In today's society, many couples often opt to dissolve their marriage at the first signs of marital breakdown. With divorce rates being at an all-time high, advertisements for a quick and easy divorce have turned into a booming business. A recent worldwide massive central data source listed the United States, Puerto Rico, and Russia as having the highest divorce rates in the world. In order to reduce worldwide divorce rates, many organizations around the world have developed programs to deal with this crisis. One such program is Retrouvaille International.
The Retrouvaille Program
The word Retrouvaille (pronounced re-tro-vi with a long i) is actually a French word that means "rediscovery". The Retrouvaille program is a volunteer-run marriage renewal program designed to provide heterosexual couples with tools needed to rediscover a loving marital relationship that they at one time experienced. The tools are meant for long term use and thus, couples are strongly encouraged to implement the tools on a daily basis. Retrouvaille makes it a point to emphasize that the program is not a retreat, a form of marriage counselling, a self-help program, or a miracle cure for broken marriages. The program also emphasizes that it is a time for healing, not hurting.
Target Audience For Retrouvaille
The program is for couples of every denomination who are experiencing marital difficulties including those who are currently separated and even divorced. Some couples seek help from Retrouvaille when they feel a sense of despair and hopelessness, while others attend the program as a last resort. In fact, many counsellors, lawyers, and judges send couples to Retrouvaille as a condition to filing for a divorce or separation. The Retrouvaille program emphasizes that it is not intended for couples who live together. Everyone who contacts the Retrouvaille program is ensured complete confidence.
Retrouvaille Program Components
The basic components of the program consist of three phases.
Phase 1 - The Weekend. The weekend begins on a Friday evening with registration and an overview of the weekend agenda and ends on a Sunday afternoon with Mass or devotional service. During this phase, a team of three couples and a priest or Christian minister with his spouse present a series of presentations. Each couple usually presents a testimony beginning with the early phases of their marriage and ending with what participating in the Retrouvaille program has done for their marriage.
The weekend workshops are intensive and focus heavily on a technique of communication. This technique is geared toward providing couples with the ability to look within themselves and different areas of their relationship. At the end of each workshop, couples are given the opportunity to reflect on the material presented and discuss it in private with each other in their rooms.
Phase 2 - Post Weekend Sessions. As a follow-up to the weekend sessions, the post-weekend sessions were designed to provide more detailed focus on all areas of marriage. Couples are strongly encouraged to attend all post-weekend sessions in order to continue with the healing process. The sessions last anywhere from 2 - 4 hours depending on your local Retrouvaille Community. The sessions are held at various times in the week and/or weekend and vary within each community.
Phase 3 - CORE. The last phase in the program is the Continuing Our Retrouvaille Experience. At the end of the last post-weekend sessions, couples are asked to join a support group closest to their neighbourhood. The number of support groups vary within each community. Communities have anywhere from 3 - 10 support groups.
Program Fee
There is a non-refundable registration fee to confirm your reservation. This fee secures lodging at a local hotel or other approved form of lodging. On the weekend, couples are asked to make a private donation that will be used to cover the cost of lodging, food, and materials for the weekend and post-weekend phases of the program. The contribution is entirely private and is decided upon by the participating couples. The Retrouvaille program never turns away couples from a chance to heal their marriage due to financial difficulties. Because it is a charitable organization, all contributions are greatly appreciated.
Retrouvaille has provided healing to many marriages around the world. For many couples, Retrouvaille was another chance to renew and save their marriages.
