Women’s conference offers speakers on ‘Mercy for All’
By Natalie Hoefer
The Indiana Catholic Women’s Conference, organized by the Marian Center of Indianapolis and sponsored by the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, will take place at the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown hotel from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. on March 19. The theme of this year’s conference is “Mercy for All.”
This year’s speakers include:
Back by popular demand, national speaker and retreat leader Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity Father James Blount. He returns to share his message that “through the power of the Holy Spirit, God’s Church can make a difference in the world today.”
Michelle Faehnle, co-author of Divine Mercy for Moms: Sharing the Lessons of St. Faustina. Faehnle gave up her job as a labor and delivery nurse to raise her four children at home, and to answer the call to the new evangelization.
Emily Jaminet, co-author of Divine Mercy for Moms: Sharing the Lessons of St. Faustina. Jaminet hosts “Mother’s Moments” on Gabriel Catholic Radio in Columbus, Ohio. After a brief stint working for a Christian non-profit in Pittsburgh, Pa., she returned home to raise her six children and be a “worker in the vineyard of the Lord.”
Anthony Mullen, national coordinator for the international Flame of Love Movement of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, which promotes the Church-approved late-20th century messages of Jesus and Mary to a Hungarian woman. The messages promise the triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Mullen is also chairman of MyConsecration.org, one of the world’s largest providers of materials on consecration to Mary, promoting a life dedicated “to Jesus through Mary.”
Also returning are Archbishop Joseph W. Tobin, who will celebrate Mass at 11 a.m., and singer/songwriter Annie Karto.
“The Church chose our theme for us this year,” says Kathy Denney, director of the volunteer-run Marian Center of Indianapolis. “With this being the [Holy] Year of Mercy, we wanted to focus on God’s mercy for all.”
Denney feels the annual conference, now in its 11th year, once again has something for women of all ages.
“We’ve got two young mothers who wrote a book on mercy,” she says, stating the book contains a forward by Marians of the Immaculate Conception Father Michael Gaitley, author of 33 Days to Morning Glory and Consoling the Heart of Jesus.
As for Father James, says Denney, “I had so many women request him to come back, and I heard from women who didn’t get to come who said they were so sorry they missed him. He’s in such demand, I was amazed that he came back.”
New to this year’s conference is Mullen, a speaker on the international Flame of Love Movement of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The movement is the result of apparitions of Christ and the Blessed Mother to Hungarian mother and widow Elizabeth Kindelmann between 1961-82. The apparitions and message were approved in 1995 by Cardinal Bernardino Echeverria Ruiz, and in 2009 the seer’s writings, collected as the Spiritual Diary of Elizabeth Kindelmann, received the imprimatur of Cardinal Peter Erdo.
“Elizabeth said Our Lady said the flame of her heart—which is what you see in the pictures of the Immaculate Heart, [in] which [the flame] really is Jesus—that that flame will become ignited and will blind Satan,” Denney says. “The movement has spread through Europe and the eastern part of the United States. It’s very interesting.”
Marilynn Ross, a member of Our Lady of the Greenwood Parish in Greenwood, attended the conference last year and said she looks forward to going again.
“It’s a joyful, joy-filled day,” she said. “In the midst of Lent, it’s a time of inspiration, of providing hope, a message of ‘let’s look to the Resurrection, look to the power of the Holy Spirit and the Church, and all that they have to offer us.’
“It’s a time of sharing with other women, and it’s a shot in the arm to keep us going through Lent to Easter. Like Father Blount said last year, we are an allelujah people. That’s a message we need to hear in the midst of these crazy times.”
In addition to the speakers, the conference will offer a catered lunch, vendors, music by Karto, and the opportunity for adoration, Benediction, Mass and confession.
Women who do receive Communion and the sacrament of reconciliation “might consider driving the short distance to the [SS. Peter and Paul] Cathedral to go through the holy doors of mercy for the indulgence,” says Denney, noting that the two sacraments are part of the requirements for the holy year plenary indulgence. “The conference should end by 4 p.m., so there’d be plenty of time afterward to drive over to the cathedral. I hope many women take advantage of that opportunity.”
Denney says the goal of this year’s conference is the same: for women to “go deeper into the mystery of God. We don’t do this [conference] for any other reason. It’s a lot of work, and it’s completely volunteer. We don’t get paid—we do it in hopes that we’re doing something to bring about the kingdom of God.”
(Tickets for the Indiana Catholic Women’s Conference from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. on March 19, with registration at 8 a.m., are $50, or $25 for students and religious. For groups of 10 or more, tickets are $45. Members of the largest group will receive a prize and VIP seating in the front row. The conference will be held at the Indianapolis Downtown Marriott, 305 W. Maryland St. Parking is available across the street in the Government Center Parking Garage, 401 W. Washington St., for less than $10. To register for the conference, log on to www.indianacatholicwomen.com, or mail a check and number of attendees to: Marian Center of Indianapolis, P.O. Box 47362, Indianapolis, IN 46247 [checks made out to St. Michael Foundation[. For questions, call 317-888-0873 or e-mail mariancntr@aol.com.) †