Congratulations on your recent engagement - this is an exciting moment in your life. Allow me to echo that the "Joy of the Lord is upon us" from He "Who has brought us glad tiding." What God has joined together, man must not separate! What these words represent is why you are here today. You desire to witness before God and His Church your "yes" to love another in the sacrament of holy matrimony. Christ welcomes your "yes," and the Church journeys with you in proclaiming it.
Marriage is a life-long "yes" in love to one another, to life, to family and to society. Are you ready for this all-consuming "yes"?Marriage perfects us and perfects our spouses; it brings us into an entire new "scene" of our life - a new chapter. However, we shouldn't judge a book by its cover. An author doesn't sit down and write a best-selling novel on a whim. He spends months in preparation investigating his story, its many interpretations and outcomes. Each of us has our own story, and the goal of marriage preparation process is to help us see how our stories and the stories of our spouses will create God's masterpiece of love!
Contact Pastor at least six months in advance at 985-242-4099 ext. 3
Contact Valerie & Travis Callais to take the FOCCUS Questionnaire at (985) 637-4879
Attend the "Marriage Encounter Weekend" of New Orleans or the "Marriage Day for the Engaged" in Houma
Contact Kayla Danos to take an introduction session to "Natural Family Planning" at (225) 993-2472
1. The Pre-Nuptial Inquiry
The Pre-Nuptial Inquiry is the legal form of the Church for recording the personal details for you and your spouse. In case the information should ever be needed, the pre-nuptial form records the personal information you and your spouse in regard to past marriages, residential information, church records, etc.
In answering the pre-nuptial inquiry, a list of questions will be asked of each of the engaged which must be answered separately. These are critical questions for the validity of the marriage, such as, opens to marriage, openness to children, openness of parents-in-law, etc. Please answer these questions with the utmost honesty.
2. The FOCCUS Questionarre
The Foccus Questionarre is administered by Travis and Valerie Callais (637-4879) for St. Joseph’s Parish. This questionarre is not at test and should not be treated as one. It is a simple tool to help the couple preparing for marriage identify any areas where they have not communicated well for the future, whether it be finances, number of children, relationship boundaries, etc. The couple meets with the Callais family to answer the questions and then meets again to go over the answers. The FOCCUS couple helps guide the couple preparing for marriage to discuss with one another those areas of their life that need more discussion before entering into the sacrament of marriage.
Visit “foccusinc.com” to learn more..
3. “Engaged Encounter” or “Marriage Preparation Day”
“Engaged Encounter” is a weekend-long retreat for the engaged held at the Carmelite Spirituality Center in Lacombe, LA, nestled within the scenic forest north of Lake Pontchartrain. The “engaged encounter” is a weekend experience in which an atmosphere is created that enables each couple to concentrate exclusively on one another while reflecting on their relationship and the concrete form that relationship will take within a marriage and as a family. The “Engaged Encounter” weekend is by far the better choice for couples seriously preparing for marriage.
To read more about the “Engaged Encounter” weekend and to view available dates and to register for a weekend, please visit “www.nocee.org”.
“Marriage Preparation Day” is a one-day retreat for engaged couples sponsored by the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux. The “marriage preparation day” gives couples the experience to dialogue honestly and intensely about their prospective life together. Officials from the Office of Family Ministry along with volunteer married couples offer different talks and raise different issues that will affect the life of the future married couple, such as, cohabitation, family of origin, and natural family planning. Attendance at the “Engaged Encounter” weekend or the “Marriage Preparation Day” is mandatory for the sacrament of marriage in the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux.
To register for the “Marriage Prep Day” visit “www.htdiocese.org/mp”