All couples can struggle with many of the same issues, such as problems with communicating, building trust, parenting issues, financial concerns, intimacy difficulties, and so on. It is essential to understand that couples who come from different religious and/or cultural backgrounds can have an extra layer of differences. These cultural variances may come up when it comes to values, raising children, boundaries with family, and how to communicate about difficult topics that may be due to religious or cultural beliefs.
Families each develop their own traditions and culture over time and pass those traditions down to their children and grandchildren. In relationships that grow with the same religious and cultural guidelines, this is usually not an issue. However, when it comes to couples that have different traditions establishing how these traditions will be intermingled in the future can sometimes be challenging. Issues can commonly arise when a couple does not understand or appreciate their partner’s cultural experience or practice effective communication that will allow them to build intimacy. The most successful intercultural relationships and marriages are made up of partners that continuously learn and grow alongside each other while developing new traditions specific to their family.