HISTORY OF WORLD MARRIAGE DAY

World Marriage Day is an offshoot of Worldwide Marriage Encounter, an apostolate with the mission to help couples enjoy blissful and happy marriages. At its core, the day celebrates the husband and wife as the foundation of the family and sees the family as the basic unit of society. Further, World Marriage Day honors the beauty of nuptial faithfulness, devotion, sacrifice, commitment, and joy.

World Marriage Day traces its origin to 1981 when married couples in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, asked the mayor of the city, the governor of the State, and the Bishop of the church to proclaim February 14 (St. Valentine’s Day) as We Believe in Marriage Day. Following the success of the event, the idea of celebrating the day was subsequently presented to and adopted by the National Leadership of Worldwide Marriage Encounter.

The following year — in 1982 — 43 governors in the U.S. approved and officially announced the day as We Believe in Marriage Day. Eventually, some U.S. military bases in many foreign countries joined in the celebrations. In 1983, the day witnessed two major changes: its name was changed to World Marriage Day and it was designated to be celebrated on the second Sunday in February annually. A decade later — in 1993 — Saint Pope John Paul II approved and imparted his Apostolic Blessings on World Marriage Day. In the Catholic church, World Marriage Week still takes place each year from February 7 — February 14.

To date, World Marriage Day is celebrated every second Sunday of February in many countries around the world, especially in the Catholic church. Sometimes, like this year, the day falls on February 14, coinciding with Valentine’s Day.