Litany of Solidarity theme for 2023

Watercolor by Jet Booth, Luminaries Night, League City, TX

Litany of Solidarity theme for 2023

by Tammy Townsend Denny, TI Executive Director

​For 2023, our Theresian Litany of Solidarity asks us to join in prayer and action with women who speak, write, sing, and create art that addresses the dignity inherent in all women.

Our solidarity theme for this year has me thinking about the women who inspire me with their voices. Some are well-known like Anne Lamott, Sue Monk Kidd, Mary Oliver, Sister Helen Prejean, Joan Chittister, Elizabeth Johnson, Edwina Gateley, Joan Didion, and Dorothy Day.

Other women who inspire me may not be as familiar, like Jan Richardson, Sara Thomsen, Natalia Imperatori-Lee , MaryAnn McKibben Dana, Kathleen Deignan, Ella Baker, Dolores Huerta, and the countless mission-driven Catholic sisters who run organizations like Bethany House of Hospitality, Holy Family Institute, The Well Spirituality Center, Siena Retreat Center, Aquinas Literacy Center, A Nun’s Life, and Monasteries of the Heart.

Then, there are those women who quietly create their art and find their voice in basements, spare rooms, kitchens, and backyard gardens, only becoming known to me when they gift me with a small painting, a piece of poetry, a bit of photography, a kitchen-created goody, or a plant cultivated in their garden.

And, there are even more who may never be known to you or to me. These are the creators-at-heart who dream of the day when they might find time or courage to put their creative thoughts on paper or canvas, dive their fingers into clay or bread dough, or stand on the world’s stages and give voice to what is in their hearts.

Each of these women – the well-known, the known to some, and the unknown – all carry within them the dignity and voice of us all.

I invite you to make your own list of creative women who inspire you and hold them in prayer throughout the coming year. Maybe consider adding your name to the list.
Together, as women in support of women, let us unite our prayers this year to lift the voices of all the creative women in our lives whose courage and art address the dignity inherent in all women.