A move which started in the New Ulm Roman Catholic Diocese Jan.1 to prevent quick teenage marriages may be expanded to a three-state area.

Chancellors of dioceses in Minnesota, North and South Dakota, will meet Tuesday and Wednesday in Duluth to review a draft proposal calling for a four-month waiting period in many marriages.

The Rev. John Kinney, chancellor for the St. Paul-Minneapolis Archdiocese, said Tuesday the diocese representatives will review a draft of a proposed pastoral letter they hope to propose to their bishops.

“THE LETTER focuses on the whole question of marriage, not just early marriage,” Father Kinney said.

He said the proposal is similar to a program which took effect Jan. 1 in the New Ulm Diocese.

Under the New Ulm program, teenage couples must wait four months from the time they announce plans to marry until a diocesan priest will perform the marriage ceremony.

During the waiting period the couples must fill out a “premarital inventory” of 128 questions about their attitudes on such delicate matters as sex, money and child-raising.

The young people are given counseling if their attitudes appear to be too different.

Catholic leaders in the Minnesota Dakotas province have been working for 1 1/2 years on a general policy that could be used for the entire province.

A spokesman said this would eliminate the problem of people leaving their home diocese in search of another priest to marry them, rather than wait four months.

THE CATHOLIC leaders said they are bothered by statistics which show 56 per cent of American divorces involve people married younger than age 21 and divorced by age 24.

Under the general policy being considered, Father Kinney said the four-month wait would be required in all marriages involving persons under age 20.

Father Kinney said if an agreement is reached at the Duluth meeting,”then we will want to present the proposal to our bishops.”

“There has been a very positive reception to the idea,” Father Kinney said. “Everyone is eager to insure that marriages performed in the Catholic church have as good a chance as possible to succeed.”

HE SAID priests he has talked to are very anxious for the chancellors to come up with a positive policy.

“I don’t think we’re interested in a policy that just intends to be restrictive. We want a policy that will give real support to couples getting married these days,” Father Kinney said.

“I haven’t heard of any other similar move on such a large scale in the country,” he added.

New Ulm Daily Journal

Sept. 10, 1975