As you may know, the Women of Grace 5^th Annual Retreat was held at Malvern Retreat House the weekend of July 23-25.  It was preceded by the Women of Grace Leadership Institute on July 22, ending mid- afternoon on the 23^rd.  Both events were abundantly blessed and I am delighted in the receptivity of heart so apparent in the women who attended.  If you weren’t able to make it this year, I just wanted to give you a little taste of what the retreat was like so you will seriosly consider coming next year. 

Our guest presenter for the retreat was Dr. Edward Sri, Provost of the Augustine Institute in the Archdiocese of Denver. Father Edmund Sylvia, C.S.C. and myself were the retreat directors. The theme was “The Mysteries of Mary: Hope, Healing, and New Life.” We have copies of the retreat talks available for you on CD.

I was personally inspired by Dr. Sri’s discussion of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta and his enlightening discussion of the marriage feast of Cana.  In both instances, I felt convicted by the Holy Spirit to enter more deeply into the call and mission God has entrusted to me and to surrender more fully to His Holy Will.  I am confident you, too, will experience the power of the Holy Spirit as you listen to Dr. Sri’s presentations.

The Scripture passages we were led to consider throughout the retreat, in the order they were given, are the following:

Jeremiah 1: 5-10

2 Chronicles 7:14

Jeremiah 7:3-11

Ezekiel 22:30

Dr. Ted Sri

Throughout the retreat the women were encouraged to be the prophetic voice of this our day and time and to step boldly into the mission which God has entrusted to them. Reminding them of the Closing Message to Women from the 2^nd Vatican Council, the women were exhorted to “reconcile men with life” and to “save the peace of the world” as the Council Fathers told them only they can do. A big mission to be sure, but a mission that can be accomplished, “for with God, nothing is impossible.” 

I suggest you pray the passages the women received at the retreat, see what the Holy Spirit is saying to you, and give your “fiat” to the Lord as did Our Lady. The salvation of the world depends on it.

Like most retreats, the end came too soon and we had to leave our mountaintop experience and return to the realities of everyday living.  I am certain that we have all been refueled for the certain challenges which lie ahead.  I hope that you too will consider joining us next year for this beautiful retreat experience! 

Our next event is the Women of Grace National “Healed for Holiness” Conference , Hyatt Regency Hotel, Sacramento California, September 17-19, preceded by the Leadership Institute September 16 -17 (mid-afternoon).  You won’t want to miss this faith-filled opportunity!

Enjoy a few pictures from the retreat.  If you’d like to see them all, visit my Facebook  page.

Fr. Ed and Vicki Crispo, one of our first ever Women of Grace facilitators

There were plenty of laughs...

Teaching moments...

Prayer...

Time for reflection...

and lots of PRAISE!

More PRAISE...

And more PRAISE!

I am so pleased to personally invite you to attend our 4th Women of Grace Retreat to be held at Malvern Retreat Center, Malvern PA the weekend of July 31st. A flyer is available via download on our website under “Conferences.” Not only will this weekend be inspiring, butI know  it will also be a time to be blessed. Read the rest…

On Saturday, October 25, Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Clermont, Florida presented a Women of Grace One-Day Conference in conjunction with Living His Life Abundantly’ outreach for women. It was a remarkable day in the Lord as more than 250 women gathered at the parish to hear about the great gift of authentic femininity and God’s mission for them in this 21st century. Read the rest…

Women of Grace Outreach Coordinator, Joanne Kane, just couldn’t throw away the names of the Kalispell, Montana women even though she needed to reuse their lanyards for the participants of the upcoming Women Of Grace National Conference in Sacramento, CA September 19-21. They had attended the Women of Grace One-Day Conference  August 2 sponsored by St. Matthew’s Catholic Church in Kalispell.

“I just couldn’t throw those names away,” Joanne said. “They represented the beautiful women, our sisters in the Lord, that we met there.” So, heeding an internal nudge, she put the Kalispell names in the lanyards along with the names of the women who would be attending the WOG National Conference.

At the event, Joanne explained her decision to the conference attendees and suggested they pray for the Kalispell woman whose name had been entrusted to her. Thus began ”Ribbon of Grace,” a new prayer ministry of Women of Grace which ”ties” WOGs together in a special bond of prayer and intercession.

This past weekend, the Ribbon of Grace was wrapped around the women attending the Women of Grace One-Day Conference sponsored by the Diocese of Fort Wayne/South Bend, Office of Spiritual Development and Evangelization. There, WOG attendees received the names of the Sacramento Conference participants, many of whom wrote special prayer requests on the back of their name cards. The idea was met with a standing ovation expressing the women’s enthusiastic response.

While all of the women seemed delighted with the idea, for one conference attendee the Ribbon of Grace was particularly poignant. She had unexpectedly received her daughter’s name who had attended the Sacramento Conference the weekend before. This delightful surprise amazed Joanne Kane who had given no attention to the Sacramento names she was slipping into the lanyards for the Indiana attendees. “This must be of the Holy Spirit,” said Joanne, “I couldn’t have come up with this!”

Participants coming to the Women of Grace One-Day Conference in Clermont on October 25th will receive the names of the ladies who attended the Indiana conference. And thus, the Ribbon of Grace will continue to unite Woggers nationally. In ‘09 those ties will become international ones. A Ribbon of Grace tying the women of the world together in prayer and intercession for each other. What a concept! 

I just got home last evening from Winona Lake, IN where the Diocese of Fort Wayne/South Bend hosted a Women of Grace One-Day Conference at Grace College. It was a glorious day in the Lord as the capacity crowd of 350 women gathered together to experience the blessings God had in mind.

I again want to extend my thanks and gratitude to Bishop John M. D’Arcy and to Ginny Kohrman, Director of the Office of Spiritual Development and Evangelization, for their dedication and enthusiasm in sponsoring this conference and in making it a day filled to the brim with God’s love.  From beginning to end it was indeed grace-filled.

Thank you aslo to the women who gave of themselves so generously by participating in the many committees whose efforts made the day so special. And, of course, thank you to the many women who came to the event. What a blessing you were to me! May God bless all of you abundantly.

Our next Women of Grace One-Day Conference is October 25 at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Clermont, FL. For more information, go to www.womenofgrace.com, click on “Speaking Engagements” and scroll down to the October 25th date. If you would like to find out about sponsoring a Women of Grace One-Day Conference at your parish or in your area, just give us a call at 1-800-558-5452 and ask for Thea at ext. 237.