Paths of Light (PdL has been in Slovakia for 10 years and the original accompanying team, has been enriched over time with new couples, who had previously taken part as participants in the PdL course. After eight years together, we felt the need for renewal, so in the 9th year, instead of the course with participants we decided to take time for reflection, to look for a form of Paths of Light that could still respond to the current needs of families in the reality of today.

Confronting each other was not easy! We too experienced the darkness and the fatigue of looking for a light together just like the couples who participate in our course. However, we found the strength to continue through dialogue, by welcoming different points of view and building the new program together. This experience taught us a lot and has made us closer and more sensitive to the crises that couples are experiencing. The struggle for unity has been hard, but essential to look to the future.

In the course that has just ended, 13 couples lived some moments all together, in others they were divided into two groups to encourage deeper listening. The program focused essentially on group dynamics experienced in the light of the spirituality of unity. We created listening spaces, in which the couples could freely express the motivations that had led them to PdL. Although we had reduced the theoretical part, the time never seemed to be enough: the couples went deep. Our team met to have a discussion on progress every afternoon and at that time conversations and activities were possible for the couples.

The evenings were enlivened by exercises, art and creativity; for example, there was an exciting theatre-dance performance on the theme of marital crisis, workshops with clay, a trip, and even a dance one evening. Our personal testimonies were offered at the request of the participants, while it was their life stories that became a precious gift for everyone. Couples discovered that they are not alone, and that together it is possible to seek solutions and help each other.

Our greatest desire is that couples do not become “dependent” on us in any way, but that they learn to face difficulties as responsible adults; also drawing on spirituality as an important resource.

The desire to start again has grown in everyone and we have seen faces and hearts change! The Participants and teams were enthusiastic and deeply grateful for this experience, having rediscovered that the unity among us is the greatest gift and only with this awareness can we offer it to others as well, and let God act in our lives.

Robert, Maria and the whole PdL team – Slovakia