Women's Conference Draws Around 250 Participants from around Maine

“God is not finished writing our book."

That was the message of encouragement that keynote speaker Christine Eberle shared with around 250 women gathered for the annual Maine Catholic Women’s Conference held April 18 at the St. John’s Community Center in Brunswick.

"God is still writing your story. He's still hearing your prayers, and he's still hearing the prayers of other people who are praying for you that you probably don't even know about. So take hope. Have faith. He is still there," she said.

The conference, now in its 13th year, brought together women from the Crown of Maine to the southern border, who were seeking an opportunity to grow in relationship with Christ and with one another.

“I think it builds up your hope and friendships. There are so many familiar faces that I know from here. You can sense the spirit of friendship and enthusiasm. It’s just a beautiful thing to see you’re not alone in your faith,” said Kathryn Swegart from Rome, Maine.

“It's been such an amazing day today. Everybody is so friendly and smiling and courteous to each other, unlike the world that we live in sometimes,” said Joanne Cusack from Sanford. “The presenters have been fabulous, and the conversation, the small group discussions, have been wonderful. I'm just blessed to be here.”

“It’s surrounding yourself with other women, especially other women who have the same views as you, especially being at school in such a secular community” said Emerson Morris, a University of Maine student, who is from Charlotte. “It’s getting the generational experience, too, and being able to meet women from all over Maine who all have amazing, unique stories. It just gives you a chance to lean on other people and learn who they are in a new way.”

The theme of the 2026 women’s conference was “Walking Together in Faith and Doubt,” which Eberle, a Christian author and speaker, reflected on in her keynote addresses, sharing how even Jesus’s close friends, Martha and Mary, had doubts after their brother, Lazarus, died.

“Through these stories, especially with Martha and Mary, we are reminded that faith and doubt are not opposites. They are often woven together in the journey. Even in uncertainty, even in waiting, God is always inviting us to trust him and to press on,” Eberle said.

She said it is natural for our relationship with Jesus to change over time and through different circumstances and challenges that we encounter in life.

“As we go through joys and sorrows and some wonderful things and some terrible things, as we risk getting jaded or exasperated or despondent, our relationship with God changes, but it can evolve,” she said. “To be in love with a God who may not be waiting with the wrapped gift we are hoping for, but who is absolutely willing to bring forth grace through the very things we do not want to be going through, that is a God whose love we can evolve with and continue to ripen and grow and mature.”

It was a message Bishop James Ruggieri echoed in his homily during the conference’s closing Mass, which was held at St. John the Baptist Church in Brunswick. The bishop said that when suffering enters our life, it can rattle us, just as it did the two downcast disciples who left Jerusalem for Emmaus following Jesus’s crucifixion. The bishop noted that Jesus, whom they did not yet recognize, patiently listened to them as they expressed their confusion and sorrow, before helping them to understand what had happened.

“We all know, in different ways, what it is to encounter suffering that we do not fully understand. We know what it is to feel disoriented, to struggle, to question. And at times, also, we know what it is to drift, even suddenly from the path we’ve been walking.  But this Gospel reminds us that even in those moments, the Lord is near. He walks with us, even when we do not recognize him. He listens to us, even when our words are filled with confusion or disillusionment,” the bishop said. “He continues to speak, especially through the Scriptures, helping us to see that suffering is never meaningless but truly a place where grace is at work.”

In addition to Mass and the keynote addresses, the women’s conference included a witness talk by Brandi Cote, who shared her and her husband’s journey to the Catholic faith. There was also eucharistic adoration, and opportunity for confession, and a chance to browse various vendor booths.

The women who attended the conference say they took a lot away from the day, each finding a message that hit home.

“I think what I took away from today is that it's OK to have frustration with God as long as you’re able to keep talking to him. They always say that even fighting is better than nothing because if you can talk to the other person, then you have something there. So, it's OK to not always have the perfect relationship with God because it means that at least you care enough to try,” said Morris.

“I think [Eberle’s] talk about taking too many things along, our load being too heavy, that was impressive to me, reminding me that all these little things that I worry about aren’t really that important,” said Mary Klotz of Bath, who recently moved to Maine and was attending her first women’s conference. “I’m at a time in my life when I’m making lots of changes and giving up things that don’t really mean that much to me or that shouldn’t mean so much to me. And so, it kind of did resonate a lot with me.”

“I love the idea of your life being a pilgrimage. I love that message and how to, step by step, just take your time, take it in, but always keep your eye on the prize,” said Ethna Wilson of Lewiston. “Like [Eberle] said, know where you’re going and then ask God to help you get there.”