Conferences for the Engaged, Office for Family Life

marriage preparation

The Arlington Catholic Diocese requires six months of marriage preparation.
Your initial contact with your parish priest begins this period of preparation.
Each couple is required to attend a marriage preparation conference such as a Conference for the Engaged (CFE).
You must currently be meeting with a priest/deacon for marriage preparation in order to register for a conference.
The CFE program is open to couples of which at least one is registered in a parish in the Arlington diocese, even if the wedding will take place outside of the Diocese.

The CFE program is designed to stimulate reflection and discussion on key aspects of marriage and family life.
Topics include: Marriage as a Sacrament, Communication, Marital Intimacy, Natural Family Planning, Parenting, and the Church & Christian family.
Presentations are offered by married couples, priests/deacons, and marriage counselors.
The Diocese offers two different CFE programs: One based in Vienna, VA, which is a single day program offered on 16 different Saturdays each year. The other is based in Woodbridge, VA, and is offered on three consecutive Thursday nights, multiple times each year.
Both programs satisfy the conference requirement. Please select only one of them.
Vienna details: Conference is located at Our Lady of Good Counsel 8601 Wolftrap Rd., Vienna, VA, 22182. Check in begins at 8:30 am, program ends by 4 pm. Couples are invited to participate in the 8 am Mass. Continental breakfast and lunch are provided. Cost: $85 in-diocese couple, $100 out-of-diocese couple
Woodbridge details: Conference is located at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, 12805 Valleywood Dr., Woodbridge, VA, 22192. Check-in begins at 7 pm and program ends by 9:30 pm, three Thursdays in a row. Snacks provided. Cost: $50 in-diocese couple, $65 out-of-diocese couple.
A Certificate of Completion is given to the couple at the end of both conferences.

A second union is a marriage in which one or both partners have been widowed, or have received a declaration of nullity with freedom to marry from the Catholic Church.
We offer conferences with a component designed specifically to address some of the challenges that couples entering a second union will face. (Unless otherwise noted, all Second union CFEs are held in Vienna.)
If you or your future spouse have had a previous union, you must attend a Second Union CFE unless directed otherwise by your preparing priest/deacon.

Mail-In Registration:

Print and complete the PDF registration form (download below).
Choose which CFE program you will attehd, then indicate your top 2 date preferences.
Second union couples must choose second union-included conferences (which are open to non-second union couples as well).
A completed registration form and the appropriate registration fee must be received before your registration will be processed. Mail-in registrations may take up to two weeks to process, and conferences fill-up quickly, so please submit your registration at least TWO MONTHS before the desired. conference date.

Mail the completed registration form with check -- made payable to the Catholic Diocese of Arlington -- or money order, to the P.O. Box on the form.

After we receive the on-line or mail-in registration request, a confirmation e-mail will be sent with conference details.

If you are registered for a Conference but find you cannot attend, please let the Office for Family Life know as soon as possible by calling 703-841-2550 so that couples on the waiting list may be let in. Every conference has a waiting list.
Transfers may only be done before a conference takes place. '
"No-Shows" will be charged, and will have to re-register for the CFE.