Dear Friends:

This week I would like to share a Reflection on Catholic Marriage: Letting the Altar Be the Witness.

The steady and sobering decline in Catholic marriages in the United States tells us something important—not only about changing social patterns, but about a quiet ache within the Church itself. In the year 2000, there were about 267,000 Catholic marriages in this country. By 2024, that number had fallen to just over 111,000—a drop of nearly 60%. When we look further back, the contrast is even sharper: roughly 426,000 Catholic marriages in 1970 compared with just over 108,000 in 2025, a decline of nearly 75%.

These numbers are not simply statistics. They represent a sobering fact that young adults who may not yet feel that the Church is a place where their love, questions, hopes, and struggles are truly welcomed and accompanied.

I would like to offer an invitation: to foster an atmosphere in which young adults know they belong—before they are married, as they discern marriage, and throughout the lifelong journey that follows. The Church must not appear as a gatekeeper standing at the end of the road, but as a companion walking beside them, offering encouragement, wisdom, mercy, and practical tools for building strong, sacramental marriages.

To rediscover the beauty of Catholic marriage, we return to where Jesus himself chose to reveal his glory for the first time: the wedding at Cana. Jesus was not a distant observer at that celebration. He was present—with his mother and his disciples—sharing in the joy, the vulnerability, and even the quiet anxiety of the couple’s day. And like every wedding, Cana was not perfect. The wine ran short. What had been carefully planned suddenly revealed its limits.

It is Mary who notices first. She does not shame, panic, or assign blame. She simply brings the need to Jesus. And what follows is extraordinary. Six stone jars—each holding twenty to thirty gallons—are filled with water and transformed into wine. Not just any wine, but the finest wine. In today’s terms, that is roughly 600 to 900 bottles of choicest wine. An abundance beyond expectation. A generosity almost excessive. A sign that when Jesus is present, scarcity is never the final word.

This miracle tells us something essential about marriage as a sacrament. No marriage is perfect, no matter how carefully prepared. Every couple will face moments when the “wine runs short”—when patience thins, joy feels distant, or love is tested by fatigue, illness, disappointment, or change. The sacrament of marriage is not a guarantee of ease; it is the promise of presence. Christ does not remove every difficulty, but he transforms what is offered to him. His presence changes the atmosphere. What feels insufficient becomes grace-filled. What seems ordinary becomes sacred.

This is why celebrating marriage in the Church matters. To stand before the altar is to say: we want Christ at the center of our love; we want the Church to witness our promises; we want grace to sustain what human strength alone cannot. The altar becomes more than a place of ritual—it becomes a silent witness to vows spoken, tears shed, forgiveness given, and love renewed again and again.

As we approach Valentine’s Day, our parish rejoices in a visible sign of hope. On Sunday, February 15th at the 10:30 a.m. Mass, more than 30 couples will gather to renew their marriage vows. Their presence reminds us that love, when rooted in faith, can endure and mature. As these couples renew their promises, we also invite any other couples who wish to join us—physically or in spirit—to ask God’s blessing upon their marriage.

First Friday Exposition of the

Blessed Sacrament | February 6

St. Stephen Church: Exposition begins at 8:15am,

followed by Benediction at 8:45am and Mass at 9:00am.

Newly Added:

Christ the King Ministry Center Chapel: You can also attend Eucharistic Adoration every Friday from 3pm to 5pm. 

The following Masses are livestreamed for those unable to celebrate with us.

Christ the King and St. Stephen Campus
Monday - Saturday
9:00am

First Friday Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and Mass
Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament will begin at 8:15am followed by Mass at 9:00am

Saturday
4:00pm Vigil Mass

Sunday
10:30am

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