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 provide various other resources and formative opportunities to parish ministers serving parish marriage preparation programs. Our various marriage preparation retreats and seminars in English and Spanish as well as the Confirmation preparation for engaged couples serves in total approximately 2500 persons each year. They are utilized by many pastors, receiving excellent evaluations from them, and they utilize excellent resources presenting the entirety of the Church’s teachings on marriage, human sexuality and family life.

The Archdiocesan vision and guidelines for marriage preparation guide the work and activities of our office. These guidelines enhance the quality and content of the retreats and seminars, as well as other formational services provided from our Office to marriage formation leaders. Our marriage preparation seminars and retreats have been enhanced through the use of new resources for both the engaged and those teachers responsible for their instruction.

Other additional activities that will be pursued are the creation and implementation of marriage enrichment programs 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.