If engaged couple Sydney Morrison and Nick McKenna have learned one thing, it’s to never underestimate the Holy Spirit’s ability to act through social media.
The couple met through a matchmaking post on Instagram. “The circumstances alone were just so out there that it’s not something you could have ever explained away,” Nick said.
In August 2023, Sydney was scrolling through Instagram, when she saw a post from one of her favorite Catholic speakers, Emily Wilson. The post was simple but direct: “This is a matchmaking post.”
Wilson explained in the caption that the purpose of the post was for Catholic men and women to give a brief introduction in the comments and then to message each other to say hello.
Sydney and a few of her friends commented, but nothing came of the first post. A few months later in December, Sydney saw another matchmaking post in Wilson’s feed. She decided to give it another try.
“Hello, I’m Sydney!” she commented. “I’m 23 years old and live in Northern Virginia. I’m a practicing Catholic, am a member of the choir at my parish, and participate in the young adult group there as well! I enjoy visiting historic houses, listening to music and playing video games.”
A college friend of Nick’s who also followed Sydney saw her comment among the thousands of comments. She commented back, asking Sydney if she wanted to be set up with Nick, who lives in Springfield. Sydney initially hesitated, but then agreed, and after a week of messaging, the couple decided to take things offline.
“We went to a little cafe, and we ended up just talking for a really long time,” Sydney said. “It was really easy to talk to him, right off the bat.”
Nick remembered the first time seeing Sydney in person. “I saw her walking up, and she just had this big smile on her face,” he said. “It was cute.”
The couple dated for only a few months before the topic of marriage came up. “It was always just different from the start,” Nick said. It wasn’t long before they were looking at rings together.
On a bridge spanning a babbling stream at Eleanor C. Lawrence Park in Fairfax, Nick proposed to Sydney with a ruby ring. The date was June 28, 2024, Sydney’s birthday.
“I just learned very early on that she’s someone I really can trust with all my heart and love and cherish,” Nick said, smiling at her.
Wilson, an author and speaker, said in an email interview with the Catholic Herald that she was initially dubious that the matchmaking posts would work. “It was one of those moments when I felt the Lord ask me to do something specific with my ministry. In my frail humanity I thought, ‘This is the silliest thing ever, but I’ll do it!’ ” she said.
Today, many unions have resulted from Wilson’s posts. She can name three married couples from the posts, and approximately a dozen more couples who are engaged.
Sydney and Nick are planning to tie the knot May 24 at the Sacred Heart of Mary Chapel at Marymount University in Arlington, Nick’s alma mater.
In marriage, Sydney eagerly anticipates “continuing to grow in our faith together, (and) eventually starting a family.”
Sydney and Nick agreed that many single, young adult Catholics often put too much pressure on themselves to quickly find a spouse. The couple said they would encourage single Catholics looking to date to never settle — and don’t rule out unconventional ways to meet other Catholics.
“It’s really hard to understand the path before you’ve seen it,” Nick said. “You don’t have to put all your energy into trying to date,” Sydney added. “Just trust in God and his timing.”
Wilson attributes the success of the matchmaking posts to God’s providence. “The dating world feels bleak, impersonal, frustrating and hopeless for many devoted Catholics looking to find a holy spouse,” she said. “The matchmaking posts have revitalized my belief and knowledge that God can use anything to bring people together.”
