Marriage, Family and Relationship Resources

Marriage & Family

Marriage & Family Resources

• Marriage Preparation Courses (pdf - 810.01 KB) – Preparing for Marriage: document by the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn
• Ministry to the Newly Married (pdf - 2.95 MB)
• Australian Catholic Marriage and Family Council
• Catholic Society for Marriage Education
• Couples for Christ Australia (Global)
• For Your Marriage (US Bishops)
• Marriage Resource Centre
• Smart Loving
• Worldwide Marriage Encounter 
• US Bishops Conference
• What is Marriage– Australian Catholic Bishops Conference
• Humanum– collection of articles on Marriage, Family & Society
• Humanum– YouTube (as many videos are spoken in a language other than English, click the settings cog at the bottom of the screen and choose English for subtitles)

Church Documents on Marriage and Family (Church teachings)

• Gaudium et Spes (Joy and Hope)
• Familiaris Consortio (The Christian Family in the Modern World)
• Humanae Vitae (On Human Life)
• Instrumentum Laboris– The Vocation and Mission of the Family in the Church and the Contemporary World, 2015.
• Catechism of the Catholic Church, nos. 369-373, nos. 1601-1666, and nos. 2331-2400. Washington, DC: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2000.
  The referenced paragraphs provide a concise summary of church teaching on the unity of a man and woman and the purpose of marriage and family.
• Second Vatican Council. Selected passages from the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (Gaudium et Spes), nos. 47-52. December 1965.
  Key passages include the dignity of marriage, the role of the family, and the duty of society and the Church to support families.
• Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Charter of the Rights of the Family. October 22, 1983.
  Addressed to governments, the document presents foundational principles for use in formulating marriage and family policy and legislation.

Pope Francis on Marriage & Family

• Article: It’s not about the dress or photos. It’s about the mission
• Address of his holiness Pope Francis to the Bishops of the Episcopal Conference of Malawi on the ‘Ad Limina’ visit.
  “There is no aspect of family life – childhood and youth; friendship, engagement and marriage; spousal intimacy, fidelity and love; interpersonal relations and support – which is excluded from the healing and strengthening touch of God’s love”

Family Planning

Natural Fertility Services Canberra Region offers education in the Sympto-thermal Method, a modern, safe and effective method of fertility management.  Sympto-thermal is a fertility awareness-based approach to fertility management that empowers women and their partners to manage their fertility naturally throughout all stages of a woman’s fertile life.

For a variety of information about Natural Fertility Services, see Catholic organisation Smart Loving’s blogs about relevant services.

Raising Children

• Catholic Care (programs for parents and families)
• Parenting article, “Let the little children come to me”
• World Meeting of Families, 2015

Relationship Support

• CatholicCare (assistance, programs & counseling)
• Marriage Tribunal (get in touch with the Canberra Goulburn Tribunal)
• Annulments (learn what the Church teaches on Annulments)
• Message from Pope Francis, “When a love fails”

Sexuality

Sexuality & Relationship Resources

• A list of useful resources on this topic.   Sexuality and Relationship Resources (pdf - 5.50 MB)
• Australian Catholic Marriage and Family Council
• The Chastity Project– Website for young people on sexuality and relationships (Jason Evert)
• The Cor Project- Website on JPII theology of the body (Christopher West)
• The Porn Effect– Website discussing pornography, and how to escape or help another out of an addiction to porn (Matt Fradd)
• Women made new– Website for women only, encouraging inner healing and pointing out other resources related to healing and sexuality (Crystalina Evert)

Relationship Education Programs for Schools

The Archbishop’s Office for Evangelisation provides a variety of programs to schools in the Archdiocese ranging from a puberty and personal development program for Yr5/6 students and their parents to fertility management programs for Yr 11/12 students. >> Find out more

Church Documents on Sexuality

The Truth and Meaning of Human Sexuality:

• Summary
• Full document

Educational Guidance in Human Love:

• Full document

Same Sex Marriage

• Don’t Mess with Marriage – A pastoral letter from the Catholic Bishops of Australia
• Q & A on Same-Sex Attraction and Marriage, by the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference
• Archbishop Anthony Fisher’s spoken and written presentation on Same Sex Marriage – ‘Same-Sex ‘Marriage’ Evolution or Deconstruction of Marriage and the Family?’

Topics of Sexuality

• Dr. Miriam Grossman, a child and adolescent psychiatrist has written “ A Parent’s Survival Guide to Fifty Shades of Grey” and her letter to young people about the dangers the film poses.
• US National Center for Sexual Exploitation
• Catholic Therapist Dr. Peter Kleponis
• Covenant Eyes– Internet Accountability and Filtering
• Old Fashioned, The Movie.
• “Extreme Makeover; Women Transformed by Christ Not Conformed to the Culture.” Teresa Tomeo
• Australian Catholic Apologist (now based in the US) Matt Fradd’s book Delivered.
• Bought with A Price, Pastoral Letter, Diocese of Arlington, VA.
• Catechism of the Catholic Church on Pornography Paragraph 2354

Life

Abortion

• Video on issues around life and Abortion

Euthanasia

• Video on issues around life and Euthanasia

Reproductive Technologies

• Video on the struggle of infertility and a discussion around IVF