The status of Jewish women is similar to the situation of women in all the ‘Abrahamic faiths’, including Christianity, and particularly orthodox Christianity. It is also not dissimilar to that of women in the general Australian community, a subject of much critical commentary by feminist writers. In the first half of the twentieth century, Jewish women played an innovative role both in Zionism and in fostering immigration from Europe through two important organisations, the National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) and the Women's International Zionist Organisation (WIZO). More recently, key individuals have emerged as leaders in their own right, and Jewish women have played an active role in the feminist movement.

Women and communal life

The main contribution of Jewish women before the 1920s was either as helpmates to their husbands or in philanthropic endeavours. In Jewish tradition, ‘tzeddakah’ (charity) is seen as central, and here Jewish women quickly made their mark. One of the earliest Jewish charitable organisations created in Sydney was the Sydney Ladies' Hebrew Benevolent and Maternity Society, founded in 1844 to provide relief for distressed Jewish women. The second women's organisation to be registered formally in Australia, it continued to function until 1981. In Victoria a similar organisation, the Hebrew Ladies' Benevolent Society, was founded in 1857. During the depression of the 1890s, other such charitable organisations run by women were established. In Sydney, these included the Jewish Girls' Guild, founded to engage in non-sectarian work, and the Help-in-Need Society, established in 1898.