Eight Dates
A relationship series designed to foster communication and closeness for a healthier partnership under God
The Family Wellness Ministry and the Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministries from the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Francisco are pleased to the announce them continuation of the popular relationship series, Eight Dates, based on the book Eight Dates: Essential Conversations for a Lifetime of Love by John Gottman, PhD, and Julie Schwartz Gottman, PhD. This will be held bi-monthly on Thursday evenings via Zoom, beginning on October 13 and is offered free of charge to all interested couples.
The series is separated into biweekly Zoom gatherings where the members of the Family Wellness Ministry team cover a specific relationship topic through prayer, reflection, interactive questions, video presentations, break-out groups, and closing remarks. Homework for each attending couple is to read the corresponding chapter from Eight Dates, and to plan a date night to discuss and put into practice the advice from both the session and the book.
Topics include: Trust and Commitment, Conflict, Sex and Intimacy, Work and Money, Family, Fun and Adventure, Growth and Spirituality, and Dreams, all within an Orthodox Christian context.
The Family Wellness Ministry launched their inaugural sessions of Eight Dates in the fall of 2020, who had high praise for the series, including calling it “crucial to our marriage,” “exactly what we needed as we plan our wedding,” and “the most important thing my husband and I have done for our marriage in 25 years.” So far, over 400 couples have participated in this program through the Metropolis of San Francisco, and we expect strong participation again.
Eight Dates draws on rigorous scientific and psychological research about how we fall in love, using case studies of real-life couples whose relationships have improved after committing time to each other and following the dates. Drs. John and Julie Gottman have spent over three decades studying the habits of 3,000 couples and are bestselling authors and the founders of The Gottman Institute, which uses an extensive research-based approach to improving family relationships.
For more information and to register for this free program, please visit https://www.familywellnessministry.org/eight-dates/
Watch the Eight Dates promo video https://youtu.be/N7jBvOTG46M
