BOCA RATON | On first Saturdays at St. John the Evangelist in Boca Raton, there is a Women of Grace spiritual study program for women, Morning of Grace. The two-hour mini-retreat promotes life-changing spiritual growth with an increasing desire to strive to always live a virtuous life.
The Women of Grace program and apostolate was established by EWTN TV host Johnnette Benkovic Williams. “Morning of Grace was created as a follow-up, an ongoing spiritual formation, to the Women of Grace foundational study in 2008,” said Martha Nicolli, Women of Grace regional director/facilitator.
“Originally, the apostolate program (Women of Grace) started at St. Joan of Arc first in the spring of 2006. I saw it in the bulletin, and what struck me was it said, ‘Find your purpose, feed your soul,’ a Women of Grace quote,” Nicolli said.
“I had a conflict and I couldn’t do it at St. Joan of Arc, but then in September 2006, that’s when I took the program at St. Vincent Ferrer,” she said. “It was life-changing for my husband because he saw the change in me.”
The Morning of Grace guideline states: “Women of Grace created the Morning of Grace program series as a free resource for ongoing spiritual formation for Catholic women.” It additionally states that the Morning of Grace “provides a means to build up communities of Catholic women in a beautiful way that the apostolate refers to as a ‘sacred sisterhood’ under the patronage of Our Lady of Guadalupe.” The program is offered in English and Spanish.
Joan Speyer has been the St. John the Evangelist Morning of Grace facilitator for four years. She said, “Like when a rose is brand new and it hasn’t opened up yet, after nine weeks I watch these women blossom, and I have to tell you, it’s so wonderful to watch them grow.”
The theme of the Morning of Grace program March 8 at St. John the Evangelist was “Forgiveness is essential to spiritual and inner healing.” The grace was “I pray for the grace to ask for forgiveness and to offer it in return.”
The meeting began with Nicolli leading prayer, saying, “Let’s place ourselves around the throne of the blessed Trinity. We are in a sacred place for the next two hours. This is a spa for your soul.” The Women of Grace song by Lynn Cooper was played as the women sang with their eyes closed.
Every meeting includes praying one decade of the rosary for the month. “As we pray this fifth decade of the sorrowful mystery, the crucifixion, let us ponder Mary, our Blessed Mother, who loves each of God’s children as her own,” Nicolli said. “We pray for a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me (from Psalm 51).”
After the decade of the rosary was prayed, an EWTN Women of Grace teaching DVD/video program recording was played focusing on “Forgiveness: A proven way to healing,” with Williams and two guests discussing the topic.
When the video concluded, Ana Cecilia Berger gave testimony on how she has grown in faith since taking the program. The “Ave Maria” was played as participants pondered the month’s reflection topic: “St. Paul tells us in Ephesians 4:26: ‘Be angry, but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger.’”
Women of Grace is an international Catholic apostolate that began in 2003 as an outreach of Living His Life Abundantly. The apostolate has grown throughout the United States, Canada, Central and South America, Ireland, England, Australia and Ukraine with online classes.
For more information, call Joan Speyer at 561-376-3377, email Martha Nicolli at mnicolli@womenofgrace.com or call the parish office at 561-488-1373.
