Catholic Women's League

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A stall for the CWL at Saint Pancras Church, Ipswich Cwl.jpeg
A stall for the CWL at Saint Pancras Church, Ipswich

The Catholic Women's League (CWL) is a Roman Catholic lay organisation founded in 1906 by Margaret Fletcher. Originally intended to bring together Catholic women in England, [1] [2] the organization has grown, and may be found in numerous Commonwealth countries. It is especially flourishing in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong. [3] Membership consists mainly of women who are members of the Roman Catholic Church, and who work together to promote Catholic values and to carry out volunteer and charitable work.

Contents

History

In 1906, Margaret Fletcher, an English convert to Catholicism, suggested the founding of a Catholic women's organization in England. She was supported in this idea by a small group of women, who formed the core of the organization at its beginning. The first official gathering of the Catholic Women's League was in 1907. [1] [4] By the 1920s, the CWL had approximately 22,000 members, many of whom were well educated, middle class women. [5]

Fletcher was socially conservative, opposed to women's suffrage, and concerned about the influence of secular women's organizations. [1] Her intent in establishing the Catholic Women's League was to provide an alternative organization for Catholic women, one that allowed them to engage in public affairs from a Catholic perspective. Fletcher believed that education was crucial for preparing Catholic women to play a greater role in civic life. [6]

In the first decades of the 20th century, social norms about women's role in the public sphere was changing, as women's suffrage in the United Kingdom was debated in Parliament, and eventually won in 1918, for some women, and for all women in 1928. [7] After women gained the vote, women's organizations played a key role in organizing women voters on various political and social issues. In keeping with Catholic doctrine, leaders of the CWL campaigned against easing restrictions on divorce, and against the legalization of abortion. [5] They supported the government's provision of universal family allowances as a means to support larger families. [8] Members of CWL also engaged in charitable activities, and advocated in favor of policies that addressed social ills.

Within two decades of its founding in England, the Catholic Women's League was established in several other Commonwealth countries. In particular, the Catholic Women's League has been an influential organization in Canada. In 1912, a chapter was formed in Edmonton, Canada; eight years later a national organization, Catholic Women's League of Canada, was formed. [9] On the occasion of the organization's first national gathering on 1 June 1921, Pope Benedict XV sent a letter of welcome. The inaugural president of the CWL of Canada was Bellelle Guerin. [10] In 2021, the organization marked its 100th anniversary with tree planting ceremonies and other events. [11] [12]

In Asia and the Pacific, several countries have chapters of the CWL. In 1914, a Catholic Women's League was established in Adelaide, South Australia. [13] According to historian Anne O'Brien, one of the motivations for the founding of the CWL at that time was to organize Catholic women's support for Australia's war effort. [14] A federation of Catholic women was formed in the Philippines in 1919, which later affiliated with the Catholic Women's League in 1928. [15] The first Catholic Women's League in New Zealand was established in Aukland, in 1931. [16] In Hong Kong, the Catholic Women's League was established in 1937 by two Irish women who were members of the CWL in the United Kingdom. [17]

Also in 1931, the first CWL in Africa was established in Cape Town, South Africa. [18] [19]

The Catholic Women's League is a member of the World Union of Catholic Women's Organizations. [18]

Further reading

Olivier Rota, "Margaret Fletcher and the Roman Catholic thinking on women before the First World War. An idea of woman and woman’s higher education", in Women's History Magazine, 58, Spring/Summer 2008, pp. 34–37.

See also

Catholic Women's League of Canada

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "History". Catholic Womens League. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  2. ↑ "Margaret Fletcher 1862–1943 – Founder of the League". catholicwomensleague.org.
  3. ↑ "The Catholic Women's League". catholicwomensleague.org.
  4. ↑ Kane, Paula M. (1991). ""The Willing Captive of Home?": The English Catholic Women's League, 1906-1920". Church History. 60 (3): 331–355. doi:10.2307/3167471. ISSN   0009-6407.
  5. 1 2 Beaumont, Caitriona (1 June 2000). "Citizens not feminists: the boundary negotiated between citizenship and feminism by mainstream women's organisations in England, 1928-39". Women's History Review. 9 (2): 411–429. doi: 10.1080/09612020000200240 . ISSN   0961-2025.
  6. ↑ Newman, Mary V. (2010). The educational work of the Catholic Women's League in England 1906-1923 (Doctoral thesis). Institute of Education, University of London.
  7. ↑ "The Struggle for Suffrage | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  8. ↑ Beaumont, Caitriona (September 2007). "Moral Dilemmas and Women's Rights: the attitude of the Mothers' Union and Catholic Women's League to divorce, birth control and abortion in England, 1928–1939". Women's History Review. 16 (4): 463–485. doi:10.1080/09612020701445677. ISSN   0961-2025.
  9. ↑ "Catholic Women's League |" . Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  10. ↑ Editorial, Catholic Register. "Editorial: CWL: faith in action". www.catholicregister.org. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  11. ↑ "Tree planting celebrates 100th anniversary of Catholic Women's League of Canada". MooseJawToday.com. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  12. ↑ "CWL Centennial Celebration commerated [sic] with planting a tree". Preeceville Progress. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  13. ↑ Schumann, Ruth, "Leworthy, Betty Caroline (1877–1962)", Australian Dictionary of Biography, Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, retrieved 10 July 2021
  14. ↑ O'Brien, Anne (2005). God's willing workers : women and religion in Australia. Sydney: UNSW Press. p. 84. ISBN   0-86840-575-2. OCLC   65165585.
  15. ↑ "CATHOLIC WOMEN'S LEAGUE OF THE PHILS, INC". Sangguniang Laiko ng Pilipinas. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  16. ↑ "New Zealand CWL history - Catholic Womens League". Catholic Women's League Aotearoa New Zealand. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  17. ↑ "The Catholic Women's League Hong Kong - The Catholic Women's League". www.cwlhk.org. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  18. 1 2 Coetzee, Marié A.; Evans, Medea (7 December 2011). "Catholic Women's League Papers 1932-2002 (Mss Acc 103)".{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  19. ↑ "The Catholic Women's League — St Francis Xavier Catholic Parish" . Retrieved 10 July 2021.
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