Here at Bellarmine Chapel in Cincinnati, Ohio we honored St. Phoebe with a Taize prayer service for the community on September 3, 2023. Our service was soul stirring, meditative and deeply prayerful. Together, we sang meditative Taize songs, heard three testimonies from women from our community, and at the end, we were invited to light individual candles around the altar and an icon of St. Phoebe. The lighting of these candles represented our prayers and hopes for our community and for the increased participation of women in the wider Church.

The reflections shared were profound. One of the speakers specifically shared about her experience of a difficult childbirth and how this experience helped her to feel deeply connected to Jesus’ death and resurrection. Our experience of prayer with one another celebrating St. Phoebe and uplifting women in the Church opened up a new space for us to share our disappointments and struggles, but more importantly, our deep-seeded hope for the future. This was so moving to be a part of.

St. Phoebe’s intercession in our community is powerful! This is just the beginning of our spirit-filled journey of rethinking women’s participation alongside one another.