Workshop offers the Eucharist as a model for marriage

Courtesy photo

+ Enlarge

Jim and Maureen Otremba will present the Marriage Enrichment workshop Feb. 11 at Saint Vincent de Paul Parish.

SALT LAKE CITY — The Diocese of Salt Lake City Family Life Office invites married Catholic couples to the Marriage Enrichment workshop, "Eucharist – A Model for Marriage," on Feb. 11 in the Saint Vincent de Paul Parish Benvegnu Center.

"Christian marriage teaches that spouses enter into the union of marriage in order to realize and live fully their baptismal call, the life they share in Christ by virtue of their baptism," said Jim Otremba, who will present the workshop with his wife, Maureen.

The Otrembas were married in 1995 and have three children. Jim holds master’s degrees in divinity and applied psychology. He is the owner of the Center for Family Counseling in St. Cloud, Minn., where he is a licensed clinical social worker and marriage therapist. Maureen holds a Master of Theology and is a pastoral minister at Sacred Heart Church in Sauk Rapids, Minn. They are the authors of "Fully Engaged," a Catholic, pre-marital inventory and formation program used in several dioceses in the U.S.

"The Catholic Church teaches us that the Eucharist is the source and summit of our faith," said Jim Otremba. "This workshop is designed to take an in-depth look at the Eucharist and let it become a specific model for our marriages. Participants will leave the workshop with a folder of practical truths and tips they can apply to their marriage."

In the workshop the Otrembas will cover three elements of the liturgy: the Penitential Act, the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

"The Penitential Act is seeking forgiveness and reconciliation in marriage, and in this we will share what we call forgiveness fundamentals," Otremba said. "We share how couples can have a working formula on how to have a forgiving marriage that grows in reconciliation."

The second topic, the Liturgy of the Word, looks at how the Holy Spirit works in and through different marital stories. "Every husband and wife has two distinct different stories they bring to the marriage. In their marriage they come together to create one new story," he said. "So we look at the different parts that create individual stories and how that works for and against the marriage."

In the Liturgy of the Eucharist, the Otrembas will talk about eight different types of intimacy in the marriage that build a solid foundation. "These eight intimacies are what a marriage needs on a daily basis before a couple gets to sexual intimacy," Otremba said.

The Otrembas will present their information and then couples will have private time to complete a worksheet based on the information they heard.

"Offering marriage enrichments workshops helps couples explore their marriage relationship to see how they’ve grown and how marriage is valued as a vocation in the Catholic Church," said Veola Burchett, diocesan Family Life Office director. "One of the best ways to nurture this relationship is through a Marriage Encounter weekend. However, many couples today work outside the home and view weekends as family time with children. Other couples are caretakers of elderly parents, siblings, or disabled children and can’t get away for a weekend.

"The marriage enrichment workshops are held for four hours on a Saturday and are more convenient," Burchett added. "The workshops can’t be a one-size fits all program, so couples need to have a variety of choices and opportunities in which to participate."