In a state with one of the country’s highest divorce rates, two Christian nonprofit groups have joined forces in an effort to help more couples thrive.

Little Rock’s CityChurch Network and Virginia-based Communio recently launched what they’re calling the Arkansas Marriage Initiative.

Interested congregations can team with Communio to create “a strategic plan for their relationship and marriage ministry,” said Ray Williams, the CityChurch Network’s president and co-founder.

Thus far, five entities have signed up, according to J.P. Gance, Communio’s founder and president: Geyer Springs Baptist Church in Little Rock, Fellowship North Church in North Little Rock, The Way Church Network in Little Rock, Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Morrilton and St. Edward Catholic Church in Texarkana.

Communio’s mission is “to renew healthy relationships, marriages and families through a Christ-centered strategic framework, using data tools to promote community outreach and engagement.”

“We want churches to be really schools of love, hubs for healthy relationships,” Gance said. “The most common path for people to grow in holiness, biblically speaking, is marriage.”

Arkansas had the nation’s second-highest divorce rate in 2021 — 11 for every 1,000 women and girls ages 15 and over, according to a U.S. Census Bureau analysis based on data from its American Community Survey. Only Idaho, at 11.1 per 1,000 was higher.

The divorce rate was 6.9 per 1,000 nationwide. It was lowest in New Hampshire, at 4.3 per 1,000.

An analysis by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, using data from the National Vital Statistics System, ranked Arkansas as the state with the third highest divorce rate for 2022.

CityChurch Network describes itself as a “multi-denominational, multi-ethnic, relational network uniting churches in Christ through extraordinary prayer, trained leaders, and collective impact.”

For roughly 20 years, it has worked to help churches strengthen families in Central Arkansas, Williams said.

“All of the data supports that marriage and family are the biggest way to have an impact on the well-being of children,” he said.

“Marriage and family also contribute significantly to the happiness of adults.”

Communio is ecumenical and its scope is national.

“We’ve supported more than 250 churches across the country in 21 different states,” Gance said. “Seventy percent of our church partners are Protestant churches, and 30% are Catholic parishes.”

Gance believes churches can help strengthen marriages and lower divorce rates if they’re intentional about what they do. “One of the obstacles to marriage ministry in general is this perception that it’s only for people who are struggling. As a consequence, very few people avail themselves of marriage ministry because you don’t want to signal that something’s wrong with your marriage,” Gance said.

“A big thing that we do with churches is we coach them to normalize marriage ministry,” he said. “It’s for everybody.”

Good marriage ministry programs help the existing membership but can also be a “front porch, drawing people in,” he said.

Information about the organizations launching the Arkansas Marriage Initiative is available at communio.org and citychurchar. org.