Messaging & Communications Policy

1. Introduction

This Messaging & Communications Policy governs communications on Mentor to Marry, operated by Love, Dating and Marriage Ministries, a non-profit organisation registered in Nigeria.

Mentor to Marry is a Christian relationship, dating, marriage education, community and matching platform for Christians aged 25 and over.

This Policy applies to platform messages, member-to-member communications, comments, group discussions, course discussions, community spaces, live session chat, event communications, support messages, moderation communications, safety notices, membership communications, email communications, app-based notifications where introduced and any other communication channel made available by Mentor to Marry.

This Policy should be read alongside the Statement of Faith, Platform Values & Community Principles, Community Guidelines & Code of Conduct, Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, Membership & Subscription Terms, Safeguarding & Community Safety Policy, Profile Standards Policy, Matching Platform Terms, Reporting & Complaints Policy and Account Suspension & Enforcement Policy.

2. Purpose of This Policy

The purpose of this Policy is to promote respectful communication, protect members from harassment, pressure, manipulation and exploitation, support safe relationship-building, set clear messaging standards, reduce misuse of private communication tools, clarify when communications may be reviewed, support responsible reporting and moderation, protect privacy and confidentiality, preserve the Christian identity of the platform and help members communicate in a way that honours God and respects others.

3. Christian Communication Standard

Members are expected to communicate in a way that reflects Christian character, maturity and respect.

Communication should be honest, kind, respectful, patient, clear, appropriate, self-controlled, non-manipulative, non-coercive and consistent with the Statement of Faith and Platform Values.

Members must not use communication features in a way that undermines the Christian, marriage-focused purpose of Mentor to Marry.

4. Good Faith Communication

Members must communicate in good faith.

Members must not use messaging or communication tools to waste another member’s time, collect attention or validation, manipulate emotions, create false expectations, mislead members about intentions, pursue casual encounters, pressure members into quick emotional attachment, obtain money, gifts or benefits, recruit members into external schemes, advertise unrelated services or for any purpose inconsistent with Mentor to Marry’s mission.

Mentor to Marry may restrict communication access where bad-faith use is suspected.

5. No Obligation to Respond

No member is required to respond to another member.

A member is not obliged to respond simply because a match has occurred, a like has been sent, a message has been received, another member has paid membership, another member is verified, another member has completed a course, another member has a badge or another member believes there is compatibility.

Silence, delay, refusal or non-response must be respected.

Repeated contact after non-response may be treated as unwanted communication.

6. Communication Does Not Create Exclusivity

Communication, messaging, profile likes, matches, ongoing conversation, video calls, prayer conversations, mentoring conversations or other interactions do not create exclusivity, courtship, engagement or relationship status unless both members expressly agree.

Members should not assume exclusivity solely because communication is ongoing.

Members should communicate clearly, respectfully and honestly about relationship expectations, boundaries and intentions.

7. Communication Does Not Equal Verification

The ability to communicate with another member does not mean Mentor to Marry has verified the accuracy of all profile information, intentions, character, relationship readiness, church involvement or suitability of that member.

Members must continue to exercise wisdom, discernment and appropriate caution in all communications.

8. Respecting Boundaries

Members must respect personal boundaries.

Members must not continue messaging after being asked to stop, repeatedly message someone who has not responded, pressure another member to reply, demand explanations for rejection, pressure another member to move off-platform, pressure another member to meet offline, ask intrusive questions too early, shame another member for setting boundaries, retaliate after being blocked or reported, or use spiritual language to override another person’s boundaries.

Respecting boundaries is a core requirement of participation in Mentor to Marry.

9. Appropriate Messaging

Messages should be respectful, relationship-appropriate and consistent with the values of Mentor to Marry.

Members may use messaging to introduce themselves respectfully, ask appropriate questions, discuss faith, values and relationship intentions, share appropriate personal information, build trust gradually, clarify compatibility, discuss courtship intentions, communicate respectfully about boundaries and decide whether to continue communication.

Members should communicate honestly and avoid creating false impressions.

10. Prohibited Messages

Members must not send messages that are abusive, threatening, harassing, bullying, degrading, manipulative, coercive, deceptive, exploitative, intimidating, discriminatory, fraudulent, scam-related, financially exploitative, spam-like, intrusive, retaliatory, inappropriate or inconsistent with the Christian purpose of the platform.

Members must not send adult, explicit, indecent, degrading or inappropriate content.

Members must not use messaging features to request or send inappropriate images, links or materials.

11. Harassment and Repeated Contact

Harassment is prohibited.

Harassment may include repeated unwanted messages, pressure to respond, hostile messages, insults, threats, shaming, repeated pursuit after rejection, contacting someone through another account, asking others to contact someone on your behalf, attempting to bypass blocking, retaliation after a report or using persistent communication to pressure or distress another member.

Mentor to Marry may take moderation or enforcement action where harassment occurs.

12. Financial Requests and Exploitation

Members must not use messages or communication features to request money, gifts, loans, investments, donations, vouchers, financial assistance, business funding, personal financial support, payment details, banking details or access to another member’s financial information.

Members must not use romantic, emotional or spiritual pressure to obtain money or benefits.

Any financial request made through the platform may be treated as a serious safety concern.

13. Fraud, Scams and Deceptive Communication

Members must not use communication tools for romance scams, fake emergencies, false hardship stories, misleading investment opportunities, identity manipulation, catfishing, impersonation, attempts to move members off-platform for unsafe reasons or attempts to obtain personal, identity or financial information.

Members should report suspicious communication promptly.

14. Spiritual Manipulation

Mentor to Marry is a Christian platform, but members must not misuse faith, Scripture, prayer, prophecy, ministry status or spiritual language to control, pressure or manipulate others.

Members must not claim that God has forced or guaranteed a relationship, pressure someone to accept courtship or marriage using spiritual language, shame someone for setting boundaries, use spiritual authority to demand trust, imply that refusal is disobedience to God or use religious language to silence concerns.

Christian communication should reflect humility, wisdom, love and respect.

15. Privacy and Confidentiality

Members must respect the privacy of others.

Members must not share another member’s private messages without permission, publish screenshots of conversations, disclose another member’s contact details, expose another member’s personal circumstances, record conversations without consent where consent is required, pressure others to disclose private information, misuse information learned through the platform or use private information for harassment, manipulation, marketing or exploitation.

Members should avoid sharing sensitive personal, financial, identity or safety-related information too early.

16. Screenshots, Copies and Message Disclosure

Members should assume that messages may be copied, saved, exported, photographed, screenshotted or disclosed by other members even where platform rules prohibit misuse.

Members should communicate accordingly and avoid sharing information they would not be comfortable being disclosed.

Misuse of messages, screenshots, recordings or private communications may result in moderation or enforcement action.

17. Contact Details and Moving Off-Platform

Members may choose to exchange contact details or communicate outside the platform, but they do so at their own risk.

Members should be cautious before moving communication to personal phone numbers, messaging apps, social media, email, video calls or offline meetings.

Moving off-platform may reduce the ability of Mentor to Marry to review messages, support investigations or apply safety tools.

Members must not pressure others to move off-platform quickly.

Mentor to Marry may still take action where off-platform communication affects member safety, concerns another member or undermines platform integrity.

18. Messaging Access

Messaging access may depend on membership tier, course completion, onboarding completion, safety guidance, verification status, matching status, account standing, moderation status, message limits, feature availability or platform rules.

A match does not automatically guarantee messaging access.

Mentor to Marry may change messaging access rules from time to time for safety, operational, membership, technical or platform-development reasons.

19. Message Limits and Feature Controls

Mentor to Marry may apply limits to messaging features. Limits may relate to number of messages, number of conversations, membership tier, course completion, verification status, safety concerns, moderation decisions, account age, suspected misuse or technical capacity.

Message limits may change from time to time.

No membership tier guarantees unlimited messaging unless expressly stated.

20. Technical Availability and Message Delivery

Mentor to Marry does not guarantee uninterrupted messaging services, instant delivery, notification delivery, message storage availability, continuous access to communication features or error-free communication tools.

Messaging services may be affected by maintenance, technical issues, device settings, internet connectivity, app store restrictions, third-party providers, moderation restrictions, account status or platform changes.

Mentor to Marry may archive, close, hide or remove inactive conversations after periods determined by the platform.

21. Communication in Community Spaces

Members participating in community discussions, course groups, comments, live sessions or forums must communicate respectfully.

Members must not dominate discussions, shame others, mock questions, share private disclosures without permission, promote unrelated businesses, solicit money, pursue members inappropriately, argue aggressively, create division or misuse teaching or community spaces for personal advantage.

Community spaces should remain safe, constructive and Christ-centred.

22. Live Sessions and Event Chat

Where live sessions, webinars or online events include chat or communication tools, members must participate respectfully.

Members must not disrupt sessions, post inappropriate content, harass attendees, pursue members through event chat, share private information, record without authorisation, pressure facilitators, promote unrelated services or use live session communication tools in a way that undermines the learning environment.

Mentor to Marry may remove or restrict participants who misuse live session communication tools.

23. Moderator, Volunteer and Administrator Role

Moderators, volunteers and administrators may support community safety, policy compliance and platform administration.

Moderators, volunteers and administrators are not relationship counsellors, mediators, pastors, therapists or legal advisers and are not required to intervene in personal disagreements between members.

Mentor to Marry may choose whether and how to respond to member disputes, reports or communication concerns according to platform policies and available information.

24. Courtship and Marriage Decisions Remain Personal

Mentor to Marry may facilitate introductions and communication but does not recommend, approve, encourage or direct members toward any particular courtship, engagement or marriage decision.

Members remain responsible for their own communication choices, boundaries, relationship decisions, courtship decisions, engagement decisions and marriage decisions.

Members are encouraged to seek wise counsel, pastoral support and appropriate accountability when making significant relationship decisions.

25. Official Communications from Mentor to Marry

Mentor to Marry may contact users about account matters, membership, subscriptions, billing, renewals, course access, community updates, platform changes, safety notices, reports, complaints, moderation decisions, verification, policy updates, events, newsletters where applicable and other service-related matters.

Users are responsible for keeping contact details accurate and up to date.

Service-related communications may still be sent even where a user opts out of marketing communications.

26. Marketing and Optional Communications

Where permitted, Mentor to Marry may send newsletters, ministry updates, course updates, event information or promotional communications.

Users may be able to opt out of certain marketing communications.

Opting out of marketing communications does not prevent Mentor to Marry from sending necessary service, safety, account, legal, billing or policy-related communications.

27. Message Review and Moderation

Mentor to Marry does not guarantee that member messages will be private from review in all circumstances.

Messages may be reviewed where a report is made, a safety concern arises, a safeguarding concern arises, fraud is suspected, harassment is alleged, policy breaches are suspected, moderation action is required, legal compliance requires review or platform integrity is at risk.

Message review will be handled in accordance with the Privacy Policy and applicable law.

28. Message Retention

Mentor to Marry may retain messages, message metadata, reports, moderation notes, safety records and communication records where necessary for service delivery, safety, safeguarding, fraud prevention, complaint handling, moderation, enforcement, legal compliance, dispute resolution, security or platform integrity.

Message retention will be handled in accordance with the Privacy Policy and any Data Retention Schedule.

Deleting a message or account may not immediately delete all records where retention is necessary for safety, legal, moderation or safeguarding purposes.

29. Reporting Messages

Members should report messages that involve harassment, bullying, threats, manipulation, coercion, fraud, financial requests, inappropriate content, repeated unwanted contact, identity concerns, safeguarding concerns, pressure to move off-platform, pressure to meet offline, spiritual manipulation or any communication that makes a member feel unsafe.

Reports should be made through platform reporting tools or approved support channels.

30. Blocking

Members may block other members where the feature is available. Blocking must be respected.

Members must not create another account to continue contact, use another person to contact the blocked member, pressure a member to unblock them, retaliate after being blocked or attempt to bypass blocking tools.

Attempting to evade blocking may result in account restriction or suspension.

31. Evidence Preservation

Mentor to Marry may preserve messages, reports, screenshots, account data, message metadata, moderation notes and technical information where necessary for safeguarding, safety, fraud prevention, harassment investigation, abuse investigation, enforcement, dispute resolution, legal compliance or protection of members.

Evidence may be preserved even where a user deletes a message, blocks another member, cancels membership or requests account deletion, where retention is necessary and lawful.

32. Enforcement

Where a member breaches this Policy, Mentor to Marry may take action including reminders, warnings, message restrictions, temporary messaging suspension, permanent messaging removal, content removal, profile restriction, matching restriction, account suspension, membership termination, community removal, referral to safeguarding review, blocking re-registration or other appropriate action.

Serious communication breaches may result in immediate restriction or removal without prior warning.

33. No Guarantee of Communication Outcomes

Mentor to Marry does not guarantee that messages will be received, read or answered, that conversations will continue, that communication will lead to courtship, engagement or marriage, that every message will be appropriate or that every harmful communication will be detected immediately.

Members remain responsible for their own communication choices and safety.

34. No Refund for Communication Dissatisfaction

Dissatisfaction with messaging access, number of messages, quality of replies, lack of replies, conversations ending, communication not progressing or relationship outcomes does not automatically entitle a member to a refund.

Refunds are governed by the Refund & Cancellation Policy.

Paid membership does not guarantee messages, responses, emotional connection, courtship, engagement or marriage.

35. Interaction with Other Policies

This Policy should be read together with all related Mentor to Marry policies.

Where a messaging or communication issue overlaps with another policy, Mentor to Marry may apply one or more relevant policies, including Terms of Use, Community Guidelines & Code of Conduct, Safeguarding & Community Safety Policy, Profile Standards Policy, Matching Platform Terms, Privacy Policy, Reporting & Complaints Policy, Account Suspension & Enforcement Policy and any internal moderation or safeguarding procedure.

36. Changes to This Policy

Mentor to Marry may update this Policy from time to time. Changes may be made to reflect new features, app development, safety learning, moderation experience, legal developments, user feedback, platform changes or operational needs.

Updated versions may be published on the website or platform.

37. Contact

Questions about this Policy should be directed to Mentor to Marry through the contact details published on the website or platform.

Urgent danger or emergency situations should be reported to local emergency services or appropriate authorities.

Messaging & Communications Acknowledgement

By using messaging, chat, comments, live session communication or other communication features, members acknowledge that:

communication must be respectful, honest and consistent with Christian values;

no member is required to respond to another member;

communication does not create exclusivity, courtship, engagement or marriage;

communication access does not mean Mentor to Marry has verified another member’s character, intentions or suitability;

silence, rejection, blocking and boundaries must be respected;

messaging must not be used for harassment, manipulation, deception or exploitation;

members must not request money, gifts or financial support from other members;

members must not misuse spiritual language to pressure or control others;

moving off-platform may reduce Mentor to Marry’s ability to assist with safety concerns;

messages may be reviewed where safety, safeguarding, fraud, moderation or legal concerns arise;

messages may be copied, saved, screenshotted or disclosed by other members despite platform rules;

Mentor to Marry may restrict messaging access where concerns arise;

paid membership does not guarantee messages, responses, courtship, engagement or marriage; and

members remain responsible for their own communication choices, boundaries and safety.