‘No single stereotype of an ideal family’, says bishop to Accord graduates

Bishop Denis Nulty told graduates of Accord that no single stereotype exists for an ideal family or couple. Speaking during a graduation Mass on October 10 at the College Chapel of St Patrick’s College in Maynooth, the bishop noted that families and couples are diverse realities shaped by joys, dreams, struggles, and wounds.

The ceremony honored 11 graduates receiving a Special Purpose Award as marriage facilitators and others receiving a Certificate in Person Centred Marriage and Relationship Counselling. Bishop Nulty, who serves as president of Accord CLG, told the graduates they must provide compassion and careful guidance to the families they serve.

He advised the new marriage facilitators and counselors to listen closely and remain comfortable with fragility. The bishop suggested that they must sometimes sit with uncomfortable, unanswered questions while offering care to parents and couples.