St. James’s Episcopal Church announces WomanKind2018, an engaging, two-day women’s program symposium to be held February 23-24, 2018, hosted by and at St. James’s and open to all women.
In a period of fracture and discord, both local and guest speakers contribute to this year’s poignant and timely theme, “Lift Up Your Hearts! The Transformative Power of Word and Table.” At WomanKind 2018, women are invited to participate in a discussion of what it means to engage with God’s word and gather around God’s table. Attendees will explore the rituals and traditions of Holy Scripture and Holy Eucharist, Word and Table, and how connecting with each other and God equips us to live with faith, grace, and compassion.
For more than a dozen years, St. James’s in Richmond has hosted WomanKind, creating space for women to explore topics of faith in a supportive, encouraging environment. Although WomanKind is rooted in the Christian tradition, participants of any faith are invited to search within and with each other for a deeper understanding of what it means to lift up our hearts. Together, we will be transformed by communion with each other in the sharing of holy conversations and holy meals.
For the first time, WomanKind welcomes two keynote speakers instead of one, each highlighting dual liturgies of Word and Table. Friday evening features the topic of the Word offered by The Rev. Neichelle R. Guidry from Trinity United Church of Christ on the South side of Chicago. Guidry currently serves as the Liaison to Worship and Arts Ministries in the Office of the Senior Pastor at Trinity UCC. She is the creator of shepreaches, a virtual community and professional development organization that aspires to uplift African-American millennial women in ministry. Guidry is author of Curating a World: Sermonic Words from a Young Woman Who Preaches, and was listed as one of “12 New Faces of Black Leadership” in TIME Magazine (January 2015).
Saturday morning’s keynote delivered by Sara Miles brings attendees to the topic of the Table. Miles is an author whose books include Take This Bread: A Radical Conversion; Jesus Freak: Feeding Healing Raising the Dead, and City of God: Faith in the Streets. She served as Director of Ministry at St. Gregory of Nyssa Episcopal Church in San Francisco for ten years, and is the founder and director of The Food Pantry. Sara speaks, preaches, teaches and leads workshops around the world. Her journalism has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, the New Yorker, and on National Public Radio.
Saturday’s stellar lineup of workshop leaders will offer attendees a chance to go deeper into the theme of Word and Table.
WomanKind2018 concludes with a celebration of Word and Table, led by The Rev. Emily Scott, the founding pastor of St. Lydia’s, a Dinner Church in New York City. Save the dates to join WomanKind2018, lift up your hearts, and be transformed by the power of Word and Table.