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Opportunities for
professional growth in marriage and other
topics are offered throughout
the year at St. Dominic Center
Formation
Family
Perspective
The Family Life
office provides formation programs of
varying length and depth based on the USCCB
document, Family Perspective in Church and
Society. These are available to any parish
or organization that is seeking to improve
their ministry to and with families.
There are several
different levels and formats for this
formation. Ministry with Families 101 and
201 are each 12-hour courses. Shorter
workshops (4-8 hrs) are specifically
designed to meet particular needs.
For more information
please call::
713 741-8710 or e-mail
winhoney@archgh.org
Marriage & Family
Institute
This is a four-module
course for clergy, lay ministers, and others
who minister to and with families, sponsored
by the University of St. Thomas School of
Theology at St. Mary’s Seminary and the
Office of the Diaconate. It offers three
courses on Marriage and Family Advocacy and
Creating Parish Support for Marriage and
Family Life. The courses take place at St.
Mary’s Seminary at 9845 Memorial Drive,
Houston.
For more information
and dates please contact:
Deacon Gerald DuPont
at 713 686-4345, ext 268 or e-mail
gwdupont@hughes.net
To download
registration form and curriculum
click here.
Family Advocate
Formation
This is a 14-week
course for those who want to expand their
knowledge of the family, and to be empowered
to strengthen the partnership between
families and the parish. The course offers
an in-depth look at the Family Perspective
and impacts individuals on a personal and
ministerial level. Many who have completed
the course have commented that as they
learned about family systems and their own
family of origin, the knowledge strengthened
their own family as well as their ministry.
Parish workshops on selected topics from the
course are available on request. Parishes
may also purchase the course manual for
their own use.
For more information
please call:
713 741-8710 or e-mail
winhoney@archgh.org
Ministry with
Families
Ministry with
Families is a learning experience to enrich
your ongoing formation as a ministry person
whose efforts touch families. The overall
goal of this program is to offer
experimental learning that will hopefully
will life-long and ongoing. During the
workshop, Family Systems Theory and the
elements of ministering with a Family
Perspective will be central to your
learning. This course will concentrate on
three distinct family systems at the same
time: the persons to whom you are
ministering, the parish or diocesan family,
and your own family. This is a wonderful
step in your personal and professional
formation.
Get the informational flyer and registration form.
For more information
please contact:
Alicia Pérez at 713
741-8776 or e-mail
aperez@archgh.org
Formational Training
for Nullity Case Sponsors
This is a new 36-hour
formational training program for Nullity
Case Sponsors, heartily supported by
Archbishop Daniel N. DiNardo. Through this
formational training, we are offering the
opportunity to ensure that deacons and
specially chosen lay people will be trained
to serve as Nullity Case Sponsors. We expect
every parish to have trained Nullity Case
Sponsors. A pastor may send as many
individuals as he deems necessary. As
always, any priest is welcome to attend any
or all of these sessions.
For more information
go to:
www.diogh.org/Tribunal/nullityformation.htm
If you have any
questions, contact:
The Metropolitan
Tribunal at 713 807-9286 or toll free 1 877
674-5801 or email
tribunal@archgh.org
Certificate for
Adult Catechists
An 18-hour program,
designed for those seeking the Archdiocesan
Catechist Certificate. The course offers
complete curriculum on spirituality of the
catechist, catechesis and liturgy, the role
of the family in catechesis, cultural
perspectives in catechesis, and other topics
related to the adult learner.
For more information
please contact Michael Way at 713 741-8730
or e-mail
mway@archgh.org
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Training
God's Plan for a Joy-Filled Marriage Training
This program is offered to marriage preparation ministers or to those interested in becoming trained to use the God’s plan materials in our Archdiocese or in their parish. This program is endorsed by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo; God’s Plan is a wonderful marriage preparation supplement tht offers engaged couples a compelling presentation of God’s plan for marital love. The program explores the ‘why’s’ behind the ‘what’s’ of Catholic teaching in a non-threatening and convincing manner.
Informational Flyer • Registration Form
For more information
please contact:
Alicia Perez at
713 741-8776 or e-mail aperez@archgh.org
FOCCUS (Facilitating
Open Couple Communication, Understanding and
Study)
The FOCCUS & REFOCCUS
marriage preparation inventories are widely
used in parishes across the archdiocese.
The Family Life office provides consultation
and training for parish staff and volunteers
who wish to use these instruments.
FOCCUS is available
in Spanish and English, and there is also a
new “abridged” (simpler and shorter)
version.
For more information
please contact:
David Fowler at
713 741-8708 or e-mail
dfowler@archgh.org
Download brochure
Married in the
Catholic Church
This program is
designed as a flexible-schedule,
parish-based program. Special emphasis is
placed on sacramental preparation for
matrimony. The presenting team consists of
2-3 married couples and a priest or deacon
(priest required for Reconciliation).
Additional resources for hospitality, prayer
support, etc., are recommended.
Each of the seven
presentations is followed by an activity or
exercise by the engaged; it is designed to
be presented to a group of engaged couples,
and suitable for parish-, deanery- or
diocesan-level groups.
For more information
please contact:
Joe DeVet at
713 723-5686 or e-mail
jdevet@archgh.org
Unitas: Training of
Trainers
A seven-session
process that integrates faith formation,
information about topics of concern to
engaged couples and opportunities for
building connections with the parish; it
includes rituals, presentations and
individual couple dialogue. Minimal cost to
engaged couple and to parish. Also available
in Spanish.
For more information
please call:
713 741-8710 or e-mail
winhoney@archgh.org
Picture of Love:
Training of Trainers
This program is
designed for training parish volunteers or
staff. It is an adaptable program for those
engaged for the first time and for those
seeking convalidation of prior civil
marriages. Can be offered over four or six
evening sessions, two half-day sessions or a
one-day session. Integrates faith formation
and information about topics of concern to
engaged couples. Includes presentations and
individual couple dialogue. Also available
in Spanish.
For more information
please call:
713 741-8710 or e-mail
winhoney@archgh.org
Natural Family
Planning Training
The Family Life
Office offers training and enrichment for
persons doing or planning on doing marriage
preparation at the parish or/and diocesan
level.
For more information
please contact:
Joe DeVet at 281
723-5686 or e-mail
jdevet@archgh.org or
nfpflm@aol.com
Family Retreat
Ministry
Training for
facilitators seeking to offer family
retreats in the Archdiocese. Those planning
to become facilitators must complete the
following two-part preparation: Part I:
Creating Sacred Spaces for Young People
offered by the Office of Youth Ministry and
part II: Consultation and training with FLM.
For more information
please contact:
Alicia Pérez at 713
741-8776 or e-mail
aperez@archgh.org
Ministry with
Persons Separated, Divorced and Widowed
Leadership training
for persons wishing to coordinate and
support groups in their parishes.
For more information
please contact:
David Fowler at
713 741-8708 or e-mail
dfowler@archgh.org
Sponsor Couple
Training
A parish-based
program in which a married couple serves as
a “sponsor” to an engaged couple. In five
outlined sessions, the sponsor couple helps
prepare the engaged couple for the important
step they will be taking.
Through individual
reflection, written assignments and group
dialogue, the engaged couple learns of
married life from a couple already living a
Christian marriage.
For more information
please contact Rev. Robert A. Ruhnke, C.SS.R.,
D. Min. at (210) 534-1129 or e-mail
rruhnke@sbcglobal.net.
You can also visit
the website
www.marriagepreparation.com
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Samaritan Ministry
Samaritan Ministry
offers a 1-day workshop of concise training
focusing on anticipatory grief (during the
times of prolonged illness, by providing
spiritual support, emotional support. And
practical assistance to the ill and their
caregivers), Shock grief (at the time of
death, by guidance for those making the
arrangements and offering practical
assistance) and lingering grief (after the
death, by offering comfort and support to
the families and friend coping with the lost
of the love one) The training provides
information on how to organize a caring
ministry; how to offer support and comfort,
and how to recruit and train volunteers. It
works harmoniously with existing church
services and makes use of support systems
and community services.
Samaritan Ministry is offered in English
only. For more information or registration,
contact (281) 589-8936or e-mail
NatlSam86@cs.com or visit
www.thesamaritanministry.org .
Dates offered
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Crown Financial
Ministry
Crown Financial
Ministry offers a 10-week bible study about
biblical financial principles that are
entirely different from those of our
culture. According to Crown, “The bible has
2,350 verses dealing with money and
possessions. How we handle money impacts our
relationship with the Lord.”
The purposes of the
bible study are to: (1) Encourage people to
experience a more intimate relationship with
Jesus Christ; (2) Challenge each person to
submit to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior,
(3) Build closer relationships among
participants, and (4) Help students put
their financial house in order.
This scriptural
financial study is a life-changing small
group study that addresses: Getting Out of
Debt, Budgeting, Spending, Saving, Giving
and Investing.
Crown Bible Study is
offered three times a year: January, May,
and September at several parishes in the
diocese. Groups meet two hours per week for
10 weeks. One to two hours of preparation
are required outside of class each week.
For more information
contact:
Margaret Schueler,
Crown church coordinator at St. Thomas More
Church, Houston, at 713 666-1311 or e-mail
schueler@bigplanet.com or visit
www.crown.org
Conferences
National
Association of Catholic Family Life
Ministers (NACFLM)
This organization
strives to implement a new vision of family
ministry through personal and professional
enrichment and support for those who
minister to families.
NACFLM is committed
by offering support to members through
family ministry resources and professional
enrichment, to further an understanding of
the realities of family life today, to
promote the development of the family
ministry, and to foster a family perspective
in all of the Church and society.
To visit the NACFLM
site go to
www.nacflm.org
If you would like to
become a member of NACFLM
click here for the application
form.
Annual NACFLM
Conference
Held every year
Click on
www.nacflm.org
for more information.
The NACFLM conference
will be held in conjunction with
the Smart Marriages (see below).
Smart Marriages
Conference
Successful couples
have the same number of disagreements as the
couples who divorce. Even more interesting,
all couples disagree about all the same
basic issues - money, kids, sex, housework,
in-laws and time.
The difference
between successful and unsuccessful couples
is how they handle their differences.
Successful couples disagree in a way that
makes their relationship stronger. They
also have other skills and attitudes that
help them build long-term happiness and
satisfaction.
The good news is that
anyone can learn to do it better and
smarter. Couples can unlearn the behaviors
that destroy love and… replace them with
behaviors that keep love alive. Learning the
skills also gives couples a new "can do"
attitude. This conference is a good
resource of different topics that can help
anyone to improve their own relationship or
others.
To get more information please visit http://www.smartmarriages.com/conferencedetails.html to download an informational flyer and (beginning Feb. 2008) the conference registration brochure.
Annual Grief
Teleconference
Every year, the Hospice Foundation of
America broadcasts an annual
live-via-satellite teleconference hosted by
Family Life Ministry in Houston.
Our next teleconference will be held at St.
Dominic Center on Wednesday, April 16, 2008,
1:30pm-4:00pm EST.
The HFA's 2008 Teleconference will focus on
the experience of grieving children and
adolescents and the ways that hospice
professionals, teachers and school
administrators, grief counselors, funeral
directors, and parents can best support
these populations as they cope with loss and
grief. The program and newly published book
will focus on the most current theories and
practices in this area and, as always, will
combine academic research with hands-on
ideas for use in hospice support groups and
other settings.
At the conclusion of the 2008
teleconference, participants will be able
to:
•
Describe the situations that might engender
grief in children and adolescents as well as
the particular ways that grief may be
manifested in children and adolescents;
•
Describe and evaluate strategies for work
with grieving children and adolescents,
including counseling, support groups,
expressive and play therapies, school-based
programs, and camp-based programs;
•
Discuss effective strategies to empower
parents and other support systems, such as
schools and faith communities, to assist
grieving children and adolescents; and
•
Describe the unique issues that grieving
children and adolescents pose for
professional caregivers and offer strategies
for effective self-help and professional
support.
For more information please contact
mroman@archgh.org or call (713) 741-8711
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Living Covenant
A Scripture-Based
Lenten Retreat for Married Couples sponsored
by this Office, presented by a couple and a
priest team.
This is a weekend
retreat for married couples geared to taking
a step back from all that is going on in
everyday life and to examining the basic
relationships of marriage-with each other,
with our family, with God, with society.
There is an opportunity for the couples to
privately consider these important
relationships and to grow in faith and love.
We do not accept
registration over the phone, all you need to
do is to send your completed registration
form along with the payment. Space is
limited, please register early. For more
information, contact Margie Costner at (713)
741-8706 or
mcostner@archg.org .
• The cost
including room and meals is $195 per couple.
• Please
complete the registration form with a $25
deposit payable to:
Family Life Ministry
Attn. Living Covenant
2403 Holcombe Blvd.
Houston, TX 77021-2023
•
Check-in begins Friday at 7 p.m. with
the program following promptly at 7:30.
• There is
no evening meal Friday
Dates offered •
Download brochure • Download registration form:
Microsoft Word
Retreats
Family Retreats at
Circle Lake Retreat Center
FLM promotes and
organizes diverse types of family retreats
in which the family members can grow closer
to God through praying, sharing faith,
learning, and playing together. The Circle
Lake Retreat center in Pinehurst, off
highway 249 between Tomball and Magnolia is
designed to comfortably accommodate family
retreats, reunions and other family
gatherings. Parishes and other organizations
are encouraged to also promote and organize
family retreats and to reserve space at
Circle Lake. Families are able to
participate in a diverse quantity of
programs organized by Circle Lake retreat
Center. To get more information about Circle
Lake retreats, facilities and fees please
visit
www.archgh.org/CircleLake/programs.htm
or by e-mail
CLRprograms@sbcglobal.net .
For more information
and fees please visit
www.archgh.org/CircleLake/programs.htm
Retreats: External
Links
For programs and events at Circle Lake
Retreat Center
Cenacle Retreat House
Retreats and activities in English and Spanish
Retreats for lay, clergy, married couples,
youth and other programs
Christian Renewal Center - for
interdenominational retreats
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Workshops
Greater Houston
Healthy Marriage Coalition: Couples
Communication Workshops
The Greater Houston
Healthy Marriage Coalition offers to all
couples that are married, engaged or
considering marriage free workshops on
communication. These workshops are
guaranteed to bring you and your partner
closer together. Financial assistance is
available to pay for childcare, for children
12 and under, and transportation costs.
Meals or refreshments are served during the
workshops. Sharing personal information is
not required.
Workshop locations and dates.
• African- American
Couples:
This workshop is
directed to all couples in the
African-American community.
• Asian Couples:
This workshop is
directed to all couples in the Chinese and
Vietnamese community.
• Spanish-Speaking
Couples:
These workshops are
directed to all Latino couples.
• English-Speaking
Couples:
This workshop is
directed to all couples in the English
Speaking community.
For more information
and free registration, call Dr. Daphine
Lambert at (713) 802-7852
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Formation and
Training Resource Links
Development of men in the modern world
www.foryourmarriage.org
www.smartmarriage.com/marriage.reports.html
www.marriageministry.net
www.healthymarriageinfo.org
www.usccb.org/laity/marriage/npim.shtml
www.usccb.org/comm/archives/2007/07-106.shtml
www.archden.org/home/index.php
www.foccusinc.com
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