CORE to continue Retrouvaille work

If your marriage is tearing you apart...if you are frustrated, hurt or angry in your relationship...if you have previously made a Retrouvaille weekend with your spouse and want to continue the process, then you might want to know that a core group of Retrouvaille participants is being formed in the Albany Diocese.

In fact, the group is called CORE, for "Continuing Our Retrouvaille Experience."

For previous participants, such a group is an important continuation, said Sam (last name omitted because of the program's promise of absolute anonymity). He is an experienced Retrouvaille participant.

Starting again

Sam and his wife Suzanne, parishioners in the Albany Diocese, are one of three couples who decided to start the CORE group. Previously, couples had to go to locations in Massachusetts or Connecticut for such meetings, which have now been discontinued.

"CORE is a time to continue working on crucial communication skills in a couple's marriage," Sam said, "as well as an opportunity to share experiences with other couples going through similar things. Doing so helps these couples heal in their own relationship.

"The techniques that couples learn at their Retrouvaille weekend are continued in the CORE group. Because of the anonymity factor, CORE coordinators are not allowed to contact any of the participant couples. They must come forward on their own if they have an interest in being part of the CORE group."

Marriage problems

The initial Retrouvaille weekend is a live in, three-day experience for couples wishing to improve their relationship and save their marriage.

Sam said that, during the weekend, many issues in a relationship are explored, and couples learn better communication skills. He emphasized that the weekend is not a sensitivity group, spiritual retreat or a social gathering.

"Someone once remarked that if Marriage Encounter can be likened to a tune-up on a car, then the Retrouvaille experience can be described as a complete overhaul," he noted. "During this weekend, the couple is encouraged to put the past behind them and start rediscovering one another again. Because the weekend is not a 'miracle cure' for a troubled marriage, the follow-up sessions offered through a CORE group are designed to continue the marriage renewal process."

Rediscovery

"Retrouvaille" means rediscovery, precisely what a couple embarks upon when they participate in the Retrouvaille weekend, Sam said.

"Marriage is a work in progress. We recommend the CORE group experience for couples who have been through the initial Retrouvaille weekend," he said. "We are trying to contact couples throughout the Albany Diocese, as well as couples in the New York City and Rochester areas, and in Connecticut and eastern Massachusetts about the formation of this new group. All calls are welcomed and confidential."

(CORE will meet on the fourth Thursday of every month, 6:30 p.m., at St. Francis de Sales Church, Loudonville. For information, call Sam or Suzanne at 456-7726.)

(6/3/04)