57. The Catholic Mother's Retreat: Day 5 - How to find Christ in Homemaking

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Day 5: The Catholic Mother's Retreat - Finding Christ in our homes and in Christian Homemaking

In explaining homemaking to our children, we can use the metaphoric language of the kitchen table as similar to an altar where we offer our big and small sufferings and challenges of the day. That single idea reframes the noise, chores, and constant motion of family life as a sacred rhythm that draws us back to Christ through ordinary work. We explore how prayer, Scripture, and tradition give homemakers a path from overwhelm to offering, with Mary’s quiet strength as our guide.

We begin by rooting the home in the Gospel: Mary pondering the mysteries in her heart, the beloved disciple receiving her into his home, and the hidden holiness of family life where work, worship, and prayer intertwined. The tradition surrounding Our Lady of Częstochowa, the Black Madonna, adds a vivid symbol of perseverance—soot-darkened yet radiant—mirroring the way devotion matures through daily sacrifice. From there, we turn to the emotional and spiritual weight many parents carry, and how a simple offering of tasks can transform drudgery into devotion without romanticizing exhaustion.

Practical wisdom grounds the vision. Veil + Armour guest Tessa Weenink, a homeschooling mother of six and life strategist from Alberta, Canada, shares actionable ways to build capacity: begin the day with prayer, create small systems that stick, and assign age-appropriate chores so the home becomes a shared workshop of character. Tessa’s story of moving through depression and postpartum struggle with prayer and support offers hope that joy is possible. We talk routines that reduce decision fatigue, evening resets that protect peace, and habits that shift motherhood from depletion to strength. Along the way, we honor St. Joseph’s steady provision and invite listeners to see every meal, every folded towel, and every bedtime blessing as a living liturgy.

If you’re longing for a calmer home and a deeper sense of purpose, this conversation offers both vision and tools. Subscribe for more faith-filled, practical episodes, share this with a friend who needs encouragement, and leave a review to help others find the show. What small habit will you offer up today?

This retreat was written for the Hozana Prayer app, a free app which began in France, and is now used by 1.9 million people around the world.

To find the original retreat for last Mother's Day, please visit:

https://hozana.org/community/12511-veil-armour-our-lady-s-prayer-warriors?origin=communities-search

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Episode Transcript

Sheila Nonato (00:00):
Day 5
homemakingOpening prayer: In the name of
the Father, and of the Son, andof the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Our Lady of Czestochowa, OBlessed Mother, Protector of our
Homes, Protector of theDomestic Church of the Family.
At times we can feeloverwhelmed in all of the duties

(00:24):
that overwhelm us in runningour family and being the heart
and soul of our family.
Blessed Mother, you know theweight of the responsibilities
of running a home.
There are times we feeloverwhelmed by the world around
us.
Sometimes we feel so veryalone.
We know, however, that if weoffer up our work, we will be

(00:46):
able to live in the truepresence of our Lord, just as
you have done watching the childJesus playing in the corner,
contemplating him and keepingall these thoughts in your
heart, offering up all your workand struggles out of love for
your Beloved Son, Jesus.
Saint Luke wrote of the birth ofJesus, how an angel appeared to

(01:09):
the shepherds in the fieldannouncing the birth of the
Savior, and how they found Maryand Joseph and the baby lying in
a manger.
Meanwhile, "Mary kept all thesethings pondering in her heart,"
Saint Luke wrote.
Help us, blessed mother, to dothe same, to keep Jesus and our

(01:29):
family close to our hearts, andat the far and at the forefront
of our prayers and dailyoffering of our work.
When Jesus saw his mother andthe disciple whom he loved
standing near, he said to hismother, "'Woman, behold your
son.' Then he said to thedisciple, 'Behold your mother.'

(01:51):
And from that hour the discipletook her to his own home." The
Gospel according to Saint John19, verses 26-27.
We know that after theCrucifixion, Our Lady was taken
to the home of Saint John, thebeloved disciple who was at the
feet of the cross with Mary.
Tradition tells us that theylived in Ephesus, what is now

(02:14):
modern-day Turkey.
While they were there, SaintLuke is believed to have spoken
with Mother Mary before he wrotehis Gospel, telling us the
Gospel from her perspective.
According to church tradition,Saint Luke painted an image of
our Blessed Mother, therebygifting us with an image of Our
Lady through the icon of OurLady of Czestochowa.

(02:35):
The canvas on wood is a truelikeness of Mary, painted by
Saint Luke as our lady sat by awooden table built by Saint
Joseph.
The image has become known asthe Black Madonna, as the image
darkened over time because ofthe soot from devotional
candles.
When we are exasperated in theworld of our daily life, may

(02:58):
remember that light overcomesdarkness, and we are never
alone.
We have help in Jesus and Mary,the example of patience,
perseverance, and strength.
And we have help in ourfamilies, our husbands and
children.
Our husbands provide the homearound us as Saint Joseph did

(03:18):
for our Blessed Mother.
We can work towards sanctifyingour work to find Jesus and his
mother Mary.
Isn't it true that when we lookat the tables on which we serve
our families, we can see that asour humble altar.
Offering up our work there andfinding ourselves in the
presence of Our Lady, holdingthe infant Jesus.

(03:40):
On the practical side ofmotherhood and homemaking, Tessa
Weenink, a homeschooling mom ofsix, a Christian mom coach and
life strategist, and a dairyfarmer from Alberta, Canada,
talked about the importance ofbeginning our day with prayer.
She firmly believes thatmotherhood is a source of
happiness, not depletion, andthat it doesn't have to be hard

(04:01):
all the time.
On a recent Veil and Armourpodcast, Tessa spoke of the
importance of rebuilding societyby rebuilding mothers.
She said, "increase yourcapacity so that your life, your
marriage, and your motherhoodis not draining you, so that you
do have more left to give toyour surrounding community,

(04:21):
rather than feeling drained andalways coming from a place of
depletion." Building capacitycan come from learning
homemaking skills, organization,and teaching our children to do
chores based upon their age andability.
It is never too young to start,says Tessa, who has battled
depression and postpartumdepression as a young wife and

(04:42):
mother.
She said she relies uponprayer, a good support system,
and the love, prayers, andsupport of her husband and
children.
May we also be able to createthat holy, happy, and peaceful
village in our homes.
May we become strengthened andemboldened in our vocation, a
vocation that leads to truehappiness and our

(05:03):
sanctification.
Litany, Good Saint Anne, pleasepray for us.
Our Lady of La Vang, pleasepray for us.
Our Lady of Penafrancia, pleasepray for us.
Our Lady of the Cape, pleasepray for us.
Our Lady of Czestochowa, pleasepray for us.
Our Lady of Kibeho, please prayfor us.

(05:23):
Our Lady of Lourdes, pleasepray for us.
O God, through the intercessionof Our Lady of Czestochowa, may
we turn our home, our dinnertables, on which we show our
love for our families, throughthe food that we prepare.
May these become our altar ofoffering of our daily tasks and
of our whole selves to you, OLord.

(05:44):
We ask this in Jesus' Holyname.
Amen.
In the name of the Father, andof the Son, and of the Holy
Spirit.
Amen.