PROVIDENCE —Christmas is a time to remember that the Word of God descended to earth in the darkness of night so that he could be close to us in our own darkness.
This idea, which concluded podcaster Heather Khym’s first talk at the diocese’s annual Catholic Women’s Conference on December 6, captured the conference’s overarching theme of hope.
Khym, co-host of the Abiding Together podcast and co-founder of Life Restoration Ministries, opened the conference’s presentations by encouraging the women present to take heart even in the direst circumstances.
Realizing that “the enemy is the cause” of suffering is the first step in allowing God into our lives amid that suffering, said Khym.
The conference day began with a Mass offered by Bishop Bruce Lewandowski at the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul, followed by worship music led by Melissa Roberts. About 225 women from 54 parishes located in three states were in attendance.
Between presentations, held in the cathedral’s downstairs hall, eight vendors from all over New England and as far away as Michigan sold a range of devotional items from books to jewelry to olive-wood products from the Holy Land.
Conference participants could also connect with four Catholic apostolates, with representatives present from Divine Mercy International, the Legion of Mary International, Retrouvaille of New England, and Pilgrim Queen of the Family.
Tables for attendees were adorned with centerpieces featuring crosses painted by Campus Ministry students at La Salle Academy as a fitting visual reminder of the conference’s focus on hope in the midst of suffering.
Local priests, Fathers Henry Bodah, Robert Lacombe, Patrick O’Connor, Patrick Ryan, and Thomas Woodhouse were on hand to hear conference-goers’ confessions in the cathedral.
In the second presentation of the day, Enkindle Catholic director Kristen Fisher illustrated hope despite disappointment through the figure of Mary Magdalene, who initially did not recognize Jesus when she saw him after the resurrection. Magdalene’s experience shows that Jesus comes “in a way we’re not expecting and don’t recognize,” said Fisher. “He wants us, like Mary Magdalene, to look for him in difficult places where we don’t expect him to be.”
The resurrection didn’t erase the sorrow of the crucifixion, Fisher said. “Good Friday still happened.” Yet, within Mary Magdalene’s disappointed hopes, “the Lord says, ‘I am with you.’”
Fisher emphasized the role of women in bringing Christ to the world by quoting St. Frances Xavier Cabrini: “If the mission of announcing the Lord’s resurrection to his apostles had been entrusted to Mary Magdalene, it would seem a very good thing to confide to other women an evangelizing mission.”
Fisher outlined four practical steps towards accomplishing this mission: recognizing where we see Christ in our own lives, remembering that God had each one of us in mind from the beginning of creation and all throughout the events of salvation history, recounting to others how and where we have seen Christ in our own lives, and re-committing by examining how and where to “intentionally share your hope.”
Khym returned for the final talk of the day, titled “Christ In You the Hope of Glory,” taken from Colossians 1:27. Focusing on the importance of relationships, Khym highlighted the Catholic view of the Holy Trinity as a community – the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as one. This is expressed in the history of the covenants established by God in order to enter into relationship with humanity, Khym said.
“If the enemy really wants to attack, he’s going to attack relationships, because that’s the image of God,” said Khym. This is particularly the case in the sacrament of marriage, which is “the greatest sign of trinitarian love.”
This covenant relationship is also experienced by every individual through baptism, Khym said, assuring Christians of God’s constant presence. “Because Christ is in us through baptism, we’re never alone. Ever. Ever.”
“The living God is in you right now. This is crazy, y’all.”
Khym concluded with an exhortation to prioritize spiritual life. “The world doesn’t need mediocre Catholics,” she said. “The world needs people who are on fire with the love of God.”
This year’s conference is proving to be a channel for far-reaching spiritual graces. Diocesan Marriage and Family Life Consultant Julie Bradley said in an email that one of the conference evaluations had been submitted by a woman who is a member of the American Baptist Church and had been invited to the conference by a religious sister.
“I am an American Baptist,” the evaluation read, “and have never been to something as moving and helping me to feel the love of Jesus within me.”
