#LUMEN CHRISTI MEQUON WEDDING WOJO SERIES#

In this type of situation, the Church has to be careful not to “lower the bar so low as to seemingly promise couples who have fallen away that a sacramental marriage will be easy,” but rather “present the goodness, truth and beauty of our teachings on marriage and family life … inviting couples to participate with us in this greatest adventure, a life in Christ.” Malucha, the associate pastor at Holy Family Parish in Fond du Lac, the Church can find a blueprint for ministering to brides and grooms who have fallen away from the practice of the faith. Michael Malucha said he looks to the words of scripture: “Always be prepared to make a defense to anyone who calls you to account for the hope that is in you, yet do it with gentleness and reverence.” (1 Peter 3:15). When approaching marriage preparation, especially with a couple who may not be well-catechized, Fr. They know deep down that they want God and their faith to be the foundation of their life together.” Wherever they are in their faith journey, they are all desiring a sacramental Catholic marriage, and they come to the Church to do what is needed for that. Many couples pray individually but have not tried praying together as a couple. Or both may only go to Mass on a monthly basis. “The bride may go to Mass every Sunday but the groom only on Christmas and Easter, or vice versa. She has met with couples of all ages and in different parts of their spiritual journey. “I think that the process of marriage preparation is one of those pivotal moments when a person is seeking the Church for a sacrament and we can respond in an evangelizing way,” said Lanser. Mary’s Visitation in Elm Grove, where she and her husband David are a FOCCUS facilitator couple.Īs a FOCCUS facilitator couple, the Lansers welcome engaged couples into their home for fellowship, conversation and the administration of the FOCCUS inventory, a confidential 151-question inventory taken separately by the bride and the groom that is meant to facilitate conversations about crucial topics in married life. Peggy Lanser ministers regularly to couples preparing for marriage, both in her work at the Catholic Community of Waukesha, where she is the adult and family ministry coordinator, and in her home parish of St.

We need to offer a marriage preparation that allows them to grow from where they are in their faith formation journey.” They have been influenced by so many other cultural pressures. “Often, they cannot express why they have that desire, but the desire for something better is there. “Many of the couples that come to us asking for marriage prep have a deep desire for marriage in the Church,” said Kathi Andreoni, pastoral associate at the Kenosha Racine County Line Parishes. “‘Why do you want to get married in the Catholic faith? Why are you here?’” “We have to lead with the question of ‘why?’” she said.

Here in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, the struggle to speak both truth and love to couples seeking marriage in the Catholic Church is a real one, say those engaged in that ministry - especially if the couple is not practicing their Catholic faith at the time of their wedding.īut the best place to start is “to lead with witness and belonging,” said Emily Burds, the marriage preparation coordinator for the Archdiocesan Office of Evangelization and Catechesis. The Holy Father’s words were part of the preface he wrote to a document released June 15 by the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, which made headlines around the world and sparked a dialogue surrounding the state of marriage preparation in the modern Church.

#LUMEN CHRISTI MEQUON WEDDING WOJO SERIES#

This is the second in a two-part series on using Marriage Prep as an evangelization tool.Įarlier this summer, Pope Francis wrote that the Church must “walk an important stretch of road together” with couples who are seeking sacramental marriage, urging accompaniment that continues “even after the wedding, especially during moments of crisis.”

Lumen christi mequon wedding wojo