St. Paul’s community sparks marriages, lasting friendships founded in Christ

Karl and Cecilia Schlegel and family

Maura Rasmusson and Eric Van Eck

Early in their relationship, Maura Rasmusson and Eric Van Eck wasted no time mapping out their dreams for the future — faith life, career goals, marriage, and family size.

The couple met on a Sunday in 2021 after the 11 a.m. Mass for young adults at St. Paul Inside the Walls, the evangelization center of the Paterson Diocese in Madison. It was still the era of COVID-19, so they could only see each other’s eyes. Nevertheless, they bonded immediately.

“Maura was easy to talk to. We made each other laugh until our faces hurt. We also didn’t shy away from serious subjects,” said Van Eck, 35, who works in mental health and addiction services for student affairs at The College of New Jersey. He proposed last fall. They plan to marry in May 2025. “Maura’s blue eyes are penetrating. They caught me.”

Rasmusson and Van Eck hope to join the dozens of young adult couples who found love at St. Paul’s — romances that led to engagements, marriages, and children. Some of them met at the center, while others met elsewhere. But they all found a place to deepen their relationships with each other — and with Jesus. Couples who met at St. Paul’s and have prospered initially came to seek God — not a spouse. Since 2010, the center has offered a broad range of worship, formation, service, and social activities.

“I could see that, under his mask, Eric had so much energy. He was always chatting. We connected as we talked. He has a good heart,” said Rasmusson, 27, who works in research and product development for a seasoning company. “At St. Paul’s, I found friends and people with similar values and a stronger connection to God, which deepened my faith.”

These couples are primarily involved with St. Paul’s Young Adults, which started before the center opened. Van Eck serves as a greeter at Sunday Masses. He and Rasmusson are committee members of the center’s annual gala and are part of its barbeques and trivia nights. Other young-adult activities include men’s and women’s bible studies with adoration and service projects. They have also gotten involved with many of St. Paul’s spiritual instruction, such as the One Way, which Van Eck and Rasmusson attended, and marriage prep.

“The married couples at St. Paul’s are great witnesses. They look very much in love and happy with their kids around them at Mass — all with God at the center,” Van Eck said.

The St. Paul’s staff is happy for these couples, who typically reach the end of young-adult ministry by their late 30s. They go on to live out the mission of the center, which has inspired them to become evangelists for Christ “as part of a local parish in solid marriages and happy families. Often, the kids are going to Catholic schools,” said Brian Honsberger. He is St. Paul’s executive director and the diocese’s director of mission and technology integration.

“St. Paul’s brings people together to explore the life of faith and discover God, and often, young adults discover their spouse along the way,” said Honsberger, who noted that the center’s chapel and prayer garden have been the site of many engagements.

One married couple living out St. Paul’s mission is Karl and Cecilia Schlegel of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in Boonton. Married in 2013, they have five children, ages 1 to 9 — three, who attend the parish school. While they didn’t meet at St. Paul’s, Karl, now 39, started bringing Cecilia, now 44, to Sunday Mass after they started dating in 2011.

Karl was the answer to Cecilia’s prayers. She lit a candle in the shrine of St. Anthony in St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City, asking Jesus, “Help my future husband find me.” Karl touched Cecilia’s heart when he made an effort to set up a music therapy session for her sister with autism.

“We talked about faith, marriage, and family — not wasting time. A month into our relationship, we knew God was calling us to marriage,” said Cecilia, a stay-at-home mother.

At St. Paul’s, Karl introduced Cecilia, a dancer, to Msgr. Geno Sylva, former St. Paul’s executive director. They talked about her starting a dance apostolate. Karl joined the music ministry as a violinist, eventually serving as director. Karl attended pub nights, while they both occasionally attended barbeques together.

“At St. Paul’s, faith and community are intertwined. It gave us different ways to connect with people and encounter Christ,” said Karl, a strategic partnerships consultant. He maintains friendships with men he met at St. Paul’s who support each other in faith and family life.