How
the need for Premarital Planning came about
and
about Our Qualifications
The need for a program to encourage people plan for their marital relationship came about as a result of a decade of guiding and counseling families in various cultures.
The ability to dialogue and plan around important issues generally is not done to a sufficient level. In cultures where marriages tend to be pre-arranged, the opportunity to dialogue is not present because everything is already decided for the couple. In cultures where there is an opportunity to choose own partner, since the pace of life is so fast, there is generally no time to discuss important issues. So in both cases there is a need for a program to plan for the future.
Why is planning so important? My experience has shown that disagreements prior to the marriage commitment have different consequences than those afterwards. Those before marriage are seen as issues that need to be worked out. They are even welcomed as part of the richness and strength in the relationship. However, the very same disagreements after marriage take on the appearance of betrayal and breaking of marital vows.
So the intent in this Premarital Planning is to help participants discover each other’s perspective on life, relationships, issues and thereby better understand each other.
About the
Founder
Dér Stépanos Dingilian, Ph.D., the founder of this approach brings real life experience, a wealth of educational background, clinical training and multicultural guidance experience to a Planning session. This diverse background allows Dr. Dingilian the opportunity to help a couple look at all aspects of their relationship such as family, career, extended family, and spirituality, as opposed to only certain areas.
As background information, he received his Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from the Ohio State University in 1975. For the next twelve years he held engineering and management positions in companies such as the Procter & Gamble Company, and industries such as the Aerospace and Automotive. Eventually, he established his own Engineering Consulting firm.
In 1989 he received his Masters of Divinity from St. Nérséss Armenian Seminary and St. Vladimir's Orthodox Seminary. He conducted his Clinical Pastoral Education at Sloan-Kettering Memorial Hospital and New York Hospital. The next two years he spent in Armenia, both teaching at the Seminary of Holy Etchmiadsin and counseling victims of the major December 1988 Earthquake in northern Armenia. This experience gave him the opportunity to guide families through difficult and catastrophic situations. He was married in 1990 in Armenia and ordained into the Holy Order of Priesthood of the Armenian Apostolic Church in 1991.
After returning to the United States he held pastoral positions in two parishes in California for five years. Again, this gave him further opportunity to guide families, and especially young people searching for their soul mate in life. He received his Ph.D. in Theology and Personality Development from the School of Theology at Claremont in 1996. His dissertation was on the topic of how young people develop hope in life, and especially through their family relationships. In addition to the academic emphasis, this doctoral program also encompassed Clinical Training in counseling. Since then Dr. Dingilian has authored a number of books, has been publishing a periodical related to family values, and has launched a web site on the same subject. Furthermore, he conducts personal guidance programs, seminars, workshops and retreats for various organizations.
Currently, Dr. Dér Stépanos and his wife Yérétzgeen Mariam along with their two daughters, Kayané and Arminé live in Irvine, California.
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