My inlaws did a Catholic marriage prep thing about 25 years ago. Because of their situation, I think they opted to do one of those couples retreats with a bunch of other engaged couples. Not too sure that kind of thing is offered anymore but I bet it was nice to get it over with in one weekend.
When my wife and I got married in 03, we took a marriage prep class through St. Pius X in Calgary. We met with the priest who was pretty cool actually. He wasn't pleased that we were living together before marriage but it wasn't a deal breaker for him. The actual course was taught by another relatively young couple in the church that had been married for a while. We went to their home, just my wife and I, every Wednesday night for a few months.
There was a little bit of prayer but mostly we just talked with them about stuff and did exercises from the book. Aside from the time commitment it really wasn't all that bad.
Actually, if you get passed all the religious stuff, the course itself would be really beneficial to any couple engaged to be married. The workbook helped you and your partner discuss some pretty heavy topics like handling finances and child-rearing decisions. There were quite a few things in there (like how much you think your partner could spend on a given purchase without having to consult the other) that we never contemplated before.
Knowing the various and sundry reasons for why marriages tend to fail, it wouldn't hurt to do some honest self-reflection and discuss these and other issues with your spouse-to-be. Go into it with an open mind, especially if you're doing a course-based thing like ours, and try to get something out of it.
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