Missionary women an feminism in Norway, 1906-1910

Abstract

This article presents evidence of direct links between the women's missionary movement and the feminist movement in early 20th-century Norway. Through the creation of the organization Misjonsarbeidernes Ring (MAR), missionary women sought allies and influence in the feminist movement both at home and abroad. The establishment of MAR, however, met with opposition from men in the leadership of the Norwegian Lutheran Missionary Society, with which the women's missionary movement in Norway was associated, from missionary women themselves, and from the feminist movement. The membership of MAR did not reach impressive numeric size, but the organization was an important development in the religious arena in Norway. Through their efforts to establish links between the women's missionary movement and the feminist movement, missionary women promoted the idea that religious women could have feminist interests.