Catholic Women’s Preaching Circle: Breaking the Cycle of Invisibility

When asked about her motivation to begin a program for Catholic women to explore their calls to preach, Rhonda Miska began reflecting on her six years in discernment with the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa. Though Rhonda’s discernment led her away from vowed religious life, the Order of Preachers left their mark on her heart. “You know,” reflected Rhonda, “I’ve been given the gift of being in a community with women who claim the preaching charism and practice it and affirm it in one another, and I’m so aware that most women outside of religious communities don’t have that.” And thus, Rhonda began the process of starting the Catholic Women’s Preaching Circle. 

While uncertain as to whether or not the invitation would garner interest, extending the invitation felt important to Rhonda. “Women often don’t see women preach,” she considered. “Therefore, women don’t think of themselves as preachers. And so then, if a woman is given the opportunity, maybe she says no, or if she says yes, she doesn’t feel confident and has imposter syndrome. And so I think it’s about breaking the cycle of invisibility where women can try out preaching and gain some experience, gain some confidence, and be in a space of care and support.” 

It is clear that women have been longing for just such a space. In just a few weeks time, a cohort of Catholic women will begin meeting virtually to explore their gifts and skills in the ministry of preaching. This will be the seventh cohort of the Catholic Women’s Preaching Circle (CWPC), and add to the 30 women who have participated in the program since its inception in the Spring of 2021.

“Preaching is part of my identity,” shared Kelly Adamson, now one of four co-conveners of the Catholic Women’s Preaching Circle. “But for so long, I just haven’t known what to do with that as a woman in the Catholic Church. [And yet,]  whether I get the opportunities to preach from a pulpit, whether anybody hears me preach or not, there’s something about my salvation that is bound up in me pursuing this call, whether it lands for anyone or not.” 

“Whether I get the opportunities to preach from a pulpit, whether anybody hears me preach or not, there’s something about my salvation that is bound up in me pursuing this call, whether it lands for anyone or not.” – Kelly Adamson

Now, as a co-convener (along with Rhonda, Christy Hicks Aydt, and BJ Brown), Kelly has the opportunity to help foster confidence and companionship with other women who feel a similar call. Each cohort of women includes between four and six participants, and agrees to a collective agreement around how the group hopes to relate to one another. This helps ensure that comments are affirming and constructive as each woman in the group practices preaching. Kelly shared that having an agreement between the group helps ensure that it will be a safe space to be vulnerable– a reality that isn’t always a given in a classroom setting. As opposed to a Catholic Preaching course that is generally populated by male seminarians, in the CWPC  “there’s a sense that we’re all testing this out and saying, ‘we can have this identity, yes.’ And so that creates a different sort of vulnerability and tenderness with the feedback.” She continued, “And so this is the only space really that I show up in where it is normalized that women preach. And I’m not wondering what my identity is in this space and whether my preaching is going to communicate something about whether all women should be able to preach.”

Even in our brief conversation, I felt the respect, care, and gratitude shared by the participants of CWPC. When sharing about her experience in the circle, alumna Terese Weir shared, “I have the deepest gratitude to Rhonda for following the Holy Spirit and heeding her call as she continues to invite all of us into that sacred, bold space with her.” Terese is a board certified Catholic Chaplain who credits CWPC for giving her more confidence as a preacher. “My experience of CWPC was as a Master of Divinity graduate of Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary where I was the only Catholic student. I received an  excellent education and training in preaching there but did not see a space to carry that forward within my faith tradition. CWPC provided the space and community which gave me foundational confidence as a Catholic woman preacher.” In addition to growing her confidence as a preacher, Terese credits CWPC for creating a community of women to grow together spiritually. She shared that the “safe container” of the circle helped to make her participation in the circle a transformative experience. In addition to chaplaincy, Terese engages in the embodied preaching of liturgical dance ministry at Holy Cross Catholic Church in Austin, Texas.

Jane Egan, member of St. Mary Parish in Pompton Lakes, NJ, and a participant in their Saturday morning Liturgy of the Word with Communion, agreed with Terese’s sentiment, adding that she “found the experience of meeting regularly with a group wherein we’ve established the parameters of understanding why we’re here, but also a circle of trust and mutual respect, could help each other grow in both our preaching and our listening skills. We could give constructive criticism, and yet support each other in our continuing discernment as preachers and how we pray and that experience was very, very enriching.” Jane not only participated in a cohort, but together with Terese also routinely joins CWPC’s “all-calls,” or monthly opportunities for current cohort members and alumnae to continue building community and honing their gifts. 

While barriers to preaching opportunities continue to exist for Catholic women, that is not stopping women from honoring their gifts and continuing to improve their preaching skills. Despite the barriers, Kelly shared, “I’m called to preach. I know it in my bones. If I am to grow in Holiness, I have to be who God created me to be.” The Spirit continues to call women to the pulpit, and they continue to answer the call. 

Interested in joining the Catholic Women’s Preaching Circle? Applications for the Fall 2024 cohort are currently open! The group will meet on Tuesday evenings, beginning September 17th. The application deadline is August 29th. For more information, visit the Catholic Women’s Preaching Circle website. 

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