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| January 6, 2009 |
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‘Protecting’ marriage commitment is goalMarriages in Victory movement helps couples strengthen their relationships. 
Tony and Frances Valladares of St. Timothy Parish, Miami, have been married nine years and been part of the Matrimonios en Victoria (Marriages in Victory) movement for the past three years. They were among dozens of couples who attended the group’s 10th anniversary Mass Jan. 12 at St. Mary Cathedral. MIAMI | Most people want to protect their valuables. That is the reasoning behind the movement Matrimonios en Victoria (Marriages in Victory), which for the past decade has been giving couples in south Florida the option of “protecting” their marriages. The group was formed “with the goal of strengthening the marriage commitment and offering tools for couples to grow and mature in faith, both as individuals and as a couple,” said Beatriz Harriman, who along with her husband, John, founded and now serve as general directors of the Miami branch of the movement. Matrimonios en Victoria was founded in Guatemala in 1993 in the home of Manuel and Betty Juarez. When the number of couples attending the meetings increased, they changed locations to the church of Nuestra Señora de Los Angeles (Our Lady of the Angels.) “The move to the church allowed us to expand and now we are present in 18 parishes in Guatemala, as well as communities in El Salvador, Costa Rica, Peru and the state of Kentucky,” said Betty Juarez. The movement reached St. Augustine Parish in Miami in 1998. Members take part in retreats and weekly meetings. “This movement is not for couples undergoing grave crisis, but for those who want to strengthen or renew their commitment,” said Beatriz Harriman. The retreats touch on all aspects of married life, including communication, dialogue with children and finances. Matrimonios en Victoria• Matrimonios en Victoria / Marriages in Victory has Spanish-speaking communities at St. Augustine and Mother of Christ parishes in Miami; and English-speaking communities at St. Thomas the Apostle and St. Timothy parishes in Miami. • A new Spanish-speaking community will be starting in June at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Miami. • For more information about the movement, call 305-773-1435 or e-mail mev_miv@bellsouth.net. “We have couples who have been married anywhere from three months to 40 years,” said John Harriman. “That balance is very beneficial for the movement.” Although the movement started among the Spanish-speaking, the need to sustain marriages and keep families together impelled members to found English-speaking communities at St. Thomas the Apostle and St. Timothy parishes in Miami. “By starting groups in English we could reach a larger number of people,” said Beatriz Harriman. Among those are Sara and Lenny Gonzalez, who took the movement to St. Timothy in 2004. “We saw the need for a ministry geared toward married couples. There already existed groups (in the parish) for couples planning to get married and for couples in crisis, but none for marriage enrichment,” Sara Gonzalez said. “People associate a retreat with a divorce and they wait until problems turn too serious to seek help,” said Beatriz Harriman. “We help them do the ‘maintenance’ necessary to live their married life in keeping with the Gospel.”
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