Principles and Pillars

The Members look to Saint Lydia as a guide to true femininity. Saint Pope John Paul II speaks of the feminine genius. Women have a genius that men do not. God created male and female with equal dignity, honor and value; each beloved by God with a glorious destiny. Equality in this sense does not undermine the unique and distinct genius of each. To foster that which is authentically and uniquely “woman,” the Society delineates the following three principals.

Beauty

The four attributes of God are One, True, Good and Beautiful. Things that are beautiful inspire us to greatness, wonder and awe. Beauty launches us into the divine. It has been said that the world will be saved by beauty. There is nothing more beautiful than the love which is the Most Holy Trinity, a love that was revealed in the person of Jesus Christ. The Members commit themselves to live a life of beauty, beautifying this world by their life, words and actions.

Modesty

Genuine feminine beauty is always framed in modesty. Modest beauty leads to holiness, unity and confidence. Immodest beauty, on the other hand, leads to lust, disintegration and loneliness. The Members are committed to be modest in their speech, appearance and actions. (1 Tm 2:10).

Maternity

All women are called to be mothers, some physically, all spiritually. Each Member by her feminine genius commits to building up goodness, hope and love through her God-given gift of maternal instinct.

Following the inspiration of Saint Lydia, the Members of this Society pledge themselves to live a life of devotion to God and service to the Church by fostering community, leading others in the faith, and making their gifts available for the spread of the Gospel. This is accomplished by fidelity to the four pillars of the Society: prayer, apostolate, sorority, and witness.

Personal Prayer Life

Each member will have a committed and articulated daily, weekly, monthly and annual prayer schedule. While each member is free to discern the specific nature of the prayer, it must be written and approved by the Society's Chaplain.

Personal Apostolate

While the first priority is always the fulfillment of each member's vocation, each member will be faithfully involved in a specific apostolate which is chosen by the member and approved by the Chaplain.

Sorority

Each member will be provided with the first names of all the members of the Society as well as their apostolic activity and will explicitly include each member and her apostolate in prayer. The members are also encouraged to support one another personally and to gather regularly as seems appropriate and helpful.

Witness

Each member will wear the Saint Lydia Society Prayer shawl at Mass and at all other appropriate occasions and be eager to share with others about the Society. Every year, each member will invite at least three other women to join the Society.