As the featured speaker for this year’s Norwich Diocesan Women’s Conference, Lisa Irish hopes to empower women to see themselves as the light of Christ and to shine that light more brightly in today’s hurting world.
“I hope what I have to share with the women will open them to the idea that they could represent Jesus Christ to others even through their flawed and bumpy selves,” Irish said. “Our world is hurting, and women do have gifts of compassion and presence…Any light, any soul-centered caring makes a difference in the world.”
At the conference, which is titled Dinner with Jesus, Irish will speak on the topic: “How Are We the Image of Christ?” After hearing her message, Irish hopes participants will move toward owning their call to be not only the image of Christ in the world but also His generosity, mercy, and compassion.
“Whether one claims it or not, each of us is in ministry to others when we are offering love through our gifts to the people of the world,” she said. “Grace comes in little glimpses and glimmers. I hope a woman leaving our session will have the willingness to see herself as the light of Christ in the world and say yes to grace and to move a few steps closer to owning her call as a child of God.”
Shining her own light is something Irish has always sought to do. The experience of early losses in her life has served as a catalyst for helping others gain a deeper understanding of Christ’s healing love in their lives.
A board-certified chaplain, certified spiritual director, retreat director, and educator, Irish has written extensively on bereavement. She is the author of the book Grieving – the Sacred Art: Hope in the Land of Loss, and two other bereavement resources: Grieving with a Grateful Heart, an Elf-Help book, and a pamphlet titled Feeling Alone After a Loved One Dies, both published by CareNotes. She also writes a monthly blog called Glimmers, which can be accessed on her website at www.lisairish.com.
Her venture into writing about bereavement stemmed from her own healing process following early losses, combined with her ministry at the Hospital of St. Raphael’s Bereavement Program in New Haven. “As my ministry at St. Raphael’s evolved, I understood how important it is to offer a safe space to attend to such difficult feelings,” she said. “I also learned that loss, in whatever form it comes, changes our lives forever. Grief, on the other hand, is our inborn resource to attend to and heal from loss. My work and writing have been focused on normalizing grief and naming it our ally as we face these human experiences.”
Irish describes herself as one with a heart that has traveled many miles, gaining hard-earned wisdom. That heart brings an intrinsic love of people to those she meets. Her heart lifts with joy at welcoming all the “faces of God” she will find in the women attending this year’s conference. “I treasure the gifts and qualities that women bring coming into a room,” she said warmly.
Her book and bereavement resources will be available for purchase at the conference.
March 19 5:30-9:00 PM at the Great Neck Country Club in Waterford. Tickets are $70.
Register Online with Credit Card: Click here
OR
Email: faithevents@norwichdiocese.net
Make checks payable to: ACA Send to OFE 331 Main Ave. Norwich, CT 06360
By Mary-Jo McLaughlin