This April, Fr. Thomas Flynn, LC, and a group of young Regnum Christi couples organized a retreat for engaged couples to help them prepare for their weddings, and more importantly, their marriages!
The retreat was held on the weekend of April 4-6 at Our Lady of the Holy Spirit Retreat Center in Norwood, OH.
A team of three Regnum Christi couples from the Cincinnati locality helped to organize the retreat, and spiritual accompaniment and talks were led by Fr. Thomas Flynn, LC.
The Three to Get Married Marriage Preparation Program is an enriching weekend retreat that draws upon modern psychological theory, real-life experiences from married couples, and the beauty of the teachings of the Catholic Church on marriage, family, and the sacramental life. This retreat is designed to provide engaged couples with the tools they need to build a joyful, faith-filled, and successful marriage centered on Christ. Fundamental topics include:
- Identifying and deepening God’s role in one’s relationship and future marriage
- Managing finances as a couple
- Living God’s mission and communicating expectations
- Exploring the beauty of Natural Family Planning and Theology of the Body
- Setting healthy boundaries with families of origin
- Planning for better or for worse
- Creating healthy emotional and psychological attachments
Couples also spend time nurturing their faith individually and as a couple, learning about prayer and the sacraments, including confession and the Holy Eucharist.
The retreat began on Friday evening with a theological reflection by Fr. Thomas on the sacrament of marriage and the importance of prayer. Throughout the weekend, professionals in their fields, like psychology, medicine, and finance, spoke to the couples on a variety of topics. The participants were provided with plenty of time to discuss the topics together as a couple, and also engaged in fun group activities to allow them to get to know the other couples on retreat. The retreat also included adoration and confession.
Fr. Thomas, who currently serves as the assistant chaplain for the Regnum Christi Women’s Section for the Ohio Valley locality, says that one of the greatest concerns for today’s engaged couples is navigating relationships and attachments to their families of origin, or extended family. They are also in need of the support of other Catholic couples, their own age, and those who have been living the sacrament of marriage in all its joys and difficulties for several years already, and for this reason, couples are offered a mentor couple at the end of the retreat to accompany them as they enter into marriage
Fr. Thomas also serves as the chaplain for Mercy Health Hospital in Anderson and Clermont, OH, providing sacramental and spiritual care to inmates at Warren Correctional Institution, and at Mater Filius Queen City, a nonprofit maternity home that provides housing and resources for pregnant women and mothers experiencing financial difficulties and homelessness. An avid painter, Fr, Thomas regularly gives artist retreats in collaboration with the Called to Create apostolate in Cincinnati.
Fr. Thomas’ next artist retreat will be held September 12 -14, 2025, again at Our Lady of the Holy Spirit Center in Norwood. This retreat, titled “Treasures in Clay” invites artists of all mediums and abilities to spend a weekend reflecting on the ways in which God the Creator has made them in his own image. Fr. Thomas will be joined by Nancy-Carolyn Smith, sculptor and co-founder of The Angelico Project, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to transform culture through art and beauty. Participants will be led through three-dimensional bas-relief exercises and reflections on sacred art, and will also have time and opportunity for personal prayer, Mass, confession, and spiritual direction.
For more information on the upcoming Treasures in Clay Artists’ Retreat, email calledtocreatelouisville@gmail.com or visit them on visit Facebook. No sculpting experience necessary!
