Han Dan (Fides Service) - Also in modern day China Christian weddings are ever more costly and luxurious a sort of competition among families to see who has the most wealth. To stop this tendency, mistaken and not Wu An parish in Han Dan diocese, in He Bei province has included an extra subject in the course of preparation for marriage offered to young couples, including many young non Christian couples who ask for a church blessing for their marriage and follow the pre-marriage lessons. The new subject helps the couples understand the real nature of the wedding, as a sacrament and not a time to waste money and put on a show of wealth for the benefit of society. With the new subject in pre-marriage classes the parish has helped prevent much family strife and also to send a more authentic Christian message to society at large.
(Agenzia Fides 25/05/2004 Lines: 14 Words: 138)