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Welcome To Catholic Engaged Encounter
What is Engaged Encounter all about?
The Catholic Engaged Encounter weekend is a retreat for couples preparing for marriage within the Catholic tradition. Offering:
1. A live-in or online experience away from daily life distractions and wedding planning stress.
2. A focused environment for couples to have honest, in-depth conversations about their future marriage.
3. Guided discussions on crucial topics including:
- Financial management
- Family planning and raising children
- Intimate relationships and sexuality
- Relationships with extended family
- Maintaining friendships
- Role of faith and religion in married life together
4. Presentations by experienced couples on these topics, incorporating Catholic beliefs and values.
5. A structured process where, after each presentation:
- Partners individually reflect and write down their thoughts
- Couples then share their reflections privately with each other
- No public or group sharing is required
6. Opportunities to explore personal identity, roles, and mutual expectations within the relationship.
The primary goal is to strengthen the couple’s bond and understanding of each other as they prepare for marriage, all within a supportive Catholic Christian context. This weekend aims to provide a foundation for a strong, faith-centered marriage.
Who should attend an Engaged Encounter?
The programme is for couples of any age, who are preparing to marry and are mature enough to believe their good relationship can become even better.
For couples planning to be married in the Catholic Church, marriage preparation is compulsory. Other programmes are available but it is our belief that the Engaged Encounter weekend offers a unique and intensive experience to couples.
The weekend is Catholic in orientation and is presented by two Catholic couples and a priest but couples of other faiths are welcome.
WHAT HAPPENS ON ENGAGED ENCOUNTER?
The live-in weekend starts with registration on Friday evening and ends on Sunday afternoon.
Through a series of presentations based on the lived experience of the team the engaged couples are exposed to a number of relevant issues and encouraged to reflect and then discuss these privately from the perspective of their own unique relationship. This couple sharing is the most important part of the weekend.
