Under the Stars: Gala For Married Couples

On May 2, 2026, we hosted our first-ever Gala for Married Couples, "Under the Stars," right here in the courtyard of Serra House of Formation. It was one of those Southern California evenings you can't manufacture: skies clear, birds chirping, a warm breeze blowing through the palms and across Blue Mountain. One can say the Holy Spirit was surrounding the evening with His love.

But what inspired us to put this on? Well, it started simply. A parishioner saw the need married couples longing for an intentional night to reconnect with each other and with God and they came to us and said, "Let's do this." And that was that.

Now, if you've never been to Serra House, you might not know what you're missing. Nestled at the foot of Blue Mountain in Grand Terrace, hidden in this small community is what I can only describe as an oasis. From the outside, the building looks clean, white, and plain, nothing that would make you turn your head. But step inside, and you enter something altogether different. A taste of heaven, if I'm being honest.

That evening, we transformed the courtyard. String lights overhead. Tables set just big enough for one couple, intentional, so they could share intimate conversation and private time together. Candles lit everywhere to enhance the love between husband and wife. And as these couples began to enter, something amazing started to happen.

The Golden Hour set the Tone

Here's a story I have to share. Several of the wives had brought their husbands on a "date," except the husbands had no idea where they were going. The wives kept it a complete surprise. And of course, as the men joked with me later while sharing it with other couples, they said they were convinced their wives were taking them to Yaamava' Casino for a night out. But as they got closer and the route didn't quite line up, they knew that wasn't the case.

As they approached the seminary, they thought they were heading to the middle of nowhere. But when they stepped through the gates of Serra House and saw the beauty, the candles, the lights, the music, the courtyard in full bloom, their whole demeanor changed. They were in paradise. They just didn't know it yet.

A live harmonica jazz player greeted them as they found their tables. Couples from all over the Diocese were there, some from Murrieta, some from Hemet, others from around Riverside and San Bernardino. They didn't know what to expect, but that's exactly how God works, isn't it? He meets us in the unknown.

As the evening unfolded, we opened four stations, each one dedicated to the renewal of their marriage. The first offered personalized notes written just for them, words of encouragement and blessing. The second was a rose and a prayer placed before our Blessed Mother Mary, inviting them to entrust their marriage to her intercession. The third brought couples to kneel together before the cross, where they were given conversation-assisting cards to open up dialogue between husband and wife, the kind of honest, vulnerable conversation that everyday life sometimes crowds out.

And then, the fourth station: the Renewal of Vows. Right there in our Seminary Chapel, before God and with me celebrating the renewal for each couple, the sacred promises they made on their wedding day, spoken again with all the weight of the years lived and the grace received.

It was a powerful, holy moment. Some of these couples have been married 3 years. Others, 60. But at the root of it all is Jesus Christ, who led them to one another and continues to journey with them through every season.

Of course, there was also the food, beautifully catered, served by volunteers and assisted by some of our seminarians. While couples dined, a live classical music quartet played from the chapel steps, and the whole courtyard became something out of a film. It was romantic. It was sacred. It was both at once, the way the sacrament of marriage itself is meant to be.

And as the night went on, the DJ took over, playing songs each couple had requested during registration, their wedding songs, the songs that marked their love story. Some couples got up to dance. Some, filled with emotion, sat holding hands or embracing one another. Some even shed tears of joy. But amongst it all, the Spirit of God was working, healing what had been broken, restoring what had been forgotten, reigniting what had grown dim within hearts.

The Renewal of Vows brought them back to the reminder of the love they first shared, and through it all, whether three years or sixty, Jesus Christ was at the center. He led them. He continues to journey with them. And that night, He showed up in a way that left no one unchanged.

All left with, I believe, healing, and a greater desire to love their spouse as Christ loves them.

I can only say, it is up to God and His people. But if we do have it again, rest assured, it will be what God wanted all along.

If you want to check out more photos of the event, clink on link:

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