Fr Mintu L Palma, vicar at the Inter-diocesan Marriage Tribunal, authored the book. For one reader, the latter lays down "the pillars of a good married life: faithfulness, responsibility, honesty and patience". Card Patrick D’Rozario, head of the Church of Bangladesh, penned the preface. For the author, “rows between parents have a negative impact on children.” The book is meant “to help families”.
Dhaka (AsiaNews) – The Archdiocese of Dhaka released a new book to help Catholic couples in their married life.
The tome is the second work on the topic by Fr Mintu L Palma, director of the Christian Family Counselling Centre and vicar at Inter-diocesan Marriage Tribunal.
Some people spoke appreciatively of the new volume to AsiaNews “because it suggests ways to have a successful married life".
Titled Bibahito or Dampatto Jiboner Muldhon in Bangla (Resource for marriage and married life), the 44-page book is on sale in front of the Catholic church in Tejgaon for 100 takas (US$ 1.20).
Raton Corraya bought a copy “for our family life,” he said. “I prepared for marriage with the [first] book of Fr Palm. I really like his advice.”
The book, he adds, mentions “the pillars of a good married life: faithfulness, responsibility, honesty and patience. I hope other readers will get useful messages from the book.”
Pronoti Gomes, 40, is currently enrolled in the premarital course and uses Fr Palma’s book. “I came to realise that marriage is a lifelong bond.” What is more, “Without consent, the marriage is not valid. The book gave me lot of ideas.”
According to Fr Mintu, “family members face several difficulties. Many end their marriage and rows between parents negatively affect children. This prompted me to write.” The new edition “also has illustrated pages and I think readers will benefit from them.”
Nowadays, the clergyman laments, “people no longer read. This is why I inserted figures and poems, so as to interest the reader whilst giving messages on married life.”
The preface is signed by Card Patrick D'Rozario, Archbishop of Dhaka, who praises the priest's initiative and stresses that the Church has "marriage and the family at heart".
Fr Mintu notes that some 1,700 Catholic marriages are celebrated in Bangladesh every year.
About “80 per cent [of the couples] have an adequate relationship, but the remaining 20 per cent have problems, 5 per cent very serious ones.”
Ultimately, “We want families to have happy lives.” For this reason, “We want to help couples overcome problems by giving them advice.”