No one ever expects to get separated or divorced when they get married. 

Especially if you were married as a Catholic or as a Christian in church, you took that extra step as a way of solidifying your marriage in the eyes of God and the larger Christian community.    

You took the solemn vow of marriage before God, family and friends because you saw marriage as a commitment – a lifelong commitment that you intended to keep. 

Whether your marriage has been long or brief – whether you saw the separation and divorce coming or you are the one who initiated it – there is nothing easy or straightforward about the divorce process. 

What so many people fail to recognize is the interwovenness of marriage. 

Simply stated, “I” becomes woven into “We” through the years of being married together.   

You enter into marriage as “I” – but you create another whole entity and identity along the way called “We”.

Of course, you maintain your individual “I” as well. 

Still, in separation and divorce, it is painful and hard to separate the “we”. 

We work hard to unravel who am “I” without the “we”? 

Divorce impacts are felt beyond the immediate family.    

There is the community, the extended family, friends, school, church, and your own precious children.

Separation and divorce ripples from all of these extended systems are felt and must be contended with.

Of all of these, the most important are the children of divorce.

The marital relationship our children are born into is the only family they know. 

Now as you sort out your marital relationship through separation and divorce, you must place emphasis on ways to best take care of your children.   

How do you provide the same sense of oneness of family life for your children – while living apart?

Above all, how do you keep your grievances about and toward each other, away from your children? 

These are not easy issues.  Especially in the midst of great emotional turmoil and pain, you may feel lost and unsure how to move forward. 

Your well-intentioned family and friends may be guiding you in ways that are not cohesive for your soul.

Because you chose to become married in the eyes of God as a sign of your faith, I believe that you want to move forward through separation and divorce in the best ways possible with God’s guidance and grace. 

Ministry for Separated and Divorced is a ministry for those grieving the loss of their marriage through the transition into divorce.  For those who have children, Ministry for Separated and Divorced includes a focus on single parenting as well.   

Ministry for Separated and Divorced will meet each week for eight weeks. Each session will begin with a program that touches on all the most important aspects of divorce.

Come as you are, which might include hopeful, broken, discouraged, disappointed, angry, relieved – you name it!

Together with others, you will find your way forward into the next stages of life. With or without children, your participation will position you to move forward with a clearer sense of who you are, and where you want to go. 

For further information, please contact me here.