'A woman who fears the Lord is to be praised': Women and the social and religious transformation of early twentieth-century France

This dissertation examines French Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish women's religious work between 1900 and 1918. During this period, women involved in faith communities developed new types of programs to reduce class divisions, work toward social justice, and reinforce the social and religious influence of churches and synagogues. Women in all three faith groups developed programs to protect working-class women from exploitation and encourage other women to engage in evangelization. In the context of increasing secularization among French men, women of faith saw their religious and social responsibilities expand considerably both within their religious communities and the French nation. In some cases, religious women received greater leadership and administrative roles in their churches and synagogues. The religious mobilization of women created new and expanded definitions of what it meant for women to be members of churches or synagogues and citizens of the French nation.