by Kathryn White
Special to The Leaven
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — When the world was shopping for chocolates and flowers for St. Valentine’s Day, 45 couples from Blessed Sacrament and surrounding parishes here spent their week in folding chairs in a humble gym — all to focus on strengthening the foundation that their marriages are built on.
“Construyendo Sobre Roca” (“Building on Rock”) is a five-day retreat for Spanish-speaking married couples. It consists of personal testimonies, faith formation, mental health awareness and deep personal prayer.
Each evening built on the previous evening with presentations from the Fraternity the Poor of Jesus Christ on God’s plan for creation on the first night, and support from a mental health perspective from Dr. Sylvia Byer, of the Keeler Women’s Center in Kansas City, Kansas, on another.
The retreat has been held since 2019.
“We wanted to keep it simple,“ explained Father Nick Blaha, pastor of Blessed Sacrament Parish. “Focus on the most important part of marriage from a theological perspective, a focus on psychology and shared testimonies from other couples.”
Simple or not, the Holy Spirit showed up.
“Construyendo Sobre Roca” helped couples face challenges while glorifying God. It emphasized the importance of allowing God to fill their marriages.
We wanted to help the couples be able to put words to God’s plan for their marriage, said Father Blaha, and then to “pay attention to the challenges that come from outside their home and how these struggles can make their marriages stronger.”
Deida Galvez and her husband Ignacio enjoyed the retreat and have been attending for years. They particularly like it because couples from the previous retreats become the leaders for the future ones.
“I love seeing the couples share their happiness after such a wonderful week,” said Deida. “All the beautiful information and tools [we] receive truly make a difference in [our] marriages.”
Anna and Juan Ponce have been attending the retreat since its inception. While hearing the testimonies of the other couples was impactful, Anna was particularly moved during the evening of eucharistic adoration.
“I always pray for my kids, my family and my life,” she said. “During [eucharistic] adoration, I heard the Lord speak to me, to pray for my husband and my marriage, too. It was powerful.”
Other couples attended for the first time, like Deacon Ramiro Rocha and his wife Maria. It gave them time to reflect on their marriage.
“I liked listening to the testimonies of the other couples,” said Deacon Rocha. “It helped us reflect that while our family is not perfect, we do have a solid Christ-centered marriage, too.”
While lead couples shared their testimonies, there was also an emphasis on Catholic faith formation with presentations by Benedictine College professor Lucia Luzondo and her husband, Dr. Ricardo Luzondo. They focused on complementarity and authentic intimacy.
“The retreatants’ openness was evident by their thirst to know what the Lord planned [for them]: to live a joy-filled marriage,” Lucia said. “Hispanics are, by nature, a people that deeply honor life, family and the Catholic faith. It was a joy to see how they accepted the message with openness and without resistance.”
Deida Galvez agreed.
“Many of us begin our journey not knowing much about our faith,” she said. “With time, guidance and God’s grace, we grow and learn. And as we grow, we pass on to our children the beautiful gift and importance of living a life rooted in faith.”
Finally, using the strategies learned on the retreat to communicate better is a takeaway for some — saying “yes” and “no” to different things in life.
“My ‘yes’ to my wife included many ‘noes’ to other things,” said Deacon Rocha.
On the final day of the retreat, the couples prayed together, attended Mass and renewed their promises as they prayed together.
For information about next year’s retreat, contact Blessed Sacrament Parish at (913) 321-1958. The leadership team is forming soon.
