In reference work some of the tougher questions can seem deceptively simple. Recently I assisted a student with a project on the beliefs of modern Catholic women in France.
How does a specific identity persist from the convergence of nation, religion, and gender in the present? Unfortunately we discovered literature that represented “French catholic women” in a historical context, with relatively little on this population’s contemporary identity.
We needed to use an unconventional approach. In this particular case it was helpful to penetrate to more direct sources. If the scholarship on this French cultural identity was lacking, it made sense to contact organizations that directly represented French Catholic women as a cultural group. I discovered a number of helpful Catholic groups, ranging from nongovernmental organizations to church dioceses, including the International Catholic Association for Girls, the Diocesan Directory of France and two organizations for married Catholic priests in Marseilles and Plancy L’abbaye, France. Seeking out these organizations online was a classic case of the librarian’s role as guide for information literacy because it required careful examination to find sources that were not just relevant but reliable and well-established enough to qualify as a promising contact point for the student’s research.
International Catholic Association for Girls
North Atlantic Federation – Organizations for Married Catholic Priests
Seek a reference librarian to help as you conduct research using traditional sources and uncoventional ones!
Written by: Jon Kirsch, Part-time Reference Librarian, Brandel Library
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