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On Marriage: A Thread
It is my humble opinion that engagements and marriages, happening even a few at a time amongst a group of young people who are at least acquainted, lead to more engagements and marriages.
It is my humble opinion that engagements and marriages, happening even a few at a time amongst a group of young people who are at least acquainted, lead to more engagements and marriages.
For example, I know probably close to 150 or even 200 single Catholics of marriageable age, ranging from 18 to about 40.
Since about a dozen years ago, I've been loudly complaining that most of said singles have been sitting around doing nothing, romantically speaking.
Since about a dozen years ago, I've been loudly complaining that most of said singles have been sitting around doing nothing, romantically speaking.
Most of them weren't even dating. Some of them still aren't. But then, about 4 years ago, the climate started to change a bit. We had the first YAG ( http://yagincincy.org ) & while many complained that we were "pushing" the idea that they could find spouses, some of them did.
The first year, we got only one wedding out of it. The second year, we had no weddings, but there was definitely some dating going on. The third year, we had three weddings. The fourth year, we had another three weddings, with four coming up for year five.
Additionally, during this time, we had several unilateral weddings of YAG attendees, where they married in the Church but not to other YAGers. All of a sudden, it seems like tons of people I know are getting married. And this is great!
When there are no couples dating/courting, no couples getting engaged, and no couples getting married, I think it literally makes it harder for singles to take the plunge and "do something" about their single-ness (aside from whining about not being able to find anyone to marry).
But when they see OTHER couples taking the plunge, when they see their friends & siblings & cousins taking the risk & turning out happy, it emboldens the onlookers & the feet-draggers. "If so-and-so can support a wife, at that age and with that job, why can't I do the same?"
It's peer pressure of the best kind. It makes the young men "man up" and look ahead. It makes them realize that they have competition - that cute girl may get snapped up by someone else who has his act together! Even in families, it seems to be catching.
One of my brothers got married in 2020. Another is practically engaged. Even the baby of the family has a serious friend (and man, is it cute to watch...
). A friend just got engaged this weekend. Another is seriously dating a guy from the YAG. Things are looking up.
). A friend just got engaged this weekend. Another is seriously dating a guy from the YAG. Things are looking up.
Human beings are herd animals. Not many of them are natural risk-takers - nobody wants to be "the first." But once the first couple go for it, the rest of the herd tends to take the plunge. So in 2021, come to the YAG and just do it! 
