All of the events are condensed into a two-day retreat. Parish-based or non-residential weekends have gained in popularity, where couples go to a local parish and come home in the evening. Generally, a Marriage Encounter weekend is considered residential, meaning couples stay overnight in a hotel or retreat center, and it lasts from Friday evening to Sunday afternoon. Once Tony became Catholic, he and Janine were able to become presenters for the ministry, which they have done in various locations around the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, though mostly in Ohio. His chosen sponsor was one of the men from their Marriage Encounter group. The Browns met on November 22, married on December 22 of the following year, and – not by coincidence – Tony was baptized on April 22. Finally, she asked if he was ever going to join the RCIA program, which he did. After that, he started going to church with us every week,” Janine said. “Somewhere during that penance service, something changed. He accompanied Janine to one of the last Advent penance services before Christmas, initially only because he needed her to take him up to nearby Garrett to pick up his truck, and St. It was after a Christmas party with their Marriage Encounter group that Tony had a spiritual awakening. Seeing the faith of the men in the group greatly impressed him. They became involved in Marriage Encounter and spent time with a group of others in the ministry. In a roundabout way, it was Marriage Encounter that helped solidify his journey to the Catholic Church. “We grew up unchurched, and I was interested in her faith mostly because the way she explained it to me was she had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. At the time they attended their weekend, more than 20 years ago, Tony was not Catholic. One great change it brought regarded Tony’s faith life. And it has changed so much about our lives.” The catch is, you have to take them home and use them. A Marriage Encounter weekend gives you tools to strengthen your marriage. “I’ll say that it is not magic,” Janine cautioned. One of the greatest lessons they learned was how to better communicate and approach any issues in a loving manner. “He had stopped telling me his hopes and dreams because I generally shut them down by saying ‘we can’t afford it,’” Janine clarified.įor the Browns, Marriage Encounter took their relationship to a whole new level. During the course of that conversation, Tony confessed that he had stopped “blue-skying” with Janine. In general, they considered their marriage to be a strong, solid union one that others looked up to.Īfter hearing another couple speak at her parish about an upcoming weekend, Janine suggested to Tony that they attend. But it was on a date night that Janine and Tony discovered that their marriage could benefit from this program. It is certainly not the only tool, but for those who have a good marriage, Janine explained, a Marriage Encounter weekend can make it better.īoth Tony’s and Janine’s parents had attended Marriage Encounter weekends and his mother urged them to go on one not long after they had wed, professing that it had changed her own marriage. While it is not a specific outreach of the Catholic Church, it is Catholic-based and one of many tools that couples can use to strengthen their marriages. Since then, it has spread to 94 countries worldwide. WWME dates back to the 1950s in Spain and was introduced in the U.S. For 20 of those years, the Browns have been involved with Worldwide Marriage Encounter. And she would know, having been married to her husband Tony for 40 years. Every couple wants their perfect ending.īut “no marriage is perfect,” said Janine Brown. Underneath the saccharine sappiness of these flicks is the deep desire to have the kind of love story that ends in the perfect marriage. T here’s something about Hallmark films that can leave people in a state of longing.
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