Signed November 9, 2002
We, the undersigned leaders of the faith community of East County, have the unique opportunity and obligation to help strengthen marriages in our community. With this agreement we establish community-wide standards for premarital counseling and marriage enrichment resources, which will benefit all marriages and families.
Recognizing that our faith community is a vital resource, our common mission is to increase cooperation among faiths to strengthen families and significantly decrease the level of divorce in traditional marriages.
We Believe:
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That God has established in Scripture the sanctity of marriage;
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That a marriage created by God is a lifelong and unique covenant between one man and one woman;
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That we have a responsibility to provide the best available premarital preparation to every engaged couple;
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That we have a responsibility to provide ongoing support to strengthen and nourish existing marriages;
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That we can accomplish these goals together in community better than working separately.
Therefore we will:
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Promote sexual purity and abstinence outside of marriage.
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Teach faithfulness within marriage.
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Encourage a courtship of at least one year.
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Expect at least four months of marriage preparation.
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Require a minimum of four mentoring/counseling sessions, utilizing both Scripture and a premarital inventory.
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Ideally train mature, married couples to serve as mentors to work with seriously dating and engaged couples, newlyweds, blended families, and those experiencing marital difficulties.
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Schedule two post-marital counseling sessions within the first year of marriage.
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Provide marriage enrichment opportunities, such as classes, small groups, and/or retreats, to build and strengthen marriages.
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Cooperate with other faith communities and organizations to share marriage building resources and events.
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Support other faith communities in prayer for marriage and families.
We trust that:
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Within two years of initial signing, each congregation will fully implement all elements of this agreement.
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During the first three years of this community agreement, more than 90% of all East County churches have signed the agreement.
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Divorce rates in East County will substantially decrease when we, as a community of faith congregations, have fully implemented all elements of this agreement.
Agreement
We recognize that each faith leader has the freedom and responsibility before God to make conscientious choices about how this agreement should be applied in a particular case.
I commit to seek the endorsement of these standards by my congregation and to encourage others to do so, for the glory of God and the good of our whole community.
