When women of faith gather to discuss their beliefs, a spiritual synergy develops that has the power to change society.
That's the basic premise, though not the stated theme, behind several gatherings of religious women scheduled along the Wasatch Front during the next few weeks (see accompanying box).Though the conferences are based on some strikingly different theological underpinnings, much of the dialogue about strength, wisdom, empowerment, education and faith -- centered in Jesus Christ -- has broad appeal among women, if a national movement that mirrors some of the same themes is any indication.
A female version of the wildly popular "Promise Keeper" stadium events that have drawn hundreds of thousands of men to fill public stadiums in major cities, attendance at "Women of Faith" conferences nationwide surpassed that of Promise Keepers last year, and total attendance this year is estimated at 350,000, according to the movement's founders.
In January, 17,000 women packed Firstar Arena in Cincinnati to hear messages of faith and encouragement from a group of female speakers and musicians. More than 15,000 attended a conference last weekend in Washington, D.C., and organizers will host the conference in 23 additional cities this year.
"We haven't come for the purpose of teaching doctrine or what women should not do," said speaker Patsy Clairmont. Rather, the focus is "to encourage women and let them know we're rooting for them . . . and so is God."
Women of Faith founder and CEO Steve Arterburn said he started the Christian-based stadium events in 1996 "to honor and support women with a conference that specifically addressed their needs as women. I had a hunch there was a void out there we could fill."
Organizers of Utah's largest event, the 25th annual LDS Women's Conference to be held at Brigham Young University April 26-28, believe women encourage, strengthen and unify each other when they meet in such a setting. Conference Chairwoman Wendy Watson announced plans last month for a huge service event, scheduled to cover the gridiron at Cougar Stadium with 2,000 quilts to be hand-sewn by an expected crowd of 20,000.
Participants at the April 26 event will also have the chance to give blood, sort tons of food for the Utah Food Bank and assemble thousands of hygiene, education and literacy kits to be distributed worldwide. "When they're literally linked together doing something they know will make a difference, it's an indescribable feeling of being a part of something that's bigger than all of us," Watson said. The annual event, sponsored by the LDS Church's Relief Society and BYU, also includes two days of workshop sessions that focus on spirituality and relationships.
While the BYU event may be the state's largest, it's not the oldest by any stretch.
The Diocese of Salt Lake City's Council of Catholic Women will hold its 72nd annual convention April 29 and 30 at the Salt Lake Hilton Hotel, with the theme, "Jubilee Women: Strong, Loving and Wise." Speakers will include author and columnist Mitch Finley, Dominican Sister Janet Stankowski who directs a nonprofit organization serving inmates and their families, and Benedictine Sister Stephanie Mongeon, director of community relations and mission services at Columbia Ogden Regional Medical Center.
The council's mission statement is "to support, empower and educate Catholic women in spirituality, leadership and service," which organizers use as their guide in planning the annual event. A poster session, Taize prayer service, a prayer room, games and a silent auction will be featured.
Another longtime women's event with Utah ties will be the international 2000 World Day of Prayer service, to be celebrated locally March 3 and 4. Christian women in more than 170 countries will gather to celebrate the theme, "Talitha Kumi: Young Women, Stand Up!" as chosen by women in Indonesia and based on the biblical verse in Mark 5:42, which refers to a young girl who was dying until Jesus healed her.
The service itself is written each year by women from a different nation and carried out in the United States by Church Women United, a grass-roots ecumenical movement of Protestant, Catholic, Orthodox and other Christian women. It had its beginnings in 1887 with a Presbyterian laywoman, Mary Ellen James, and seeks to involve women in "informed prayer and prayerful action," according to a press release. Guest speaker for the Salt Lake-area service will be Pastor Bill Lane, minister of caring ministries for the Salt Lake Alliance Church.
Rounding out the host of women's events, evangelical Christians will hold their first women's conference in Utah on March 17-18 at the Best Western Sherwood Hills Resort and Conference Center in Wellsville Canyon near Logan. Sponsored by Salt Lake Seminary, that event will feature Illinois author and speaker Rebecca Manley Pippert, along with musician and worship leader Mary Goldring. "Mediating Christ's truth, love and power for the New Millennium," is the theme.
Interestingly, the bevy of Utah events surround the fairly recent advent of Women's History Month in March, a growing national movement celebrating women who have changed society through leading out in politics, education, science, medicine and religion.
According to local spokeswoman Michele Newport, one of the earliest American women to affect religious change was Mary Baker Eddy, founder of the Church of Christ, Scientist, and author of, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," with more than 9 million copies published in 17 languages. In 1908, Eddy founded the denomination's flagship newspaper, The Christian Science Monitor, and is recognized as the only American woman to found a worldwide religion.
While contemporary women gather to talk about their beliefs during the next few weeks, Eddy's achievements will be celebrated posthumously during March at the Salt Lake Public Library.