Kept Together by Faith: Confession and Forgiveness among American Catholic and Orthodox Christian Families

Abstract

This study examines how religious beliefs, practices, and faith communities influence marriage and family life strengths in American Catholic and Orthodox Christian families. Qualitative, in-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 families (N = 47 individuals). Qualitative data analysis revealed themes categorized under the domains of general life strengths, marital strengths, and parenting strengths. Findings suggest that for these families, religious beliefs and practices including prayer and attending worship services were related to seeking forgiveness and to resolving conflict in order to build and maintain unified and harmonious family relationships.