Programs designed for engaged couples

10 REASONS WHY CATHOLIC MARRIAGE PREP WORKS
Catholic Marriage Prep Blog

Agapè Catholic Marriage Preparation
The only one-on-one mentor led online, Theology of the Body marriage prep program
Agapè Catholic Marriage Preparation invites couples to a deeper relationship with each other and with Christ, one couple at a time. Online, on-demand instruction rooted in Saint John Paul II’s Theology of the Body, combined with personalized mentoring from a trained married couple, builds a foundation for a strong, healthy, Christ-centered marriage between a man and a woman.
Christ himself said, “Without me you can do nothing…” John 15:5
Fee: $239
Language: English, Spanish, French

Register
Urgent Care available for couples who have less than four weeks, but at least 10 days to prepare for marriage.
Fee: $289

Instructions to receive $60 discount on your Tennessee Marriage License
Scan and email your CatholicMarriagePrep.com completion certificate to Carolyn Krings and she will email you a certificate to receive a $60 discount on your Tennessee marriage license. You must participate in CatholicMarriagePrep.com no more than one year prior to the date of application for the marriage license to receive discount. The marriage license is valid for 30 days.

Our motto is “A wedding is a day, a marriage is a lifetime.” Most people spend months planning and many dollars preparing for their wedding. But how much time and effort do we spend preparing for what we hope will last 50 or 60 years—our marriage? Catholic Engaged Encounter is a weekend to plan for a sacramental marriage. It is designed to give couples the opportunity to talk privately, honestly and intensively about their prospective lives together—their strengths and weaknesses, desires, ambitions, goals, their attitudes about money, sex, children, family, their role in the church and society—in a guided format. Cost of the weekend is $205 per couple, which includes a certificate good for a $60 discount on the couple’s marriage license in Tennessee. To receive a $60 discount you must attend a marriage preparation weekend within one year of purchasing the license.

Co-coordinators:
Richard & Leslie Consoli
[email protected]
865-803-6790

Paul & Pam Shaffer
[email protected] or [email protected]  

For more information or to register for a weekend, please visit https://knoxville.engagedencounter.com or call Leslie Consoli at 865-803-6790.

• Complete your Pre-Cana requirements online, anytime, anywhere.
• Register now, start whenever, full access for an entire year.
• Receive a Certificate of Completion as soon as you’re done.

How it works
Fee: $225  Registration
Languages: Downloadable materials available in English and Spanish. Videos in English with captioning in Spanish.

Marriage Group Pre-Cana

The Marriage Group provides engaged couples with accessible, engaging relationship-building courses through online and on-demand marriage preparation and enrichment courses that are modern and relatable. Available in both English with Spanish subtitles, these series of courses can be completed on your schedule. 

Prepare & Enrich Inventory: A “premarital inventory” helps couples to discuss important issues that impact relationships. This interactive tool encourages discussion and uncovers issues that couples may not have discovered themselves.

This marriage preparation program is a supplement to the couple’s marriage formation with their parish priest or deacon. The Picture of Love marriage preparation program for engaged couples explores the joys and challenges of living out the Sacrament of Matrimony with special focus on the importance of inviting Jesus to be the center of marriage and family life. The program will help the couple gain insights into their relationship, as well as give them practical ideas and tools to help smooth their journey and become the “Picture of Love” to one another.

Cost is $175 per couple (PoL program certificate will get the couple a $60 discount on their Tennessee marriage license.) You must attend the entire program to receive your certificate. PoL program must be completed no more that one year prior to the date of application for the marriage license to receive discount. The marriage license is valid for 30 days.

This program is sponsored by the Diocese of Knoxville Office of Marriage Preparation and Enrichment in conjunction with the Chattanooga Deanery.

Complete registration form, save, print, and mail with payment of $175 a minimum of two weeks prior to the date of your choice. Option: You may attach completed registration form to email after saving it and send it in to the Office of Marriage Preparation and Enrichment. 

In an effort to keep the Picture of Love on schedule, we ask that you complete the following exercises individually in advance and bring results with you. You will share with your fiancé/fiancée during the program. The results are for your information only and meant to enhance your discussions as a couple.

• Personality Test
• Love language Profile for Couples
• Budget Worksheet_fillable

SMARTLoving.org
Fee: $69 – $273
Languages: English

SmartLoving Engaged is an online course that will lead you and your fiancé through your marriage preparation process.  There are 9 lessons in total, each taking about 1.5 hours to complete. We recommend that you do one lesson a week and take your time to understand the content and practise the life changing tools you will be learning. You will receive a course report and completion certificate on completing the course that you can share with your celebrant.

The SmartLoving Engaged curriculum has ecclesiastical approval and is approved for use in numerous dioceses throughout Australia, New Zealand, the UK, USA and Asia. It has been favourably reviewed by the Pontifical Council of the Family. It is the fruit of three decades of experience working with engaged and married couples. 

Lesson 1 | Mission to Love 
This session introduces the concept of Smart Loving - a practical insight designed to make your efforts to love more efficient by helping you learn the specific ways in which your fiancé experiences love. Learn how gratitude and affirmation can transform your life and your relationship.
Lesson 2 | Dialogue: Being One
Using the L.I.F.E. communication framework, you will learn how to communicate effectively and intimately with each other. A technique for accomplishing Emotional Communion (empathy) is also taught along with practical tips for everyday communication.
Lesson 3 | Knowing Me, Knowing You
A detailed examination of your attitudes and beliefs about roles, work, family traditions, children, sexuality and marriage, looking particularly at your family of origin. The impact of other significant relationships is also addressed along with a strategy for processing emotional injuries.
Lesson 4 | Building Unity
Evaluate your priorities and examine your expectations for your future life together. Learn how to use the Stop-Reflect-Connect tool for values-based decision- making so that you can make genuine couple decisions that will always bring you closer.
Lesson 5 | Restoring Unity
Examine the dynamics that lead to conflict and learn how to avoid it.  Unpack your conflict patterns and learn strategies for healing your relationship after an argument or hurt. Learn how to restore your unity with the Stop-LIFE- Reflect-Connect - a powerful process of reconciliation.
Lesson 6 | Sex: Sacred Embrace
Discover how marital sex is an intimate communication rather than just a recreational activity; a powerful resource for healing, reconciliation and the rejuvenation. The theology of sex as a sacramental gesture and a renewal of wedding vows is explored.
Lesson 7 | Love Gives Life
Discover the wonder of human fertility and learn how to live harmoniously with your bodies in a way that protects your health and honours the creator. Discuss your family goals and learn how to achieve them with modern, effective Fertility Awareness Methods.
Lesson 8 | A Living Sign
Learn about the sacramentality of marriage and how a Catholic marriage differs from a secular one. Discuss the commitment you are making on your wedding day and prepare your wedding liturgy.
Lesson 9 | Soul Mates for Life
Explore your unique spirituality and unlock the power of spiritual intimacy. Learn how to pray together and what to pray for. Reflect on your learning and design your marital fitness plan to take you into marriage.

Nihil Obstat: Most Rev. Michael Kennedy, Bishop of Armidale
Imprimatur: +Most Reverend Anthony Fisher OP, Archbishop of Sydney

Unveiled is the Diocese of Richmond’s program for couples who are preparing for a lifetime of marriage together. This program is offered as a day-long Saturday reflection for couples that are preparing for a marriage recognized by the Catholic Church. Each couple is given opportunities to question, examine, and deepen their relationship with each other and with God. Couples are challenged to explore their relationship prayerfully, in a much deeper, more honest way than they have before. The session is divided into three main components – Communication & Intimacy, Theology of Marriage, and Spirituality of a Marriage.

Click to find Unveiled dates available and to register.

Time: 8:00 a.m. – 8:30 p.m. Fee: $170 per couple (all materials and meals are included) Contact: Center for Marriage, Family and Life at [email protected] , 804-622-5109.