The Catholic Church considers Christian marriage a unique calling, believing that the married couple, in their love for one another, models Christ’s, unconditional love.
As a sponsor couple, you are the most important gift we can offer our engaged in their marriage preparation, for you bring the concepts of Christian marriage ALIVE through your lived experience. In your role as sponsor couple, you will act as facilitators guiding your engaged couple through a preparation program that leads them to a deeper understanding of one another and their call to their vocation of Christian marriage. You will also act as “modelers” teaching more through the sharing of your own marriage relationship than any formal class or textbook could convey.
Sponsors couples must be practicing the Catholic faith and their marriage must be recognized by the Catholic Church. It is recommended that the couple be married for at least ten years or have a very mature relationship. The couple needs to be able to share their life experiences to help demonstrate to the engaged how to cope with their evolving relationship in real-life terms. In the process of preparing the engaged couple and sharing with them, the sponsor couple experiences an enrichment of their own marriage.
In this program, the engaged couple takes an online Facilitating Open Couple Communication Understanding and Study (FOCCUS) pre-inventory marriage preparation survey. Upon completion, the Director of Marriage and Family Life receives notification that the survey has been completed and the report is ready to be printed. An engaged couple sponsor is then assigned to the engaged couple. There are five sessions in which they will meet at the home of the sponsor couple at the convenience of both couples. These are very personal and have received many accolades from engaged couples who evaluate their sessions. A Diocesan program is also available with group sessions in a classroom setting for extraordinary situations.
As a sponsor couple, you will be required to attend a two-day training session presented by a certified engaged couple sponsor facilitator trainer. The Sponsor Couple Program provides a personal approach that addresses the unique needs and issues of the engaged couple in a one-on-one fashion. The sharing of experiences brings forth laughter and sometimes tears as both couples come to know one another. The engaged couple benefits from a caring interest in their future marriage, and the sponsor couple is enlivened by the enthusiasm and optimism of the engaged couple. This is a heartwarming ministry. When “your couple” walks down the aisle, you will find that proverbial lump in your throat.
If you would like to be a part of helping engaged couples understand the commitment required for a successful marriage, while enriching your own relationship with your spouse, this ministry may be for you. If you have any questions, please contact Diane Salazar at (972) 279-6581, ext. 107, or DianeS@stmichaelgarland.org.