CENTRO ITALIANO FEMMINILE (C.I.F.). It is a federation of women’s groups inspired by Christian principles, working together constructively in every sector of civil and social life (art. 10 of the Statute), established on 5 November 1944.
Women of Christian conviction, already largely organized in religious associations or apostolates, felt the duty to exert a more active influence also in the civic and social sphere, coordinating their efforts within a large federative body uniting the existing entities, the most important of which are the Unione Donne, the Gioventù Femminile di Azione Cattolica, the Dames de Saint Vincent, and the female Third Orders.
The scope of action of the C.I.F. is broad. It includes the civic and political education of women; assistance to needy children, one of the most delicate problems left in the wake of the world conflict; and the establishment of popular schools, day nurseries, and mountain and seaside holiday camps. The organization is governed by a council composed of representatives from the federated bodies and by an executive committee with an elected president. Orthodox doctrine is safeguarded by an ecclesiastical consultant. At the provincial and municipal levels, the organization has the same organs as at the national level, with proportionate functions and under the supreme central direction.
The C.I.F. publishes its own official information bulletin: the Bollettino del C.I.F. For the statutes of the C.I.F., cf.: L'Assistente ecclesiastico, 18 (1948), p. 35, no. 68 ff. Luigi Cardini