There seems to be a perception that very little is being done for marriage generally and particularly within the Church. I am delighted to be given the opportunity here this morning to show that quite an amount is being done on a day to day basis for marriage and that this work is being done in the name of the Church.. ACCORD as an agency of the Irish Bishops’ Conference provides care and support for those preparing for marriage, in the Catholic Church, for those already in married relationships, through its enrichment programmes and for those experiencing difficulties in their relationships, through its counselling service. As our logo says ACCORD: “Caring for marriage, building relationships”. Our Mission Statement reads as follows: “Empowering people. Fostering relationships. Caring for couples facing the challenges of Christian marriage. This is the work of ACCORD in today's World.” The work of ACCORD is divided mainly between counselling on the one hand and education on the other. We have 57 Centres throughout the island of Ireland divided into six regions. There are 300 counsellors and 330 facilitators working within the organisation providing: Relationship Counselling; Marriage Preparation Courses; and, Marriage Enrichment Programmes. In 2003 ACCORD provided 28,261 hours of counselling dealing with 5,332 cases. This shows an increase of just over 9% compared to 2002. In 2003 our facilitators provided 17,238 hours of Marriage preparation. This again is an increase of just over 11%. on 2002. In 2003 a total of 6,200 couples attended ACCORD marriage preparation courses. In an effort to provide the best possible preparation for couples preparing for marriage ACCORD is constantly looking at the quality of the programmes it offers. In September of last year ACCORD introduced a new marriage preparation programme entitled 'Marriage a Journey not a Destination' This is now the standard course being delivered in all centres nationally. There are different modules within this programme each of which are looked at as of equal importance by ACCORD. The modules included in the programme are as follows: Family of Origin/ Self awareness. Parenting. Communication. Church / Sacrament. Conflict Management. Sexuality. Commitment. Fertility Awareness. In an effort to bridge the gap between the couples who attend our marriage preparation courses and those who have need of our counselling service, ACCORD has, in the last couple of years introduced marriage enrichment courses to different parts of the country. In 2003 there were 12 of these courses provided. The particular programme being used is called REFOCCUS. This programme looks at marriage as a process and the designers of this particular programme recommend it for couples who are two years married or more. The emphasis in this programme is on the ever changing reality that marriage is. One of the creators of this programme said recently that the average couple will enter into between 10 and 15 marriages during the course of their life together because of the different events and circumstances that will unfold during that time. Our counselling department, in an effort to improve standards, and to meet the ever changing demands of the profession have introduced two new training programmes for counsellors. The first of these is in conjunction with P.C.I and Middlesex University offering a two and a half year degree programme taking into account the prior learning of ACCORD personnel. The other programme is a joint venture between ACCORD and D.C.U. offering a part time Graduate Diploma leading to a Masters Degree, for those who wish to attain this level. This is a four year programme. The majority of the members of ACCORD are lay men and women. Many of our clients, particularly those attending marriage preparation and marriage enrichment programmes, are surprised at the level of commitment and dedication shown by our volunteers., some of whom have been involved in the work of ACCORD for twenty years. At our Conference in 2002 Dr. Jack Dominian a very well respected Theologian suggested that the members of ACCORD should see themselves as witnesses to marriage in our age. The involvement of so many lay people in this work within the Church can also help to give a positive image of what belonging to the Catholic Church means. The Irish Bishops’ Conference in recognition of the importance of this lay involvement , appointed the first lay National Director of the organisation Mr. Shay Ellis in November 2003. ACCORD as an organisation believes in marriage. This belief is what keeps so many of us involved in the work. I would like to thank the Irish Bishops’ Conference for the invitation to speak here today, for their continued support for ACCORD and its work. I would also like to acknowledge the support of the Family Support Agency, whose financial assistance has been very valuable. Thank you all. ends 3rd May 2004 |