London:

An English Catholic Bishop is bemoaning the falling number of marriages in the country. Bishop Mark Davies of Shrewsbury said that the institution of marriage is not merely in cataclysmic decline but is at risk of being eliminated. The prelate spoke during the annual diocesan Mass in celebration of marriage last week. 

During his speech at Chester's St. Columba's Church, the bishop stated that the consequences of the breakdown of marriage would impact the UK.

Bishop Davies' homily reminded the couples celebrating wedding anniversaries that the vows they made to one another marked the beginning of a vocation lived from the beginning, a vocation elevated by Christ to be a sacrament of salvation and revered by the Church.

Bishop Davies said, "It is hard to imagine in little more than half a century the promises you made, the vocation you embraced would become more and more exceptional. So exceptional in these early years of this 21st century that most recent statistics show a 61% decrease in marriages in our land, the lowest number of couples entering marriage for almost two centuries, and the first time in our history that more children are born outside of Marriage than in a married home."

The prelate went on to say that the Christian vocation of Marriage stands out as a call to younger generations to believe in and follow the same path, to have the guts to make the same incredible promises, to be incredibly faithful in creating a secure and loving home for their children, and to pray together for the Lord to keep their unity of heart and bring them to old age together.

Meanwhile, in a statement issued, the diocese highlighted that research from the Marriage Foundation has consistently demonstrated that male-female marriages are more secure and long-lasting than any other kind of relationship. 
According to the charity's most recent study, by the time they are 14 years old, 46% of children in the UK do not live with both of their biological parents.