By Peg Hensler | Special Contributor

It’s an exciting time to be Catholic as we prepare for the World Meeting of Families and the Holy Father’s visit to Philadelphia in September. With the recent Synod on the Family, our Church leaders have made the well-being of family life a global priority.

Here in the Diocese of Trenton, we have our own exciting news to share about the importance of Catholic family life as we prepare to host a two-day Marriage Summit, during which our Plan for Strengthening Marriage, a plan that will be incorporated into the evangelizing work of our parishes and schools over the next five years, will be introduced.

The summit represents the culmination of a marriage initiative that began in 2012 in response to Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M.’s growing concern about the state of marriage in our Diocese. The official statistics were alarming – from 1990 to 2007, total marriages in the four counties of Burlington, Mercer, Monmouth and Ocean, decreased 18 percent, while Catholic marriages experienced a 50 percent decline. From 2007 to 2013, marriages in the Diocese have declined by another 25 percent.

Our marriage initiative began with a broad consultation of parish and diocesan leadership, educators and lay ministers who were called upon to take an honest look at our pastoral practices – what were we doing well and what needed to be changed.  The results of our consultation helped prepare us for the next phase of our initiative, a one-year commission appointed by Bishop O’Connell to study marriage, with members representing all who serve Catholic families in the Diocese. After months of research, discussion and hard work, the study commission developed a set of seven recommendations, each with specific action steps for implementation in parishes and schools, submitted to Bishop O’Connell for his approval.

The resulting Plan for Strengthening Marriage is comprehensive and bold. It considers the totality of marriage in every stage – from the earliest stage of life through childhood development into young adulthood. It includes preparing for first-time marriage, remarriage and bringing civil marriages into the Church, as well as working with newly married couples, assisting parents and helping troubled marriages. The plan offers real solutions to real challenges and addresses questions such as: How do we stay connected to young adults so they’ll consider Catholic marriage?; How do we combat negativity and convey a positive message about Catholic marriage?; How do we welcome people back and invite them into the fullness of the sacramental life of the Church?; How do we respond in an evangelizing, pastoral way to those in difficult family situations?

We invite all who are concerned about marriage in our Diocese and in our world to join us at the Marriage Summit, where you will be inspired to assist your parish or school community to build strong marriages and make a difference. This is your chance to be a part of it!

Peg Hensler is diocesan associate director of the Department of Youth, Marriage and Family Life and coordinator of marriage ministries and Natural Family Planning.