Catholic Singles, Pray to This Saint for a Spouse

The couple stood on the wind-wracked hillside on a blustery October day late in 2019. The valley below was marbled brown, vermillion, and gold, while a gray sky curled overhead and the wild wind sent a spattering of rain into their faces. But ignoring the somewhat inclement weather, the man knelt before the woman and proposed marriage. Unable to speak due to the rush of joy, she simply nodded, and they embraced.

The woman in that story is my wife, and the man is me. I proposed to my bride on October 21, 2019, the feast day of Blessed Karl of Austria, the last emperor of the Austrian Empire. Unbeknownst to me, this was exactly a year to the day from when my wife had completed a novena to Blessed Karl asking him to help her find a husband. There are no coincidences when it comes to God and the saints.

Our success story is far from the only one attributable to Karl’s intercession. A few years into our marriage, my wife suggested to three of her single sisters and two of her single friends to pray the novena to Blessed Charles, asking for the grace of finding good husbands. At the time that these women prayed the novena, none of them were dating, none of them had “marriage prospects.” Yet, within two years of completing the novena, four of them were either married or engaged. The fifth young lady, on the precise anniversary of the novena, went on a first date with the man who would become her husband not long thereafter.

We find a similar story in the fairy-tale-like romance of Kathleen Walker and Archduke Imre of Austria. Kathleen had been praying to Karl’s wife, Zita of Bourbon-Parma, a Servant of God, for her future spouse. Meanwhile, Archduke Imre had been praying to his grandfather, Karl. One evening, Kathleen attended a talk on the subject of Blessed Karl, delivered by the saint’s own grandson, Imre. The couple met, fell in love, and eventually were married in a lavish and magnificent royal wedding. 

From their thrones in Heaven, Karl and Zita seem especially interested in bringing about good Catholic marriages. Perhaps this is because they themselves lived such an exemplary marriage. They prepared for their wedding with a retreat. And shortly before that beautiful day, Karl told his bride-to-be, “Now we must help each other get to heaven.” That perfectly describes the tenor and undivided focus of their entire marriage.  From their thrones in Heaven, Karl and Zita seem especially interested in bringing about good Catholic marriages.Tweet This

Karl wanted their union to be total and their connection deep—in the interest of complete transparency, prior to the wedding, he told Zita everything he’d ever done wrong. The two shared a uniquely deep and trusting bond.  

According to a military chaplain whose words are recorded in Bold Union: Preparing for Marriage with Karl and Zita, Karl and Zita had a model marriage and family life. The chaplain wrote, “His family life is ideal…every day [when he was away from home] he telephoned, telegraphed, or wrote his wife. A deep love, illuminated by a religious spirit, reigns in this family. His Zita is everything to him.”

And in Zita’s own words, also quoted in the book: “In this atmosphere of the most warm love, unbreakable trust, honesty without reserve, intimate security and reciprocal respect, our marriage became extraordinarily happy. [Karl] was the most faithful, loving, good, patient, gentle, and considerate husband.”

Karl and Zita had eight children together. The couple was devoted to one another, their children, the people they ruled over, and—above all—God.

Karl and Zita faced many momentous trials, intermixed with the joy of their marriage: They carried the burdens of leadership during a very tumultuous time within the Austrian empire. They struggled desperately to bring about peace during WWI, when almost all the other heads of state in Europe remained hell-bent on the slaughter. They watched their beloved and time-honored empire collapse as a result of its defeat in the war, after which the victorious Allied powers sent them into exile. And, finally, they had to part all too soon when Charles grew ill and died—at the age of just 34—due to the terrible living conditions the family endured in exile on the island of Madeira. Yet, through all of it, they maintained unfailing attachment to one another and to God.

Karl’s final words to Zita were “I love you infinitely.”

Karl’s love for his wife echoes down the centuries, as he seems committed to interceding before God for young people hoping to get married. It’s almost as though he offers this as a tribute to his wife, as though he loves being reminded of his own happy marriage. 

So, if you’re struggling to find someone to marry, you might just consider praying to Karl about it. He’s quite likely to answer your prayer—especially if you throw in a compliment or two about his beloved wife, Zita.