Saint Phoebe Day: A Celebration of Holy Women Past & Present

September 27, 2025 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Location: Emmaus House, 3315 70th St, Urbandale, IA 50322

As the Diocese of Des Moines furthers its vision of “Cultivating Connections in Christ through Encounter, Friendship, and Communion,” the Emmaus House invites you to “Saint Phoebe Day: A Celebration of Holy Women Past and Present.” We will encounter the life and example of Saint Phoebe, whose feast day is September 3, as well as the lives and examples of other holy women who have offered us friendship and communion in our faith journeys.

Saint Phoebe was a deacon whom Saint Paul commended to the Church in Rome, asking that they “receive her in the Lord.” (Romans 16:1-2). Saint Phoebe is one of multitudes of gifted and generous women who have answered the call to build up the Body of Christ through the centuries since Jesus walked among us. As we celebrate them, we will also discover how all of us are called to share our gifts as agents of encounter, friendship, and communion.

We will begin with a light breakfast at 8:30 a.m., followed by a Celebration of the Word at 9:00 a.m. Afterward, we will continue to reflect on the example of Saint Phoebe and the holy women in our lives, as well as Paragraph 60 of the Synod on Synodality, which calls us to explore and dialogue about the role of women in the Church. Join us as we celebrate the gifts of women and imagine how those gifts can further enrich the Church in the Diocese of Des Moines.

We are asking for a free will offering for this event. Half of what is collected will be donated to Catholic Charities' Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Program.

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