301. 5. Their agreement to marry should be affirmed and established by a formal betrothal. Reasons for formal betrothals are as follows:

1. To encourage a mutual inclination of the couple's souls to each other following betrothal.

2. To encourage a determination of a general love for the opposite sex to the one of the sex.

3. To encourage a mutual recognition of each other's inward affections and a conjunction of them through appeals to them in a state of the inner gladness of love.

4. To encourage a marriage of the couple's spirits and a closer and closer affiliation of these.

5. To encourage in this way a proper progression of conjugial love from its first warmth to its nuptial flame.

6. Consequently, to encourage a just and orderly progression and development of conjugial love from its spiritual origin.

The state of betrothal may be likened to a state of spring preceding summer, and the inner enjoyments of that state to the flowerings of trees before their production of fruit. Since the beginnings and progressions of conjugial love develop in sequence in order for them to flow into the fruitful love which begins with the wedding, therefore betrothals take place in heaven as well.