(OSV News) -- As more U.S. adults are delaying marriage -- or simply saying, "I don't" -- the Catholic bishops of California have launched a new initiative to inspire and encourage the vocation.
"Radiate Love" provides an array of resources such as monthly reflections, prayers, videos, homiletic guides and even social media graphics, all designed to "help families become witnesses of God's love" as it is expressed through marriage and family life, according to the initiative's website.
Launched in July, "Radiate Love" seeks to "shift the narrative" on marriage, especially in light of the U.S. bishops' three-year National Eucharistic Revival, Kathleen Domingo, executive director of the California Catholic Conference, told OSV News.
"The (California Catholic) bishops had this great idea that it would be a fantastic outgrowth of a year spent talking about the Eucharist to talk about marriage, and for them to kind of lead the conversation -- to lead some education, reflection, information and prayer; to share some resources to help people who are already married; and to give encouragement to people who would like to be married," she said.
The initiative will also lead seamlessly into the universal Catholic Church's Jubilee Year 2025, announced by Pope Francis in February 2022, with dioceses and parishes invited to "consider working on marriage even more as part of their Jubilee plans," said Domingo.
The goal of the effort is "to help families grow stronger and deeper, and really prioritize sort of that understanding of the sacramental nature of marriage as an outgrowth, an icon of the love of Jesus and his church as we find in the Eucharist," Domingo added.
Yet that perspective has been overshadowed by a decades-long downturn in marriage rates, with the number of those walking down the aisle in the U.S. plummeting almost 60% since 1970.
"Today … many despair of marriage. Marriage rates are declining," California's bishops said in a letter to the faithful about the "Radiate Love" initiative. "(Marriage) is increasingly seen as an unattainable luxury by poorer and marginalized Americans. And the ties between marriage and children are breaking, with unfortunate consequences."
At the same time, divorce rates have declined over the past 20 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control, and with the average marriage age now between 28 and 30 -- as well as midlife first marriage rates rising since the 1990s -- the statistics may suggest less of an outright rejection of marriage, and more of a reprioritization of, or possible hesitancy toward, the vocation.
Domingo said "Radiate Love" is also looking to address that angle by reaching "people (who) have had really bad experiences" with marriage.
"Maybe they're hurting, maybe they're grieving … whether it was from their childhood, or whether it was from something that happened as an adult," she said. "We have a lot of people in our parishes whose marriages have fallen apart, or maybe what they hoped for isn't coming true for them. A lot of people are suffering with the loss of children or infertility issues and things like that. And there are people who are married and their marriage is not really a joyful moment for them."
By acknowledging such woundedness, the initiative can provide authentic, impactful support that is rooted in Christ and church teaching, she said.
"How can we really help those people through the lens of the church and through all of her apostolates and all of her resources to bring these folks before Jesus and say, 'You can be healed in this moment'?" Domingo said. "If we understand that the sacrament of marriage is truly a participation in the salvation, the saving act of Jesus, then there is salvation to be found in this process. How can we help you find that?"
The task is not limited to marriage partners, but extends to the broader context of family and social life, said Domingo.
"St. John Paul II talked about remote preparation for marriage, a lifelong plan for talking about marriage and family," she said. "And I think that we're still trying to unpack all of that. … We're tapping into the U.S. bishops' programming and the Vatican's programming (in those areas)."
As part of that approach, the "Radiate Love" initiative works to "help people have a vocabulary to share about marriage" naturally, in "classrooms, catechetical settings, retreats and youth ministry," she said.
"Radiate Love" provides resources to help parents "be really genuine and intentional" in living their marriages, said Domingo, since "the way kids really learn the most about marriage and family is by watching their parents."
"Be intentional about praying together, be intentional about having conversations at the dinner table," she said. "Talk to your kids about your marriage: 'Do you notice that we work together? Do you notice that we share responsibilities? Do you notice how much we love each other?' All those kinds of things can be shared around the dinner table or just in the context of living your life at home, if it's an intentional sense of wanting your kids to grow up with a positive understanding about marriage."
"The institution of marriage is held dear by God," the bishops said in their letter. "This is because marriage offers a penetrating glimpse into God’s identity as a communion of Persons and a model for how He loves us and how we are to love Him and every neighbor."
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