The Catholic Church in Albania hopes that not allow people to get married on Sundays.

In Albania traditionally, this period is called the weddings season. Almost every Sunday in the streets and neighborhood you can see cavalcades of the wedding cars, decorated with festive ribbons, going to get the bride. Sunday is the wedding day in albanian cities and villages! But it seems that this will not continue for a long time in Albania, at least for Catholics believers. The archbishop of Shkoder-Pult, Angelo Massafra, announced recently that from January 1, 2018, he will not allow people to get married on Sundays. The decision taken by the leaders of this diocese came after the discussions started recently and the reasons behind these changes are some, including the return to tradition of the early 90's. Dom Artur Jaku, Vicar of Shkodra said: Historically, the weddings in Albania were not done on Sunday but on Monday. This story, especially the wedding celebration on Sunday is a story that started after 1990. The most important reason was that on Sundays, Catholics should go to Mass and another reason was the fact that every Sunday in summer months in the main Catholic cathedral, 15 to 20 couples take their wedding vows. Every Sunday in summer months in the main Catholic cathedral in Shkoder are about 20 couples take their wedding vows. “It’s really a large number to be given the care they deserve during the ceremony,” Artur Jaku, a priest in Shkodra, told Albanian Public Television.He said:"Catholics Church receives a very large number of requests from couples who want to get married here.The Parish Priest is unable to do all of the weddings, however, since we receive a very large number of requests, we cannot guarantee that our efforts will be successful. This allegation seems has causing surprise and even dismay among Catholics in Shkodra, which make up around of 47 per cent of the local population there. For some believers this decision is strange because according to them. "There should not be a happier moment for the church than a wedding at its premises, because for Catholics, a marriage is not just a family event, but a church event”. “The church must be ready to serve people and not to impose restrictions", wrote another belivers in social media. Others mentioned the fact that the Vatican never has stopped people marrying in church on Sundays and expressed concerns that the change could make couples decide not to hold their weddings in church. But according to some others belivers, “In the Bible it does not say that the weddings has to be on Sunday, but it says that that is a day to be dedicated only to God. Sunday Mass is the most important event for a believer”. Sunday is known by the church as a celebrated holiday, so it should be honored and devoted to God alone with the presence of every believer, the Diocese decision says. The Catholic Church of Shkodra hopes that in the near future, this decision will be unified for all Catholic churches in the country.