God, an attitude which cannot exist without God's grace.
They have thus already begun what is in a true and proper sense a journey towards salvation , a journey which the celebration of the sacrament and the immediate preparation for it can complement and bring to completion, given the uprightness of their intention.
…the sacraments by words and ritual elements nourish and strengthen faith: that faith towards which the married couple are already journeying by reason of the uprightness of their intention, which Christ's grace certainly does not fail to favour & support.
Once more there appears in all its urgency the need for evangelization and catechesis before and after marriage, effected by the whole Christian-community, so that every man and woman that gets married celebrates the sacrament of Matrimony not only validly but also fruitfully.
Love is always a gift of God. Wherever it is poured out, it makes its transforming presence felt, often in mysterious ways… Pope Francis, Amoris Laetitia
How should we do marriage preparation
Fr Mallon : Our starting point must be that we never say “no” to any request • Those knocking on our doors should be welcomed with open arms and love, no matter how limited their faith or understanding of what they are seeking. • To start with “no” is to cut off at the heels even the possibility of conversion and transformation.
However this begs the question of what it means to say “yes.” • “Yes” cannot simply mean the fixing of a date, some paperwork and a quick marriage preparation class. • “Yes” must be a wholehearted willingness to walk with couples until they are ready to celebrate the sacrament and be accompanied with a clear definition of what readiness looks like. • “Yes”, may therefore, may also involve a “not yet.” Divine Renovation , p.198 .
Cardinal Marc Ouellet “Those who request the sacrament should receive a positive welcome and should be confronted with the exciting and demanding mystery of Christian marriage. This would give them the chance to choose , that is, either to commit themselves or, supposing a real resistance to faith on their part, to seek an alternative. For this purpose, a pre- matrimonial catechumenate could certainly be useful, even if it is not a comprehensive or fully satisfying solution.” Mystery and Sacrament of Love: A Theology of Marriage and the Family for the New Evangelization .
S Y N O D
Pope Francis “The Church, therefore, with a renewed sense of responsibility, continues to propose marriage…not as an ideal for the few… but as a reality that, in Christ’s grace, can be lived by all baptised faithful. And therefore this gives greater importance to the pastoral urgency that involves all structures of the Church in convergence towards a common intention, an adequate preparation for marriage, as a sort of new catechumenate, greatly hoped for by some Synod Fathers ”. To the Tribunal of the Roman Rota, Jan 2016 .
“Marriage catechumenwhat ”? Some dioceses in the US have already drawn inspiration from the catechumen-model for engaged couples who have little grasp of their faith and an understanding of marriage shaped by secular culture
Diocese of Phoenix Couples go through a 9 month formation process intended to help bring about conversion. “The goal of marriage preparation is spiritual encounter with Jesus Christ” “Every human heart is made by God to respond to this message .” (Mike Phelan, Office of Marriage and Respect Life)
• A virtues-based, Catechumenate model of marriage renewal and preparation that integrates modern principles of psychology and the virtues to help couples facilitate an authentic dialogue about their relationship. • Each engaged couples is assigned a mentor couple who gives them a concrete connection and integration into the parish. • Mentors are the “trusted” means of communicating what must be revealed about marriage through Jesus to the engaged couple.
• Couples approaching for marriage receive a letter outlining the preparation process and inviting them to set out on a spiritual journey involving: • Alpha as the first step in their marriage preparation. • An evening for engaged couples on personal/relationship skills • A Friday evening and all-day Saturday event focussed on the sacrament of marriage . • Working to include mentoring couples – married couples who would accompany, support and pray for the engaged couple as they journey towards the sacrament.
Around Australia: new and old • Weekend courses CatholicCare courses: typically cover practical relationship skills > spiritual and sacramental Engaged Encounter; Of Life and Love (Syd), When Two Become One (Melb): typically cover spiritual and sacramental > practical relationship skills • Inventories: FOCCUS • More extensive integrated programs + Mentoring: Smart Loving Engage
https://smartloving.org/engaged/face-to-face/
SMARTLoving Engage Marriage Resource Center; co-developed by Byron and Francine Pirola (Australia) and Ron and Kathy Feher (USA) Parish-based, marriage formation programme Presented by trained married couple ‘Mentors’ Integrates contemporary relationship psychology with Catholic theology Core content is presented on DVD supplemented by personal witness and mentoring supported by comprehensive Couple Workbook
SMARTLoving Engage • Six sessions of 2 hours duration with additional take home activities (20hrs in total) • Designed to be used in couple to couple mentoring, small home-centred groups Purchased as a ‘Teach out of the Box’ product and used as designed • or adapted for your unique parish circumstances. Also offer optional ‘Mentor Training’ • New fully-on-line option •
Provides flexible, quality marriage preparation from within your own parish. Designed to be experienced over a period of two to four months, Engaged Online responds to the call of the recent Synods on the Family for marriage preparation to be more like a catechumenate than a once off course that is completed in a day or weekend.
Recommend
More recommend
