There was a clear, profound moment when Reg Argana realised his 10-year marriage needed an overhaul.
“I noticed that each time we go out as a family, I tend to hold my children’s hands 100 per cent of the time, without holding Cynthia’s hand. We were becoming more functional, rather than being a true married couple.”
It was a simple observation with a sobering implication. The father of three had allowed the weight of parenthood to quietly erode the foundation beneath it: his marriage.
“I forgot to be a husband, a present husband, a loving and caring husband to Cynthia. Young families tend to become more functional, rather than making the union flourish as God intended it to be.”
That realisation is now the driving force behind Knot so Ordinary Date: a marriage enrichment course designed to help couples rediscover the blessing of marriage and grow in their vows.
Designed like a traditional date night, the afternoon events will feature opportunities to socialise with other couples over “matrimonial wisdom and yummy meals”.
Designed for couples in their first seven years of marriage, and lead by Reg and Cynthia, the course will be being held at the Good Shepherd parish in Hoxton Park across three Sundays, from Sunday, 19 April to Sunday 18 October.
“The first seven years of marriage is a very critical stage,” says Reg.
“Two different people coming together, possibly raising a child, adjusting to life, taking on a mortgage, plus the changing responsibilities and identity of the couple. We tend to focus on how to make the marriage work, rather than what marriage is really all about. We forget to be married couples and just become two people living together.”
The course tackles the practical realities of early married life through the lens of Catholic teaching: building a healthy family culture, establishing a shared vision, and rediscovering what it means to be husband and wife, rather than simply co-parents.
Parish priest Fr Simon Kitimbo says marriage ministry is integral to building a thriving, family-friendly parish and that the gap between wedding preparation and ongoing support is a real one.
“Often there are good preparation sessions for couples before they marry, but then there doesn’t seem to be much follow-up. Reg and Cynthia are really very passionate about what they do, and that passion is contagious. They’ve been there. They know the challenges young couples face. What they offer is not just a program, it’s a witness. It’s two people saying: we’ve walked this road, and we want to walk alongside you.”
Cynthia is particularly aware of the pressures facing young Australian families who often lack the extended family support networks common in other cultures.
“Here in Australia, if you work and look after your kids, that’s it. There’s no village. There are more challenges.”
It’s a perspective shaped by hard experience. In the first five years of their own marriage, Reg and Cynthia faced two miscarriages and job losses.
“It’s good that Reg and I had a grounding in the Catholic faith,” says Cynthia. “But I think this generation may not have that. So, we want to support them.”
For Reg, the aim of the course runs deeper than practical skills or better communication habits. He wants young couples to encounter the theological reality at the heart of their vocation.
“Marriage is really a mystery. There’s a lot to unpack, as we’ve learned from the Theology of the Body. What we want these young couples to discover is that their marriage is a mirror of the Holy Trinity. God’s reminder that he exists in this world, made visible through marriage.”
Michael Jaksic, Life, Marriage and Family officer at the Sydney Centre for Evangelisation, a supporter of the event, puts it plainly.
“Married couples have promised God that they will love each other for their entire lives in a heroic, Christian way. This is an opportunity to cultivate and nurture that promise made on their wedding day – to deepen and strengthen it.”
Knot Such an Ordinary Date is open to all Catholic couples within the first seven years of marriage. It is being held on 19 April, 19 July and 18 October – all sessions start at 12.30pm and end at 5.30pm.
For more information, go to https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1547103
