What started four years ago as a small, Christian ministry founded by Catholic women has evolved into a fast-growing interfaith network that’s designed to support women in their spiritual search.

On any given day, women from various religious and cultural backgrounds — and some men, too — gather at locations around Lawrence to participate in a long list of offerings such as book study groups, discussions, video series and classes sponsored by Martha & Mary’s Way.

Or they come together to enjoy barbecues, spiritual retreats, a bonfire circle, walking trails and a two-acre prairie labyrinth cut into the grass at the ministry’s headquarters on a rural, wooded patch of land southeast of Lawrence.

The ministry has built a mailing list of about 400 people who receive its newsletter and programming guide, and that number is growing all the time.

“I think we’re doing a good job, based on the response we’re getting from people. More and more are inquiring about it,” said Sister Irene McGrath, co-director of Martha & Mary’s Way and a member of the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth.

“I think it’s going great,” said the Rev. Judy Long O’Neal, the ministry’s other co-director and the pastor of Centenary United Methodist Church, 245 N. Fourth St.

“There’s no political tone, and we don’t advocate any positions. We just offer the experience.”

These days, that includes programming such as: a country “walkabout retreat” called “Turning Toward God’s Feminine Face”; a three-session course on feminist theology taught by O’Neal; and a “Faces of Faith Video Series” incorporating the wisdom of Rabbi Harold Kushner and world religion expert Huston Smith, among others.

Sister Irene McGrath, left, and the Rev. Judy Long O'Neal walk along a trail at Martha & Mary's Way's headquarters in land southeast of Lawrence. Martha & Mary's Way is an interfaith ministry that supports women in their spiritual search.

But part of the ministry’s appeal is where it’s based — the 42-acre property and home of O’Neal.

At least, that’s how Debbie McCord, the ministry’s board president, sees it.

“It feels like a spiritual piece of land that enhances whatever we do here. It’s just the feel of it — I can’t explain it. It sort of wraps its arms around you,” she said.

Interfaith relationship

Martha & Mary’s Way began as a way to re-involve McGrath with her work supporting the needs of Catholics in Lawrence after she retired in 1997 from her longtime position as pastoral associate at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, 6001 W. 15th St.

A small group of Catholic women set out in 2000 to establish a ministry that would serve Christian women in the area and address issues they face in their spiritual lives. McGrath, 77, was asked to direct it.

Over time, the ministry has grown, steadily creating more programs, attracting more participants and developing a strong, interfaith component.

Martha & Mary’s Way was first based in a Lawrence townhouse, then a cottage purchased by ministry supporters and, finally, re-located this summer to O’Neal’s property .

“We are an interfaith network specifically designed to meet the needs of women, and this is our attempt to participate in a much larger move toward interfaith relationship,” O’Neal said.

“We had a gathering and potluck to celebrate the ministry moving out here, and we had a Zoroastrian who’s from Pakistan, a Muslim whose family is from India, a women from Thailand who grew up in a Buddhist culture and a woman from England who is a Zen Buddhist teacher.”

The ministry, O’Neal said, is an illustration that interfaith understanding is rooted in personal relationships. No preference is given, in ministry events, to display a preference for any particular faith background.

Martha & Mary’s Way is a nonprofit organization supported by donations. It has a seven-member board of directors made up of women who come from a variety of religious traditions.

There is nothing else quite like it in Lawrence, according to O’Neal.

Walk in Faith is the message on the edge of a walkway at Martha & Mary's Way.

“Our focus includes the understanding that the divine is present in each one of us, and we design programming and conversations to nurture that,” she said.

Support and guidance

One woman who has participated as a presenter for Martha & Mary’s Way is Mahnaz Shabbir, a Muslim who lives in Stilwell, south of Overland Park.

In April, she gave a program about the practices and beliefs of Islam, answering questions and attempting to dispel myths about this faith.

“Lawrence is very lucky to have these women (McGrath and O’Neal) who are so dedicated to wanting to bring people together in a loving manner. Lawrence is really blessed to have some strong-minded women to do this,” she said.

“They have all types of different people who come. It’s a wonderful service that’s available, and it’s in a setting that’s relaxing and warm that oozes inclusion and serenity.”

For McCord, event coordinator for Kansas University’s School of Social Welfare, the ministry offers something special.

“About the time I got active on the board, I was at a time in my life where I was wanting to seek the company of other women, the nurturing of women, the understanding of women. This has been a time where that’s what I’m seeking,” she said.

Which, according to O’Neal, is what Martha & Mary’s Way is all about.

“Our central purpose is to provide support and guidance for the most creative of women’s spiritual journeys. It’s a matter of readiness; not everyone is ready for this much expansion. But there’s an openness that will serve you well here,” she said.