Our member group the IALRW is one of the oldest international women’s organizations in the world.
It was convened in Berlin in 1910 and since that time has provided a link between liberal religious women throughout the world. It serves to promote friendship and cooperation between like-minded women and is a channel of communication for those striving for a liberal religious life. Members accept that each may belong to a different faith group, yet all share common values of striving for peace, justice and harmony, in the heart of the family, the community and the world.
Social Action
The Association promotes equality for women and economic and social justice. It sponsors an on-going social action project for women in India, offering training in literacy and vocational skills to enable disadvantaged women to become self-sufficient. It also supports other women’s projects on a one-time basis. It promotes the inclusion of women’s roles in religion on the agenda of special events in the UN calendar and other national and international gatherings.
Conferences
There are international conferences every three or four years and national and regional conferences in intervening years. Recent international conferences have been held in Taiwan, Hungary, Canada, South Korea, and India.
Interfaith Cooperation
As a member group of the International Association for Religious Freedom, the Association participates fully in its activities and promotes consideration of women’s issues in its agenda. Membership Membership is open to women from liberal faith communities throughout the world who seek to share their ideas, their experiences and concerns, offering support to each other in the search for spiritual enrichment and identity. The IALRW represents such diverse religious traditions as Buddhists, Hindus, Christians, Muslims, Unitarians and Universalists, and the liberal wings of other faith groups. Individual annual membership fees are the equivalent of US $15.
Other Related Women’s Groups: The Unitarian Universalist Women’s Federation