In my ongoing effort to keep you, the reader, abreast of the latest developments in love and marriage, I offer the following stories from around the world
There’s an App for that?
In Hong Kong, the family service unit of the Catholic Church has launched a “marriage checkup” app (for both Android and IOS phones). Utilizing cutting edge technology, the app helps couples, who have been married at least 10 years, assess their relationship.
Questions include how often they have sex, argue or discuss life decisions and how many times the thought of marriage crossed their minds. A low score sends them to a page advising them to sign up for couples’ therapy. (To think, my generation had to rely on Redbook quizzes for the same advice.)
Making it Not So Legal
In Ghana, couples are being warned their marriages may not be legal. According to Attorney Oladele Aribike, if either the church and the minister were not “officially registered with the Ministry of Justice, through the Registrar General Department, the marriage could be null and void.”
Apparently, there is also some confusion in Ghana over whether a marriage has been “ordained” or merely “blessed.” Attorney Aribike explains a “blessing” is not regarded as a wedding or marriage under the law.
I am Woman, Hear Me Roar
Times are changing in Saudi Arabia where women are now demanding more rights in pre-nuptual contracts. In one case, a bride asked to be allowed to attend football matches while another woman demanded her future husband allow her to drive.
Then there’s the woman who insisted on keeping her job and asked that her groom allow her to work late, if necessary. Another requested the right to promote items for sale on social media. The latter is a basic right every woman should demand.
A Leap of Faith
Bungee-jumping ceremony
In Brussels, Belgium, the latest craze is bungee-jumping weddings. The ceremony is performed on a platform 160-feet in the air. Instead of walking down an aisle, the bride and groom are hoisted up by a crane.
After the ceremony, the newly-weds (and only the newly-weds) bungee-jump over the side. The celebration culminates in a floating reception on the lofty platform, featuring a three-course wedding breakfast with principals and guests strapped to their chairs as a safety precaution. The cost for such a spectacular ceremony? Around $35,000 USD.
And, no, I’m not making any of this up.
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