Editor's Note: This litany was prepared for the 2017 Mary of Magdala Celebrations, lifting up the role of women in the preaching ministry of the Church. Please feel free to adapt and use for your own personal or communal prayer.
Let us join our voices with the voices of the women prophets and preachers of the Hebrew Scriptures. May our voices joined with theirs bring about a covenant of justice and peace:
Miriam, prophet and leader among the Israelites ... pray with us
Deborah, the judge ... pray with us
Huldah, the prophet ... pray with us
Let us join our voices with the women of the Gospels who proclaimed the good news. May our voices joined with theirs bring about a Church which is modeled on the inclusive ministry of Jesus:
Mary, mother of Jesus ... pray with us
Anna, the Temple prophet ... pray with us
The Samaritan woman, evangelizer ... pray with us
Mary of Magdala, apostle to the apostles... pray with us
We join our voices with the women who were leaders and proclaimers in the early Church. May our voices joined with theirs bring about a church where women’s leadership is valued and understood as necessary.
Phoebe, the deacon ... pray with us
Prisca, the missionary ... pray with us
Lydia, leader of the first house-church in Europe ... pray with us
Junia, esteemed by Paul as “outstanding among the apostles” ... pray
with us
We join our voices with the women preachers of the Middle Ages. May our voices joined with theirs bring about a church of compassionate understanding:
Catherine of Siena, speaker of truth to power ... pray with us
Hildegard of Bingen, mystic, abbess, and preacher ... pray with us
Rose of Viterbo, mystic and preacher of penance ... pray with us
We join our voices with the women preachers and martyrs of recent history. May our voices joined with theirs bring about a poor church for the poor.
Dorothy Day, journalist, activist, and founder of the Catholic Worker
Movement ... pray with us
Thea Bowman, evangelist and Servant of God ... pray with us
Dorothy Stang, martyr of the Amazon ... pray with us
And all you holy women who throughout time have proclaimed the Good News… pray with us
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