WHAT IS THE DOMESTIC CHURCH MOVEMENT?
Domestic Church is a Vatican-recognized lay movement for Sacramentally married couples that provides Catholic Christian community and lifelong spiritual formation through small groups and retreats.
The movement was founded in Poland in the early 1970s by Venerable Fr. Franciszek Blachnicki (pronounced Fron-SHE-shek Block-NEET-skee), with the close guidance and support of his friend and Bishop, Karol Wojtyla (the future Pope St. John Paul II).
Today, there are more than 13,000 couples in Domestic Church in Poland, and nearly 5,000 more Domestic Church couples around the world.
HOW DID DOMESTIC CHURCH BEGIN?
Born out of the larger movement called the Light-Life movement, the Domestic Church was created by Fr. Blachnicki in 1973. The Light-Life movement provided the youth of Communist-occupied Poland with formation and community in their Catholic faith. As young people married and started having children, Fr. Blachnicki saw a need for a family branch of the Light-Life movement that was tailored to the specific needs that arise in marriage and family life.
Fr. Blachnicki combined the formation of the Light-Life movement with the plan of Christian formation (Order of Christian Initiation for Adults, OCIA) document. Its small group format is structured after the Equipes de Notre Dame (Teams of Our Lady), a French movement for married couples. He also incorporated the Light-Life Movement emphasis on retreats into the newly formed marriage and family movement.
WHEN DID DOMESTIC CHURCH COME TO CANADA?
At the end of 1989, Fr. Zbigniew Olbryś from the Polish mission in Scarborough encourages Tomek Olszewski to establish a Home Church circle in the parish. Tomek has been involved in the life of the Polish community for many years, organizing, among others, youth group prayer meetings, and after his wedding in 1989, he turned to Fr. Olbrysia for help in establishing a community for married couples.
The year 1990 was the most significant period in the formation of the DK community in Canada. In March 1990, Tomek leaves for Poland and his home parish of St. Wojciech in Częstochowa, from Fr. Andrzeja brings basic materials about the Home Church: "Meetings in the circle", "The first year of work", and "The role of the priest". Also in March 1990, other families who were in the DK community in Poland came to Toronto: Barbara and Kazimierz (Grzegorz) Nega and Jadwiga and Mieczysław Rokiccy.
The Negs were invited to the Home Church on their wedding day and until they left Poland, they actively participated in the life of the Home Church for five years.
In September 1990, in the house of Małgorzata and Tomasz Olszewski, in the presence of Fr. Tadeusz Walczyk from Scarborough, the first meeting of a family circle in Canada takes place, the course of which is based on DK materials.
WHY IS DOMESTIC CHURCH IMPORTANT IN CANADA?
The name “Domestic Church” comes from a passage in the Catechism of the Catholic Church that beautifully states, “in our own time, in a world often alien and even hostile to faith, believing families are of primary importance as centers of living, radiant faith. For this reason the Second Vatican Council, using an ancient expression, calls the family the ecclesia domestica [the domestic church]” [CCC 1656].
Couples find Domestic Church deeply enriches each spouse’s personal faith journey while nurturing the couple’s spiritual life together. Pope St. John Paul II wrote, “so goes the family, so goes the world.” Domestic Church offers sacramentally married couples the vital support they need to grow in unity, to pass on their faith to their own children, and to navigate faithful Catholic living in a world increasingly hostile to faith. The habits of prayer and healthy communication that couples in Domestic Church develop in the life of their marriage are both the goal and the means to the goal.
Domestic Church is not another program for marriages, but rather a movement that accompanies everyday Catholic couples of all ages through the lifetime of their Sacrament. This movement takes its place alongside many others that God has raised up to serve the diverse needs of Catholic marriages and families in our time.
This sounds wonderful, but what are the time commitments? My family is already involved in so many different things.
One of the attractive aspects of Domestic Church is that couples only meet with their circles once a month. The real work is done in your home with your spouse and family. Meetings don't get us closer to God and one another; prayer, intentional use of our time, and the grace and mercy of God are what make the difference! We make progress in the spiritual life and in living the graces of the Sacrament of Marriage by practicing the commitments. The meetings give us accountability and support for this. The only other time commitment is the yearly retreat, usually held during the summer, and usually the whole family attends. There are often community gatherings for the sake of fellowship and information; these are not obligatory, but they are wonderful!
How does a couple take advantage of Domestic Church formation? How do you start?
The normal way a couple starts is by attending an Evangelization Retreat. That's the first step. It's a four day retreat (from Thursday evening to Sunday at noon), and the dates and locations of our retreats can be found on the Retreats page. But, if you have a good sized group of couples who wants to get started, a retreat can be planned in your area. Contact us using the form to the left to get more information about putting on a retreat in your area!
At what age are we too old, or too young, to join Domestic Church?
There are no age restrictions, and we have found that couples of all ages are deeply affected and grateful for the gifts received through Domestic Church formation. We have newlyweds in their early 20's on up to couples in their 70's and everything in between. There are couples with young children, those with children out of the home, and those with no children. The circles are usually a mixture of all of these, and that mixture has been an awesome gift for all involved.
Getting a priest to commit to joining a circle seems like it would be difficult. Is it really possible to have a priest in every circle?
We have found that once priests see what Domestic Church is about, and that their role is one of presence and fatherly guidance rather than full-on leadership, it becomes much more attractive. Their testimonies have given indication that they really enjoy the circle meetings because they don't have to prepare anything, they get deep insight into marriage and the spiritual growth of families that they wouldn't otherwise get, and they quickly experience a deep closeness with the couples in their circle.
Domestic Church in Canada
In our own time, in a world often alien and even hostile to faith, believing families are of primary importance as centers as living, radiant faith. For this reason the Second Vatican Council, using an ancient expression, calls the family the Ecclesia Domestica.
(CCC 1656)
Domestic Church is a Vatican-recognized lay movement for Sacramentally married couples that provides Catholic Christian community and lifelong spiritual formation through small groups and retreats.
The movement was founded in Poland in the early 1970s by Venerable Fr. Franciszek Blachnicki (pronounced Fron-SHE-shek Block-NEET-skee), with the close guidance and support of his friend and Bishop, Karol Wojtyla (the future Pope St. John Paul II).
Today, there are more than 13,000 couples in Domestic Church in Poland, and nearly 5,000 more Domestic Church couples around the world.
Learn more about domestic church
Beginning the journey into the Domestic Church movement is a multi-year process of spiritual growth for a couple together. Formation in the Domestic Church, as in the whole Light-Life Movement, is aimed at achieving Christian maturity. It is a process realized in three stages, formational retreats and monthly circle meetings, according to the program based on the Order of Christian Initiation of Adult .
Evangelization Retreat
Each couple in Domestic Church typically starts by attending an Evangelization Retreat, which allows them to experience the Good News in a new and deeper way and provides a real experience of the saving power of Christ as a couple. After the retreat, the couple has an opportunity to join a circle of 3-6 other couples and a priest.
Join a Circle
A couple has an opportunity to join a circle of 4-7 other couples. Each circle meets once a month in the homes of its members to share the joys and sorrows of the journey, pray together, go over their progress in spiritual growth according to the seven commitments, and to go over the new formation materials for the month.
The Seven Promises
- Daily individual prayer.
- Daily study of Scripture.
- Daily couple prayer.
- Daily family prayer.
- Monthly couple dialogue.
- Rule of life.
- Participation at least once a year, in a formation retreat.
The beauty of these promises is that the movement provides formation, using the Church's spiritual traditions and official teachings, for how to pray, how to use Scripture in prayer, and how to grow in a real relationship with God, our spouses, and our children in light of our Baptism.
Domestic Church Membership
After joining a circle, a couple has ten months to decide if they will commit to continued formation, and another three years before they enter into permanent Domestic Church formation.This process follows the Church's vision of Catechesis for adults.
The basic element in the Domestic Church organizational structure is a circle which constitutes the environment of formation and evangelization, serving the families as a special “laboratory” of conjugal spirituality. The Domestic Church circles work in a yearly cycle. The primary place of formation in the DC is marriage and family.
Participation in formational retreats is essential in the DC formation program. The 10 days-retreats (New Life Oasis retreats for Families of the first, second, and third level, also known as the Family Oasis Retreats) play a crucial role in this formation. These retreats are organized for married couples with children who participate in their own formation program. Older teenagers are invited to participate in formational retreats of the Light-Life Movement appropriate for their age level.
During the formation year, another important element of formation is participation in the Communion Days of the Light-Life Movement.
The initial Domestic Church formation includes, after the stage of evangelization and pilotage, participation in the New Life Oasis retreats for Families (levels 1, 2, and 3), the Oasis Retreat for the Family Animators (levels 1, and 2), as well as formation according to the program of “the first year” and the second year” of the monthly meetings of a circle.
The members of the DC are sacramentally married couples who accept and implement the formation program offered to them. In case of the death of one of the spouses, the other one is allowed to stay in the circle.
Agnieszka & Krzysztof Sibiga
(226) 507 0139,
Location: St. Eugene de Mazenod Church in Brampton
Details to be announced.
Sponsoring the Relics of Saint Ulma Family
Domestic Church was asked to fund the Reliquary, which will be displayed at the altar of Holy Family in St. Eugene de Mazenod Church in Brampton. The alter of the Holy Family was sponsored by DC shortly after the Church was consecrated.
There is a Devotion to Holy Family on each first Tuesday of the month at St Eugene Church. Everyone is invited and encouraged to take part in those devotions or send their intentions to be added to prayers each month.
It was proposed to fund a reliquary as a gift from DC for the 35th anniversary of our movement in Canada.
The mass will take place on March 9th, 2025 at St. Eugene de Mazenod church in Brampton at 12:30. The mass will be in Polish.
Pilgrimage to the Oratory of St. Joseph
Date: March 21-23
Location: Montreal
Detailed pilgrimage program was emailed to animators for distribution within their circles.
Regional Domestic Church Family Fun Day
Date: May 24th, 2025
Details to be announced.
Feast of Pentecost
Date: June 7, 2025
Location: St. Eugene de Mazenod Church in Brampton
Details to be announced.
35th anniversary of Domestic Church in Canada
Date: September 21, 2025
Location: Michaelite fathers retreat centre, 2751 Sunningdale Rd. W. Melrose, London
Celebration includes Solemn Holy Mass and Agapa.