Ask These Girls

This article seeks to inform, explain and discuss Catholic Matchmaker website, www.MeetaCatholic.com.  It explains the history and progress since 2007 of this growing Catholic Singles community.

Catholic Matchmaker New Zealand made a ground breaking announcement to the media in August 2007. Catholic Matchmaker is the first website to submit fully to the authority of the church, by gaining permission and endorsement from Archbishop John Dew and all the other Bishops in New Zealand to promote in their Dioceses.  This has been a lengthy but worthwhile process.  They wanted the proper spiritual coverage and authority to do what they felt God wanted them to do.

They believe that using the Catholic name is a great responsibility, let alone providing a service to single Catholics who are hoping to meet and marry their spouses on their site – and would not have proceeded without the fullest of support, blessing and endorsement of their Bishops.

Dating sites have an horrendous reputation in general – as hook up sites, or sex sites, or sites where predators manipulate and scam innocent victims.

Catholic Matchmaker New Zealand has sought (and succeeded) to avoid these common “dating site” pitfalls, and to use the power of the Internet for the Glory of God.

They have eliminated any scammers completely by making their site a paid only membership.  Scammers only seem to want to scam for free – and the statistics are rife on dating sites that have a free option, of scammers getting to other members and deceiving them of money in particular.  In their testing period before their launch on 29 September 2007 (St Raphael’s Feast Day) they were themselves, the target of such people.  These have been totally eliminated by allowing ONLY paid members to join and view other profiles.  They have had no trouble since this has been in effect, and are encouraged by the result.

A private and safe place to meet others who are searching also eliminates what some members have felt were busybodies joining for free to see who was on the site – again no-one wants to pay just to be nosy.

Advertising their site as specifically Catholic has drawn from a wide audience.  They have a number of very sincere Catholics, they have older and younger Catholics, and they have people who identify as nominally Catholic.Cradle Catholics who feel a Cathholic connection but have not had much to do with Catholicism since school, are seeking out others with similar experiences. 

This is significant – as one of their key aims is to give Catholics who may have lapsed an opportunity to meet others BECAUSE they are Catholic.People have a private opportunity to re-examine their life in relation to God and the Church, and using the links provided seek out the answers they need.  They are looking for a Catholic for a reason – a little water on that seed could see them return to the fold.There are articles on the site that help members find resources within the Catholic Church to examine their faith anew. 

They have their own pastor, Fr Ron Bennett, appointed by Archbishop John Dew to be available for email contact, counseling, prayer, confession or whatever is necessary.Fr Ron is right on hand to answer any questions of faith, but is not limited to this…and offers counselling in the broadest sense.Fr Ron has worked with Engaged Encoounter and Marriage Encounter Ministries for many years..and is now adding Catholic Matchmaker to his list of experiences.

One aim is to strengthen the Catholic Church from the very beginning of the family!When a couple connects, they can rest assured that they have a common bond of faith.Marriages between partners where one person is not Catholic can weaken a person’s spiritual journey, and are becoming more common..It has been noted to be that much more difficult for families where spouses that have differing Spiritual and Religious values.  If they can help put Catholics together because of their Catholicism, that one barrier becomes irrelevant and they are building the Church for tomorrow.

Another aim is to bring God into relationships – and encourage couples to seek God’s will before they become a couple – they suggest prayer, meeting family and friends – and trying to listen to what they say (as they know that is hard when you are in love so to speak), and seeking spiritual guidance and counseling before making a major decision like dating someone!   No, not marriage, not engagement – the major decision should be whether you “date” someone.  They state on the website, when chatting with friends online, be sure to let them know you are speaking to others if you are.  Let them know when you know for sure that someone is not for you.They also strongly suggest that Singles ask for God’s guidance in choosing their Spouse early on, before hearts are broken and mistakes made.

They had their first Wedding in May 2008 which was covered by NZ Catholic Newspaper.Other couples have formed and are exploring their relationships now to see if they will lead to marriage.

Others are happy meeting single people, making new friendships – in this increasingly isolated age, they are finding that the internet helps them find friends outside their homes, that they may never have met otherwise.For those who find this world is too busy for them to find the time or plkace to meet others with a similar background and history, Catholic Matchmaker is providing the answer. People are now able to connect because they are Catholic – online.