MARRIAGE PREPARATION COURSE
The Vicariate has established a well-defined course for helping couples prepare for the Sacrament of Marriage. In all parishes, the program is conducted over a span of 2 days (Thursday evenings and full day on Friday). Each individual parish has their independent schedule and the course is conducted either monthly/ bi-monthly/ quarterly. Some parishes also deliver the course in select regional languages to cater to the requirements of the parishioners.

The course is built around getting couples to introspect about the key areas focusing on Marriage as a journey together in a covenant relationship. The course has elements of classroom lectures, personal sharing by married couples, individual and couple exercises, group discussion as well as audio and video input.

The course has the following modules.

• Journeying together in Intimacy
• Journeying together in our Sexuality & Creative Natural Fertility Management 
• Journeying together - The First Pregnancy
• Journeying in & through Conflict
• Journeying together with our Finances
• Journeying together with Parents & In-laws
• Journeying together in long-distance relationships
• The Sacrament of Marriage

In all parishes, the course is delivered by married couples who have undergone the requisite training and share from their personal life experiences and in conjunction with the respective parish priests. Participants are given a certificate of completion that they may use to complete documentation requirements in the churches/parishes where they are getting married. For couples getting married in the UAE, all the documentation is completed in the respective parishes. Couples can approach their parish offices to get full details of the documentation requirements.

A follow-up of the married couples is done through Marriage Enrichment programmes with the Marriage Encounter (ME) group.

OTHER IN-HOUSE PROGRAMMES
The Couples for Christ (CFC) and Missionary Families of Christ (MFC) have their in-house programmes for members.

•  The ME Marriage Enrichment programme helps newly married couples to form a closer bond and  also to give them an insight into what an ME weekend is all about. Couples who have participated in the Marriage Encounter Weekend meet monthly for a Love Circle Meeting held different households.

• Couples for Christ (CFC) conduct three stages of Marriage Enrichment Retreats for new couples joining the CFC programme with each stage having a series of seven talks. CFC also conduct a prayer gathering for young couples known as the Young Couples' Assembly. 

• Missionary Families of Christ (MFC) conduct a series of overnight Marriage Enrichment Retreats for the first year formation in CFFL - given to couples six months after joining the CFFL.

• The Marriage Enrichment Retreat part 2 is available to all the members starting from their second year in the community.

• Love Weekend is an annual teaching given to all couples in the CFFL community which is also an overnight programme.

SEMINARS

The annual AVOSA Family Ministry Seminar focusing on the AVOSA FM vision of building happy, stable and Christ centred families, is conducted dealing with topics of particular relevance to the families in the UAE. Keeping this vision statement in focus, various other seminars are conducted through the course of the year.

Finance
The Family Ministry arranges financial seminars by professionals who have expertise in this field. These seminars are aimed at helping parishioners manage their finances.  The topics covered include overcoming debt, budgeting and also an objective view on investment options. These seminars/workshops followed by open forum for participants. The seminar is targeted at all expatriates residing in the UAE and have been well received with good participation.

Parenting
Parenting seminars are also conducted during the course of the year.

To make parishioners feel wanted and needed in the church community, the Family Ministry reaches out to various sectors to make relationships our priority in the church. We are now running a successful programme for special needs children / people and their families. Presently operational at Dubai and Jebel Ali, there is a special Eucharistic celebration followed by a fun-filled family get-together for a time of fun, food and frolic.

MOVEMENTS

Senior Adult Ministry
A group of mostly retired family elders, sixty years and above, come together to meet for fellowship and social gatherings. The group aims to provide an avenue to remain active through various  parochial  activities and outings that are frequently planned, as well as give emotional support to each other in their daily lives.

The Hope and Life Movement
A support group for widows and widowers that meet once a month in Dubai under the guidance of a Spiritual Director. This provides invaluable support as an outlet for their emotional distress. They have also formed strong bonds among themselves, relax with the help of prayers, party games and a fellowship meal.

SUPPORT SERVICES

Pastoral Peer Support (PPS)
The PPS teams are available to parishioners who need someone to simply listen to them through their struggles & difficulties.

The team ranging from members aged 27 years to 55 years speak English, Tagalog, Malayalam, Konkani, and Sinhalese and have been trained through 3 levels of theory and regular practice hours over the past 5 years to better understand the challenges faced by families and individuals in this region and its relevant application in pastoral support.

Support during the Covid-19 outbreak
The Catholic Church in the UAE has a team which provides support for our parishioners during the outbreak. If you would like to access the service, please fill up this form to request a call back.