The joint marriage preparation course of the Melkite and Maronite dioceses of Sidon opened online with 45 couples and a first session on communication and conflict resolution with psychologist Patricia Barcha Bassil.
With the blessing and under the patronage of His Excellency Bishop Elie Bechara Haddad, Archbishop of the Greek Melkite Catholic Diocese of Sidon and Deir El-Qamar, and His Excellency Bishop Maroun Ammar, Bishop of the Maronite Diocese of Sidon, Metanoia Listening Center opened the joint marriage preparation course of the two dioceses, bringing together 45 couples, on Tuesday evening 28 April 2026 on Zoom. The first session, "The Art of Communication and Conflict Resolution," was led by Mrs. Patricia Barcha Bassil, licensed psychologist. After the introduction, Father Joseph Abi Aoun, superior of the Monastery of Our Lady of the Hill in Deir El-Qamar, opened the session with prayer.
In the first part, Mrs. Bassil shed light on the many conflicts families face today, starting from concrete divorce cases. She urged participants to take responsibility towards one another, since a failure on this point creates conflict between spouses, and asked them to respect each other's history, dynamics and differences – not to erase one another, but to be humble before each other and to communicate effectively: sharing with the other everything that makes me happy or upsets me, allowing them to stand by me, supporting, listening, dialoguing, getting to know their strengths and their weaknesses.
In the second part, she explained how to resolve conflicts through humility and acknowledging one's failures, listening to each other effectively, giving each other time and space to think, returning to dialogue and choosing the right moment.
Mrs. Bassil also offered several skills and pieces of advice, and warned against common traps: routine, comparison, never being satisfied, letting others interfere in the couple's problems, and not defining roles or mixing them up. She advised them to seek help when they feel exhausted and to turn to an objective person.
The second session, on Thursday evening 30 April, was titled "The Legal Dimension," with His Excellency Bishop Elie Bechara Haddad.
