stjohnsphilly.org

The decline in marriages is a huge social mega trend. According to a recent Heritage Foundation report, in 1962 more than 90% of Americans had married by age 35. By 2025, that number had fallen to 55%. In the 1960s and 70s, it was assumed that just about everyone would marry. That assumption is no longer true.

Saint John’s is known for many things. When I tell folks where I serve, people often mention Ash Wednesday and work day Masses. Tourists attend Mass at Saint John’s in great numbers. We welcome lots of young adults and students to Mass. And Center City workers and visitors attend daily Mass and come for confessions.

Saint John’s also has a reputation as a wedding church. In 2025 we had 75 weddings. In 2026 we already have 70 weddings scheduled and there will be a few more scheduled in the next couple of months. In a statistical survey of the situation of Catholic marriages, The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate found that there were 98,354 Catholic weddings in 2022 in the entire United States, an average of fewer than 6 weddings per parish. Compare that with Saint John’s average of about 6 weddings each month!

Here are some statistics on the numbers of US Catholic weddings over the past 50+ years: 1970, 426,309 weddings; 1990, 326,079 weddings; 2000, 261,626 weddings; 2022, 98,354 weddings. In another study which compared 1969 with 2019 (before the pandemic), the number of US Catholic weddings fell by 69-75%.

There has been a dramatic decline in the number of weddings of all kinds in the United States. Catholic weddings have also declined.

The Heritage Foundation studied the reasons for the decline in marriages. According to the study, there has been a cultural shift. In past times, people married to begin a life together; today marriage is seen as a reward for already achieving financial stability, career goals and home ownership. People are cautioned not to marry until they have already reached important economic goals. In the past, people married so that they could together work for those goals.

This means that today better educated and more affluent people marry, while less educated and poorer people don’t marry. 90% of children of college educated parents are born within marriage while working class families have higher rates of unwed childbirths. Catholic theology teaches that there is an essential link between marriage and children. Marriage is the beginning of a new family. The best context for raising children is marriage, where children are cared for by two parents who love each other. To be sure, there are excellent single parents; nevertheless, marriage is ideal for child rearing. And Catholic weddings produce Catholic children and families.

One third of those who marry also divorce, a percentage a bit lower than in previous years. I have not seen any statistics to support my hunch, but I think that those who marry in the church have lower divorce rates.

Saint John’s does an important ministry for the Church. We foster marriage. We help to form Catholic families. At Saint John’s, young people who marry begin their marriages in prayer. Many people who attend weddings at Saint John’s comment on how beautiful and appropriate are church weddings.

However, most people who marry at Saint John’s also plan an expensive Center City banquet reception. Marriage is too often reserved these days for well educated and affluent young people. To be honest, our wedding ministry at Saint John’s serves richer young people. But marriage across the US has become the choice of more affluent people.

Saint John’s makes a very important contribution to the future of the Catholic Church by assisting many young people to be married in the Church. Our weddings also provide essential support to our parish. Without our weddings Saint John’s could not stay open. But we are not primarily doing weddings to make money. We are committed to serving young Catholics and encouraging them to form Catholic families.