KEY POINTS:
The safe place for Catholics to meet Catholics is no longer just in church.
A website called Catholic Matcher New Zealand is going online on September 29 to help single Catholics looking for someone to share their faith and values.
The site has a patron saint - St Raphael, the patron of Catholic singles and of happy meetings - and has been blessed by Archbishop John Dew of Wellington.
"I'm happy to approve this website initiative. My hope is that it will be an opportunity for Catholics to meet one another, to share faith, to know what commitment in marriage means, what Catholic marriage entails and to be able to make the life-long commitment of marriage."
The website is the work of Clare and Glen Omvig, a Paraparaumu couple who met on the internet eight years ago. They started the site because they were a very early net romance success story.
"This is a forward step for the Catholic Church in recognising that Catholic singles need more avenues to meet people than just their local parish in New Zealand," Archbishop Dew said.
The site includes video and audio, chat, as well as instant messaging and internal email. Mentoring, advice and prayer will be available.
- NZPA
