The Catholic Women's League of Canada is a national

service organization A service club or service organization is a voluntary nonprofit organization where members meet regularly to perform charitable works either by direct hands-on efforts or by raising money for other organizations. A service club is defined firstl ...

of women who are members of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, and who work together to promote Catholic values and to carry out volunteer and charitable work. In 2016 the CWLA has about 83,000 members in over 1,200 parish councils across

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. The League's national office is in

Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

; it is federally incorporated, and is a registered

not-for-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

membership association. The League does not have registered charitable status. Membership is predominantly Catholic women aged 16 and older, but associate membership exists for non-Catholics. There is a parish-based Catholic Girls' League for members 10 to 15 years of age.

History

Founding

The Catholic Women's League was founded in

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in 1906 by Miss Margaret Fletcher. The Canadian organization was founded in 1920 after Katherine Hughes of Edmonton brought news of the British organization to Bishop Emile Legal in Canada. Legal called upon Hughes and Abbé Casgrain to set up an organization to help immigrant women and girls who were seeking work in Edmonton. The organization's first meeting was in November 1912, and as a result a job placement service was set up and Rosary Hall was opened, to provide safe and affordable accommodation. During the next few years, a number of separate women's groups were established, based on The Catholic Women's League in England:

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

in 1917,

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

in 1918 and Halifax in 1919.

The early years and first national executive

A study group in Montreal known as the Loyola Club became a Catholic Women's Club in 1917, organized by Margaret Jones, with first president Bellelle Guerin. This club became the Montreal City Subdivision in 1920, and claimed the founding subdivision. At this time all nationally organized women's groups were called to Ottawa to share their opinions with the minister of Reconstruction & Immigration concerning the settling of thousands of immigrants arriving in Canada from war-ravaged Europe. Members of the Montreal Catholic Women's Club, noting that there was no national group of Catholic women, set out to organize one. In March, 1920, invitations were sent to the various Catholic women's groups in Canada, including

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

, St. Catharines and Saint John, offering to host a meeting in Montreal for this purpose. The conference was held on June 17, 1920, with delegates from Edmonton, Regina, Toronto, Hamilton, Ottawa, Sherbrooke, Saint John and Halifax. Bellelle Guerin, president of the Montreal CWL, was asked to be chairman of the conference. An executive was elected, organizational details ironed out, and future activities were discussed. The new League's first act was to send a petition to the federal government asking or stricter divorce laws in Canada. In 1921 the League chose a motto, ''For God and Canada''. At the annual national convention in 1923 in Halifax, a resolution was passed to adopt

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as the League's patroness. In December of that year the CWLC was granted federal incorporation. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the League raised $25,000 for the war effort and sent more than 7 million cigarettes to the soldiers overseas. In 1947 the constitution of the CWLC was altered to ensure more clerical supervision of the League's activities, and to set up councils at parish, diocesan and provincial levels. As of 2015, the Catholic Women's League of Canada had 83,990 members.

Organization

Councils

As well as the national council, there are 11 provincial councils — one of each of the 10 provinces, which includes territories, and a

military ordinariate A military ordinariate is an ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Catholic Church, of the Latin or an Eastern church, responsible for the pastoral care of Catholics serving in the armed forces of a nation. Until 1986, they were called "military v ...

, which was granted provincial status in 1965— 38 diocesan councils and 1,223 parish councils. Each council administers the affairs at its own level, and sends a representative to the council at the next level. The national council represents the members nationally and internationally.

Standing Committees

As well as the usual organizational committees, the League has several standing committees related to Catholic values and community service, including Spiritual Development, Christian Family Life, Community Life, and Education and Health. There is also a Communications committee which facilitates The Canadian League magazine and other publications.

League Work

The League supports women's programs in developing countries through MaterCare International, the

Coady International Institute The Coady International Institute is located on the campus of St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia. Established in 1959, Coady Institute is named for Rev. Dr. Moses M. Coady, a founder of the Antigonish Movement The Antig ...

and the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace, and has raised millions of dollars for local, national and international charities. The League is well known for its parish bake sales which raise funds for charities and parish and community initiatives. Members of the national executive meet annually with federal government ministers on issues raised by resolutions, which come from the parish level, and have included such issues as religious freedom, renewable energy, farmers' rights, abolition of the death penalty, suicide prevention, child poverty, protection of human life and building partnerships and relationships with Canada's indigenous peoples.

References

External links

The Catholic Women's League of Canada
{{Catholic laity Christian organizations based in Canada Catholic Church in Canada Catholic lay organisations Women's organizations based in Canada Catholicism and women