Office of Family Life

Role of the Office

 The Office of Family Life assists Pastors in preparing couples for marriage and seeks to support and strengthen family life.

Marriage

Marriage Preparation

The Church rejoices with you and is grateful for the gift of your loving commitment to each other. The Church offers her loving support including special graces from the Holy Spirit through the Sacrament of Marriage to strengthen you in living the fullness of your lives together in marital love.

Marriage Enrichment

Find out more about marriage enrichment programs.

Separated & Divorced Couples - Books

Books

Annulments and the Catholic Church: Straight Answers to Tough Questions – Edward Peters, J.D., J.C.D.

Many questions abound regarding this issue, one which unfortunately touches the lives of many in the Church today. In this helpful book, canon and civil lawyer Edward N. Peters clears up some of the confusion by answering the most commonly-asked annulment questions in a thorough yet easy-to-understand style.

Courage to Love… When Your Marriage Hurts – Gerald Foley

Building on the experience of Retrouvaille, a successful church-sponsored ministry, this book focuses on building relationships. It invites couples to reconciliation, to rebuilding trust, to learning the skills necessary for healthy communication, and to growing spiritually through the lived reality of married life.

December Roses: Pastoral Reflections on Divorce – Hector M. Medina

Though much literature has been written on this topic, this book details the thought processes associated with the planning and execution of a divorce and the painful emotions and feelings which occur, while at the same time providing a means of prayerful healing for those involved in the divorce situation.

The Divorce Remedy: The Proven 7-Step Program for Saving Your Marriage – Michele Weiner Davis

In a down-to-earth style, Weiner Davis outlines a realistic, solution-oriented seven-step program for managing marital problems, which, when left unchecked, can drain the life out of a relationship.

How to Understand & Petition for Your Decree of Nullity – Rose Sweet

Only God can see deeply into the human heart. He knows how human frailty and weakness, and inabilities of some people to enter into marriage freely and fully despite their best attempts. After careful study of such an attempted union, the Church may be able to declare that no valid marriage bond was created. And this book will help you understand the process.

Marriage 911: How God Saved Our Marriage – Greg & Julie Alexander

Greg and Julie Alexander thought divorce was the only way out of their lifeless, loveless marriage. Quite unexpectedly, a faithful priest guided them back to the truths of the Church, and as they began to incorporate these truths into their lives, they were able to restore the love they once had for each other. Marriage 911 chronicles their journey back from the brink of divorce to marital happiness built on a strong Catholic faith.

Rebuilding After Divorce: Making Your House a Home Again – Rose Sweet

Whether you’ve recently divorced or it’s been a few years, you can rebuild a life rich in faith, hope, and lots of love. But first, you’ll need blueprints, clear directions to make your house a home again. For over 20 years, Rose Sweet has brought her wit and wisdom to the separated, divorced, and remarried.

Separated & Divorced Couples - Resources

Answers to Common Questions about Separation and Divorce  A document prepared by the Archdiocese of St. Louis, with material from Rose Sweet

Divorced Catholic We invite you on a journey back to a life filled with promise and peace. Allow Christ to walk with you as you rediscover His healing and rejuvenating power through the wisdom, richness, and truth of your Catholic faith.

Catholic Divorce Ministry Since 1974, CDM has been committed to the healing and recovery of those who have experienced separation and divorce.

Separated Faithful: Divorced or separated Catholics who remain faithful to marriage. Catholics who were reluctantly divorced or separated can continue to fulfill their marriage mission – to sanctify themselves and your spouse. Discuss the ongoing seven stages from the book, “The Gift of Self, A Spiritual Companion for Separated and Divorced Faithful to the Sacrament of Marriage.” See book review on USCCB. A conference phone call, second-Mondays monthly, at 9 pm.  Contact SeparatedFaithful@outlook.com, with your name, parish, city.

The St. Raymond Nonnatus FoundationWe help families affected by divorce and separation through prayerful accompaniment and support groups.

The St. Raymond Nonnatus Foundation for Freedom, Family, Faith offers spiritual accompaniment for those affected by divorce and separation and families in crisis. They are headquartered in Philadelphia. For more information about the foundation go to www.nonnatus.org. Please subscribe to their YouTube Channel to receive notifications about upcoming podcasts.  Subscribe by clicking here. For more information about their services click here to send an email to the director.

Wedding Anniversary Celebration

The Office of Family Life is excited to celebrate our Annual Diocesan Wedding Anniversary Masses.

Join us for one of our celebrations:
St. Mary Cathedral, Cape Girardeau
 – Sunday, February 4, 2024 at 1:00pm
St. Agnes Cathedral, Springfield
– Saturday, February 10, 2024 at 1:00-3:00pm

Register Now!

The event includes a special Mass with Bishop Edward M. Rice, followed by a reception.

Couples who will or have celebrated their 1st, 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th, 25th, 30th, 35th, 40th, 45th, 50th, or 50+ anniversary anytime during the current year are cordially invited to attend with their family and friends.

Couples celebrating their anniversary, please pre-register for one of these two events to receive a Marriage Certificate from Bishop Rice. And those celebrating 25th & 50th years of Marriage will receive an Episcopal Blessing and a special gift from Bishop Rice.

These occasions enable us to celebrate and affirm the great gift of married love within our families and communities. Please make plans to attend!

Family Life

Natural Family Planning

Modern Natural Family Planning is 100% natural and up to 99% effective as a family planning method. Learn how NFP benefits a couple’s relationship -including the nearly non-existent divorce rate among NFP-practicing couples.

 

Adoption

Adoption is a very personal — very loving — choice for birth parents and adoptive parents. If you’re considering adoption, Catholic Charities of Kansas City-St. Joseph will walk with you every step of the way. Read more.


In response to the call of Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd, to help those in need, we connect children with families and keep families connected. 
Read more.

Infertility Resources

Almost 1 in 10 couples will face some degree of infertility and rates of infertility have been rising in recent decades.  Many women also experience other health issues that most of the medical community commonly treat with hormonal contraceptives with are both harmful to women’s health and morally illicit.  Are there any alternatives to the pill or In Vitro Fertilization?  There is an alternative for women that is not only good science and good medicine but also morally good. For more information. Read more

Nourishing Our Family with God’s Word

Being a sign of Christ’s love every minute of every day challenges each member of the family. This special time is designed to assist families in realizing how God’s Word strengthens their family bonds and their relationship with God. The retreat is based on prayer, readings, and selected activities. It will take 90 minutes to 2 hours. Click here for activities.

Anti-Pornography Programs

The diocese has compiled a list of resources to help those struggling with the harmful effects of pornography. Read more.

Church Teaching on End-of-Life Issues

The bishops of the State of New York developed the following summary of Catholic Church teaching on end-of-life issues. It has been updated and revised in order to reflect and be consistent with Missouri law. For more information on Missouri’s Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care and Planning Tools. Read more

Staff

Lynn Melendez

Lynn Melendez

Director | lmelendez@dioscg.org

Kim Brayman

Kim Brayman

Marriage Preparation Coordinator | kbrayman@dioscg.org