Oasis Level II Family Retreat
August 1-8, 2025
Shepherd of the Ozarks- Harriet, AR
Registration is limited to the first 12 families, and then a waitlist will be started.
A non-refundable deposit of $500.00 is due via credit card at registration and is non-refundable after January 1, 2025. The remaining retreat balance will be automatically drafted (from the same payment method) on July 1, 2025.
Accommodations are multi-family lodges with separate bedrooms and private bath(s). The retreat leadership team will assign lodges based on family size and lodge availability. Families must provide linens, towels, and toiletries.
The costs are calculated on a per-person basis and include lodging and meals. The cost per person is $995.00 (18+), $830.00 (12-17), $470.00 (5-11), $35.00 (3-4), and Babies No Charge.
To attend an Oasis retreat, all persons 18+ must be Safe Environment trained. A certificate from your diocese must be submitted to the retreat leadership team prior to your arrival.
The Domestic Church National Circle will coordinate children’s Diakonia.
On-site activities include swimming, river tubing, fishing, and hiking.
You may view the retreat facilities at https://www.sotocamp.com, but please do not reach out to them for questions. All questions should be directed to the retreat team at [email protected].
Each spouse finds a daily quiet space to fully enter God’s presence. This calls for each person to develop a personal time and space with God.
In a quiet, separate space, the individual takes advantage of the gift of the living Word of God. There are no particular verses to read and reflect on, just the challenge to dive into Scripture each day and encounter God there.
The couple takes time each day to pray together aloud and usually in their own words. There is no length of time or other regulation set on this prayer. The focus is two-fold: to allow your spouse to witness your conversation with God and to offer shared prayers to God as a couple.
Couples make time each day to lead their family in prayer, if the couple has children in the home. Each family will discover and grow in their own way of praying together in a way that is fruitful for the different stages in their particular family’s life (small children, older children, adult children, etc).
The monthly couple dialogue is an intentional, prayerful, and structured conversation done under the watchful gaze of God for an extended period of time. The couple thoughtfully considers the spiritual, practical and personal needs of each spouse, of the marriage, of children, and of the family as a whole.
Particularly in connection with their monthly dialogues, each couple decides upon specific changes or policies they will put in place in their individual lives, their marriage, and their household that reflect God’s will for them and their efforts to grow in holiness according to His promptings. Some rules of life always remain the same, but others will change and grow with the couple’s discernment and the family’s needs over time.
Each couple commits to attending a Domestic Church retreat at least once per year. Retreats can be for just the couple or for the entire family. These can be longer retreats or weekend retreats. To learn about the available retreats click here.
The beauty of these commitments 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.
