The Catholic Archdiocese of Edmonton takes your marriage very seriously, and wants to help you as you begin this process. As such, Catholic marriage preparation is mandatory for marrying in The Catholic Archdiocese of Edmonton, and it is strongly recommended that the marriage course be taken at least 4-6 months before the wedding date.
During the marriage preparation process, you will receive:
- Information about what the Church believes and teaches about Catholic marriage and family life.
- Advice and practical assistance for your daily married lives together.
- An introduction into Natural Family Planning, a method of planning your family that is both reliable and in harmony with God’s design for sexual intimacy and Church teaching. Natural Family Planning not only assists with planning or spacing births, but is also extremely effective in working with any infertility issues.
- The witness of married couples to the sacrament of marriage and how it is lived in their lives.
We offer the Transformed in Love program, a two day in-person workshop, which is a comprehensive and practical approach to integrating human and faith formation, sexuality and dimensions of everyday family life such as household responsibilities, work, raising children, holiday celebrations, and finances. Couples will be provided guidance for their daily life as a married couple as well as tools and support for your journey together.
The registration fee for the course is $280.00 per couple.
Prior to taking the course, each individual takes an online assessement called Catholic Couple Checkup, which is designed to identify the unique relationship strengths and growth areas of engaged couples. Based on the results of a tailored premarital inventory, couples will receive a 20-page Catholic Couple Checkup report on their relationship. Research has shown that taking Catholic Couple Checkup improves relationships by stimulating honest dialogue, increasing understanding, and empowering couples. An extensive Discussion Guide, detailing proven relationship skills for couples, will be available at the weekend Marriage Prep Course.
Prior to the course you will receive further instructions on how and when to take the Couple Checkup online assessment.
Please note: Prior to registering for Marriage Prep, couples should first contact their local parish priest to fill out their initial marriage paperwork. At that time, a wedding date may be explored and possibly confirmed. For couples wishing to get married at St. Joseph Basilica, and not their local parish, please also contact the Basilica’s Rector, Paul.Kavanagh@caedm.ca to explore potential dates.