Church weddings costly? Try mass weddings - CBCP official

MANILA, Philippines - An official of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) yesterday said couples who want to get married but cannot afford it could just dispense with the lavish trimmings or sign up for a free wedding.

Last week, the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) reported that fewer Filipinos have been getting married during the past decade since it has taken a low priority among couples due to rising poverty.

NSCB data showed that the number of registered marriages had dropped by 13 percent from 559,162 in 2001 to 482,480 in year 2010.

CBCP-National Appellate Matrimonial Tribunal (NAMT) Judicial Vicar emeritus Archbishop Oscar Cruz believes that one possible reason is that couples find church weddings too costly.

“There are less people getting married because fewer people believe in marriage. They just live together and if they fall out of love they just go on their separate ways and find someone else,” said Cruz.

“Maybe they are saying marriage is too expensive. But in the Church, there is a free wedding once or twice a month... it is just that there would no longer be a singer, flowers, balloons, and wedding march. It would be simple,” he added.

Cruz said the Catholic Church should teach the faithful that wedding expenses should be within their means, and that church expenses are different from the reception. “It is not the case that they should always go together,” he said. “There are others who ask for discounts from the church, but they are lavish when it comes to the hotel and reception.”

Cruz added that a move in Congress to pass the divorce bill is another reason why there has been a reduction in weddings – some couples are rethinking the significance of marriage when divorce would be legalized.