Testimonials

“Couple prayer has made what was a good, strong marriage into a great, awesome one!”

“Our praying together has furthered our communication skills, our discernment of what God wants of us, and enhanced even the pleasure and passion of our sexual union!”

“Praying together has helped to make the essence of our Sacramental union more discernable to anyone with the ears to hear and the eyes to see.”

“We found that praying together as a couple allows God to show us the path less traveled, rather than the one we may prefer to continue on. At first, I was hesitant to share my private prayer life with my wife. I thought that her relationship with God, especially the Holy Spirit, was far better than my own relationship with God. But after opening myself up more and more to praying together with her as a couple, I realized that it wasn’t about how mature I was in my spiritual life compared to where she was in her spiritual life. Rather, the relevant comparison is where we, as a couple, are today, compared to where we were last week, last month, or when we hesitantly took, our first, tentative baby-steps to share our private prayer life with each other, entered into conversation with God, as a couple, and listened to what He wanted to tell us.”

“For a religious celibate who has heard many confessions, the privilege of listening to married couples share examples of their lived experiences of individual prayer, and especially of praying together as a couple, was awesome and blew me away! I had no idea ordinary married couples, balancing responsibilities of family, job, church ministry, etc., were so spiritual in living their Sacrament!”

“After more than a year of seeking couple prayer, we finally found, on our Retorno Weekend, the “pearl of great price” we had long been seeking.”

“Marriage Retorno revealed to us hidden treasures in our Sacrament of Matrimony. One treasure was the gift of couple prayer in which we heard God speak to us as a couple through the Scriptures. The difference in our lives has been wonderful. Another treasure was the gift of discernment of God’s will for us as a couple. To be able to see clearly where and when we are called to serve lifted a great burden from us. Before, we tried to do it all and we were burning out fast. Now, we have a way to decide with peace the priority of the many demands life asks of us. For us, Marriage Retorno was experiencing the joy on the “road to Emmaus.” We are forever grateful.”

“The changes in our own relationship, and our growing relationship and communion with the Almighty, as the result of our Retorno Weekend, have had rippling effects on our children, grandchildren, extended family, neighbors, Parish community, and even on perfect strangers that Providence placed in, or along, our paths. Our lives have been forever changed. Praise and glory be to God!”

“On our Retorno Weekend, we received much more than the gift of praying together as a couple. We also received the gift of discerning priorities the Lord intended for us as a couple, in lieu of our own agenda-dictated “To Do” lists. The awe we experienced listening to God speak to each of us, through the lips of the other, is beyond our ability to express in words!”

“Our Retorno Weekend, unlike the emotionally-draining, roller-coaster ride we experienced on our Marriage Encounter Weekend, was like drifting quietly and peacefully in a canoe on a mirror-like lake at sun rise.”

Turning To God As A Couple
A testimonial by: Phil and Dana Wright