On Saturday, 31 May, the International Forum “Family Networks for the Future of the Church” will take place at Università LUMSA in Rome. Organised by FAFCE and the Forum delle Associazioni Familiari, the event is held under the high patronage of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life.

Join and Make Your Voice Heard!

Date: May 22, 2025
Languages: English, French, and Spanish
Times:

• English: 15:00 (CEST) Join here
• French: 16:00 (CEST) Join here
• Spanish: 17:00 (CEST) Join here

WUCWO organised together with the Interreligious Network of Women Promoting Encounter under the patronage of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue on the occasion of the World Interfaith Harmony Week an interreligious webinar that took place on February 28.

As Archbishop Ivan Jurkovic, Holy See’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other international organisations in Geneva declared: “The family, after all, is, in many ways, the first school of how to be human and at the same time the family is the centre, and the heart of what Paul VI called ‘the civilization of love’”. During the last General Assembly in Assisi, we committed ourselves, as WUCWO women, to "take, with renewed conviction, the joyful journey of family love, motherhood and fatherhood". We recognise that the family is where essential values such as brotherly love, generosity and service to others are learned, and we certainly all agree that the fundamental role of the family for a peaceful civilisation is increasingly being challenged.

In response to Pope Francis' urgent call to action in the Laudato Si encyclical, the World Union of Catholic Women’s Organisations (WUCWO) has launched a new campaign called "WUCWO Planting Hope”. This initiative stems from the commitment made at the last General Assembly, held in Assisi, where it was agreed upon the need to act in the face of the climate and environmental crisis affecting our Common Home.

World Women's Observatory (WWO) of the World Union of Catholic Women's Organisations (WUCWO) 

Results of listening and networking 

On the 29th of May, from 2:30 to 4:30 pm, in the Pius XI hall of Palazzo San Calisto, we will present the latest results of the World Women´s Observatory (WWO) of the World Union of Catholic Women's Organisations (WUCWO), the only Catholic Church's global observatory focusing on women's voices.

The World Union of Catholic Women's Organisations (WUCWO), in collaboration with the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue (DID), celebrated again this year, as every year since 2019, the International Women's Day 2024 with an ecumenical and interreligious gathering, attended by more than 300 participants from all over the world.

Entitled "Women Sowing Seeds of Peace and Cultivating Encounter", this initiative took place on Tuesday 5 March 2024, with the participation of believing women belonging to different religious traditions. The aim was to reflect on the crucial role of women believers in building a culture of peace and encounter.

On March 5, 2024 from 3 pm to 4.30 pm (CET) in occasion of the International Women’s Day, you are invited to participate at online conference “Women Sowing Seeds of Peace and Cultivating Encounter.”

This  event, organised by the World Union of Catholic Women’s Organisations (WUCWO) in collaboration with the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue and with the sponsorship of some Embassies to the Holy See, aims to reflect and react as women and men of faith to the culture of peace and encounter. 

On March 1st at 7:00 PM, at the Institut français - Centre Saint-Louis - main headquarters (Rome), two short films by the renowned director Lia Beltrami will be presented: "In-Visibles" and "Esplosione del Canto". Both screenings capture the life paths of women from around the world who encounter everyday heroines: Catholic nuns who tirelessly work in the most remote corners of the planet to help those in need.

“Invisibles No More”: Special Event on the occasion of the coming International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women 2023. 

Rome, November 14 - Gender-based violence against women - physical, economic, cultural and psychological, including human trafficking, remains a worldwide scourge affecting millions of women. Worldwide, with statistics varying considerably from country to country, 35 per cent of women between 15-49 years of age have experienced physical and/ or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence, and in 38 per cent of the cases of women’s murders, the perpetrator has been their partner. Hundreds of millions of girls are at risk of slavery, mutilations, prostitution and/or forced and/or early marriage. These are just a few examples of the dramatic situation.

During the month of October, Rome hosted the first Session of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops (October 4-29, 2023), an unprecedented event in the history of the Church. For about a month, 464 participants from every corner of the globe, including 364 members, among them 54 women, lay and religious, with voting rights, gathered to understand, reflect, and discuss the future of the Church.

At the same time, the World Union of Catholic Women's Organisations (WUCWO), the International Forum Catholic Action (IFCA), and the Italian Catholic Action organised two reflection and prayer meetings on October 18 and 26, involving men and women actively participating in the Synodal Assembly, under the title "Walking with the Synod."

Forward-looking perspective from the experience of participants in the Synodal Assembly. 

Meeting with some of the participants in the Assembly. 

At this important moment in the life of the Church, we invite you to join us for a reflection meeting on Thursday, 26 October with women and men who are actively participating in the Synodal Assembly.

Organised by the World Union of Catholic Women's Organisations (WUCWO), the International Forum of Catholic Action (IFCA) and the Italian Catholic Action (ACI).

ZOOM LINK to participate

Simultaneous translation ENG-ESP-FRA-ITA. 

Witnesses and protagonists of change: World Women’s Observatory 

3 Webinars in preparation for the Assembly, from the perspective of women of the Synod

The upcoming Assembly of the Synod of Bishops promises to be an extraordinary event involving 85 women, 54 of whom will have the right to vote. This scenario of inclusiveness represents a significant step towards full collaboration between women and men within the Church.

As part of its ongoing Synodality and Women project, the World Women's Observatory (WWO) of the World Union of Catholic Women's Organisations (WUCWO), will organise on September 13th and 14th a cycle of three preparatory webinars entitled "Let Us Prepare for the Assembly in Dialogue with the Women of the Synod."

Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, recently concluded the second workshop organised by the World Women's Observatory (WWO), aptly titled “African Network against Violence and Discrimination of Women. First steps”. 

The four-day event, scheduled from July 3rd to July 6th, 2023, with the participation of 26 lay organisations, 27 congregations and 5 religious conferences representing 22 countries, fulfilled expectations of being a key meeting for empowering women and initiating a positive change. During this transformative event, the Observatory presented the initial results of its activities in Africa and shed light on existing best practices.

"Women's Voices: Global Perspectives”

to celebrate International Women's Day -

8 March 2023.

The International Day of Prayer and Awareness Against Human Trafficking takes place every year on February 8th, the day in which we celebrate the liturgical memory of St. Bakhita, the Sudanese nun who as a child had the dramatic experience of being kidnapped and enslaved and became the universal symbol of the Church's commitment against trafficking.

It is promoted by the International Unions of Superiors and Superiors General. The coordination of the network of partners and adherents is entrusted to Talitha Kum, the international network founded by the UISG and committed against trafficking in persons.

“Journeying in dignity” is the theme of the 9^th Edition of the International Day of Prayer and Awareness Against Human Trafficking, celebrated on the 8^th of February 2023.