The Archdiocesan Office of Marriage, Family Life & NFP provides pastoral formation, leadership training, and advocacy for the holistic vision of Catholic marriage, human sexuality, and family life. In addition, the office provides various marriage preparation classes and retreats as a resource for parishes within the Archdiocese.

"…do everything possible, working together, to serve the family as effectively as possible. This involves proclaiming the whole truth about marriage, and family life: the exclusive nature of conjugal love, the indissolubility of marriage; the Church’s full teaching on the transmission of life and the respect due to human life from the moment of conception until natural death; the rights and duties of parents with regard to the education of their children, especially their religious and moral education, including proper sex education. Parents and family members must, moreover, be helped and sustained in their struggle to live by the sacred truths of faith. The Church must furnish families with the spiritual means of persevering in their sublime vocation and of growing in the special holiness to which Christ calls them."

John Paul II on his visit to San Antonio, September 13, 1987

Our office serves the pastors and their collaborators in the ministry of marriage and family life with a particular emphasis towards marriage preparation in response to the archdiocesan marriage preparation vision and guidelines.

We provides various other resources and formative opportunities to parish ministers serving parish marriage preparation programs. Our various marriage preparation classes in English and Spanish as well as the Confirmation preparation for engaged couples serves in total approximately 2500 persons each year. These courses are utilized by many pastors and receive excellent evaluations. Our classes utilize excellent resources presenting the entirety of the Church’s teachings on marriage, human sexuality and family life.

The new Archdiocesan vision and guidelines for marriage preparation have guided the work and activities of our office. These new guidelines have enhanced the quality and content of our classes and the other formational service provided from the office to parish marriage preparation leaders. Our various marriage preparation classes have been enhanced through the use of new resources for both the engaged and those teachers responsible for the instruction during the classes.

Other additional activities that will be pursued is the creation and implementation of marriage preparation retreats as well as an annual family conference."

Marriage Preparation, Marriage Enrichment and Healing, Parenting and Family / Household Enrichment, Bereavement / Outreach, Formation. Presentations / Consultations and Special Events as well as Resources to support marriage and family ministries are also available.