CAPE GIRARDEAU DIVORCE RATES ON THE RISE

Cape Girardeau's religious community must do more to help couples build stronger marriages, both by counseling couples before marriage and throughout their relationship, area pastors said.

The Cape Girardeau Ministerial Alliance met Tuesday for its monthly meeting and a review of the community marriage policy, which was adopted nearly five years ago.

The Marriage Savers program aims at cutting divorce rates by offering couples marriage counseling prior to the actual ceremony. In most communities, the divorce rate has dropped. However, rates for Cape Girardeau County show an increase in the past several years.

"If we're doing what God wants us to do, it takes working together," said the Rev. Roy Jones, director of missions for the Cape Girardeau Baptist Association. Jones has been a supporter of the local program since its inception.

Churches and ministers could pool their resources to offer more counseling sessions, share ideas about techniques and develop communitywide programs related to marriage, he said.

"Good people can get divorced," Jones said. "But I don't believe that's what God wants us to do."

Nearly 40 churches in Cape Girardeau and several in Perryville, Mo., have adopted the policy.

Several pastors shared their experiences Tuesday about what sort of issues have been addressed by the counseling program. Most of the counseling sessions are based on a marriage assessment for couples planning to marry, couples remarrying or couples seeking to enrich their relationships.

The assessment says it cannot predict the success or failure of a marriage, but pinpoints areas that need work.

"It gives you an idea where there is going to be a problem," said the Rev. Miles White, pastor of Westminster Presbyterian Church, who has used the tests.