ABSTRACT
This chapter shows how the Catholic Church and the ideology of the Feminist Movement in Brazil influenced the formation of the Health Movement of the Jardim Nordeste area. The most visible influence was that of the Catholic Church, through its more progressive section, the Popular Church. This provides the women with a space for discussion at a time when the state's political repression severely restricted any other form of gathering and participation. The Feminist Movement contributed in a more subtle way, by the spread of its ideology among low-income women. Church groups developed which comprised mainly women who were attracted to do the parish's works by its recently expressed support for the rights of women in the family and in the neighbourhood. The notions of egalitarianism and those women have the same rights as men were not contradicted by the parish and it did help to raise the awareness of the women in Jardim Nordeste as to their individual rights.
