Not everyone sees dating apps as the place to find lasting relationships, but Rohit Fonseca, 29, and Hannah Pagel, 28, found their spouse on one.
What started as a simple profile “like” turned into a relationship rooted in a shared commitment to their Catholic faith.
At the time they met, Rohit lived in Arlington and was a parishioner of St. Charles Borromeo Church, and Hannah lived in Navy Yard and was a parishioner of St. Vincent de Paul Church in Washington. The world was still reeling from the pandemic, leaving many people feeling isolated.
“I had always said, ‘I think dating apps are stupid. I don’t want to be on a dating app, it’s kind of superficial,’” said Rohit. “But toward the end of COVID, being a single Catholic in your mid-20s, there still weren’t big social events going on that much, and I figured I’d give it a try.”
Both Rohit and Hannah had one non-negotiable in their search for a partner: they wanted someone who shared their Catholic faith. The dating app they used allowed them to set a filter to only see Catholic people.
“I think there was a really negative connotation around dating apps,” said Hannah. “We all know the hookup culture associated with it, and I didn’t want to be associated with that.”
When Rohit and Hannah decided to move from text messages to a face-to-face interaction, they chose to meet for coffee, with Hannah paying for Rohit’s coffee. What would’ve been a short coffee date turned into two hours of conversation.
“He came over to Navy Yard and then we walked around because it was so nice outside,” said Hannah. “It was very simple; it was a coffee and a walk.”
After their wedding day, they had the incredible opportunity to meet Pope Francis, who gives special attention to newly married couples during his general audiences. The experience deepened their faith and marked yet another extraordinary chapter in their story.
Looking back on their courtship, Rohit surprisingly doesn’t recommend dating apps as a first choice to meet people.
“I personally don’t push people toward dating apps. I know that sounds funny since I got married off a dating app,” said Rohit. “If there’s not a few people at your parish, or you go to events and you can’t find potential people to date, then I would encourage you to maybe check a dating app.”
Meanwhile Hannah has this advice for young Catholics looking to find their spouse on a dating app:
“If I could go back and tell myself some advice from what I know now, it would be just to be more intentional about dating and very clear about what your non-negotiables are,” said Hannah. “Don’t be afraid to have ‘Catholic’ on your profile. Embrace that, it’s a part of your identity and it should not be something you hide.”
Rohit and Hannah currently live in North Carolina where Rohit is working on a master’s degree at Duke University.
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