Supporting Marriages at St James
Statistics show that at least two out of every five marriages break down in the UK every year. The figure continues to rise. Yet marriage is a gift from God. At St James we want to help people value and protect this gift. So at St James there are various ways we seek to encourage and support those who are married.
For those of you who are thinking of getting married we run Marriage Preparation Courses. Once you have taken that step then there are other ways we can help. One way some Christian couples have tried to protect and value this gift of marriage is by going on The Marriage Course. From time to time we will put on a Saturday morning or one evening session on Marriage - Marriage Refreshers - to encourage couples to keep on growing in their marriage relationship. (These will be advertised on the church website.) For those who have already gone on the Marriage course it can be a good time to review how things are going. For others you may feel that a short period of Marriage Counselling would help and this is available through St James or by referral to someone outside of St James (for more details please contact Clare Hendry, Minister for Pastoral Care)
Marriage Preparation Course
Building a strong foundation for your marriage is as important as it is for building a house that you don’t want to fall down! At St James we would love to help you with this so from time to time we run a Marriage Preparation Course, as for our Marriage Course, it uses material produced by Nicky and Sila Lee, from Holy Trinity, Brompton.
However for some couples it may not be possible to come on the course such as where one partner is not living, locally so alternative arrangements may be possible such as meeting with the couple on a Saturday. If you are interested in finding out more about either option do contact the church. Please contact Gaz Daly for more details gaz.daly@st-james.org.uk tel: 020 8442 2820.
The Marriage Course
The Marriage course we have been running at St James over the last few years is the one produced by Nicky and Sila Lee, from Holy Trinity, Brompton. It is a great opportunity for a couple at whatever stage in their marriage to take some time out and review their relationship. The course is helpful for those whose marriage is already strong but they want to make it even better+, but it also helps those couples who may be going through a bit of a tough stage in their marriage as well.
Each evening starts with a meal (by candlelight!) for each couple - a chance to catch up with each other (and no washing up to do!). This is followed by some input and opportunities for couples to talk on their own about the topic for the evening. The course lasts 7 weeks and is often followed up by a reunion evening - a chance to meet up again with the other couples from the course and also to review how things are going.
The topics covered in the course include such areas as the art of communication, resolving conflict and love in action. The material is very accessible and practical. Although based on Christian principles it is suitable for those with no Christian faith or church background.
If you would like to know more about the course or want to know when the next course is starting please contact Clare Hendry Minister for Pastoral Care Clare.hendry@st-james.org.uk tel. 020 8442 2823