A survey done by Church-run Radio Veritas 846 revealed that the cost of wedding celebrations is preventing many Filipino couples from getting married in church.
Result of the survey shows that of the 1,200 respondents from all over the country, 32 percent said “cost” is the main obstacle in their getting married; 24 percent said “requirements;” while 16 percent said the “process” and the “interviews” are preventing them from getting married.
“Attire” was the reason given by eight percent while six percent said “conflict of faith” hindered them from getting married. The rest, or 14 percent, were “undecided.”
Father Anton Pascual, head of Radio Veritas 846, expressed dismay over the survey results.
“The real reason for a church wedding is to celebrate a solemn Sacrament; and as a religious ceremony it acknowledges that marriage is an act of God,” he said.
“Sadly, the survey reveals that a Church wedding is being associated with opulence, which may not be the case,” Father Pascual said over Radio Veritas.
Of those asked in the survey, 38 percent of the male respondents cited the “cost” of the wedding as a hindrance to marriage while 24 percent of the female respondents said “requirements” are preventing them from getting married.
“Weddings may be celebrated in a simple yet meaningful and blessed manner,” said Father Pascual.
“What matters most is that marriage is not a contract between a man and a woman, but a covenant between three. The third partner is Christ, and when He is given no room in a marriage, there can be no assurance for a happy Christian home,” said the priest.
In a similar survey done last year, it was found that many Filipino Catholics see marriage as unnecessary before living together
Survey result show that 45 percent of respondents said marriage is not a requirement before living in, 40 percent believe in a marriage-first arrangement, and the remaining 15 percent were undecided.
Father Pascual called the survey “a challenge in the Church’s ongoing mission to evangelize the faithful most especially nominal Catholics on the beauty of the sacrament of marriage.”
