BY TAMARA BELKOV
Bishop Jean-Louis Plouffe of the diocese of Sault Ste. Marie
welcomed 27 new members to the Catholic Women's League of
Canada (CWL) on the weekend.
He told the audience of about 270 members at the weekend convention in Sudbury that they need to encourage young people to go to church. 
Only 15 percent of Roman Catholics are active in today's
church. He asked the CWL to keep working on raising membership
by "living their values in the marketplace (at work and in
community) and to keep reaching out to the youth."
Shirley George, president of the Ontario Provincial Council,
said bringing 20- to 30-year-olds back to the church is a
priority for the CWL.
"We've lost a whole generation." With many two-income
families in Ontario working, and with children being involved
in so many activities outside the home, religion is not high on
most priority lists, she said.
Evelyn Theriault, CWL diocese president said, "We have to
take some responsibility. We were parents and we relaxed on
worship. It's the parents who set the rules and we didn't."
Plouffe praised the work done by the CWL in Sudbury and thanked members who raised $2,000 for the vocation fund.  He said aside from promoting Catholic values in the home, CWL members have been involved in bringing about change in Ontario, such as lobbying the provincial government to widen Highway 69.
