Each parish provides an individualized inventory to their engaged couples (FOCCUS, Prepare/Enrich, etc). Please give your process to your couple as soon as you are able.
General Information about Premarital Inventories
The premarital inventory or the use of a similar experience provides a process in which engaged couples can better discover their feelings, their ability to communicate, their process of social growth and the religious faith present in their relationship.
The premarital inventory is not a psychological test, nor is it an instrument to reliably measure the readiness of a couple for marriage. It is a means of allowing the couple, with the assistance of the marriage preparation minister(s), to strengthen their relationship with each other prior to marriage. Through this process the Christian community reaffirms its concern for the development of sound and lasting foundations for successful marriage.
Normally, it is expected that this phase of preparation will require two or three sessions as a minimum. The actual number of sessions with any given couple will be determined by the engaged couple and the facilitators of the premarital inventory. During the first session, the engaged couple will complete the premarital inventory which will be the basis for discussion in the following sessions (see Section VI for additional premarital inventory questions). Pastors and professionals or married couples trained to administer the premarital inventory are urged to carefully utilize the manuals that accompany each
of the inventories.
Persons trained to facilitate the premarital inventory, other than the priest, deacon or pastoral minister, who will witness the marriage, will need to either meet with the priest, deacon or pastoral minister to give a verbal report or prepare a written report for the priest, deacon or pastoral minister. These forms or reports will include feedback concerning the couple’s relationship. In the event that serious questions arise that might indicate a delay in marriage, any decision to do so must be based on the overall observations drawn from discussions by the facilitators and the priest, deacon or pastoral minister and not simply on the responses of the couple to the inventory questions.
Observations made by those preparing the couple may be kept in the marriage file.