BishopAccountability.org
	Lay Catholic Group Voice of the Faithful Seeks New Relevance By Ken Kusmer Associated Press, carried in Boston Globe [Boston MA] July 7, 2005 INDIANAPOLIS --The Catholic lay reform group Voice of the Faithful convenes its first national meeting in nearly three years Friday, focused on charting a more relevant and lasting strategy now that the initial anger over the priest sexual abuse scandal has waned. About 500 leaders from some 200 local affiliates will attend workshops on recruiting, strategy, keeping parishes open and supporting abuse victims -- steps observers say are needed to transform the more than 30,000-member organization from a cause fueled by anger into a mature advocate for worshippers. "Anger gets you part way, but it does not sustain you," said Jim Post, the group's president. "What sustains them (members) is love of the church, the belief that the church is worth fighting for, an institution with a moral mission. That's why we're called to repair it -- out of a love." Three years after Voice of the Faithful formed to protest the transfers of abusive priests within the Boston Archdiocese, the movement stands poised to enter a new phase as a network of affiliates eager to engage bishops. But many bishops were put off from the start of VOTF by its stated goal to work for structural change in the church. Its two other goals -- to support abuse victims and priests of integrity -- were objectives that anyone in the church could support. "When I have asked the leadership to tell me what they mean by their third goal, 'to shape structural change within the church,' they have been unable to clearly articulate its meaning or implications," Indianapolis Archbishop Daniel M. Buechlein told his priests in a letter two weeks ago. "In fact, they seem not to be aware of possible implications to changing the church's structure." Lay critics also have seized upon the "structural change" goal to brand it as a heretical group that wants to open the priesthood to women and married men. Deal Hudson, former publisher of the Catholic monthly Crisis, has written that Voice "is a wolf in sheep's clothing ... using this tragedy in our church to advance its own political and theological agenda." Post said Voice has never promoted such an agenda and remains focused on the sexual abuse scandal, lay participation in the church and clearer financial reporting after abuse-related payouts of more than $1 billion nationwide. "What we meant is that if something didn't change, there would be some big problems for the church," Post said. Voice is going through its own changes. Voice has affiliates in all 50 states and 39 countries but is heavily concentrated on the East Coast. Its biggest victories have been in the Boston area, where Voice worked to win better financial accountability and created pressure that helped keep open some parishes that had been slated for closure. Organizers hope to broaden their reach with the recent election of a national council and the three-day Indianapolis convocation, the first time the group has brought together leaders for a national strategy meeting. Post said the convocation will allow local leaders to share strategies and develop tools to overcome the apathy he perceives on the part of most U.S. Catholics. "Americans like quick fixes and short wars," Post said. "There are no quick fixes in the Catholic Church. There are no short wars in the Catholic Church. If you want to make change, this is a long journey." Many parishioners appear receptive to change. A 2003 survey of 1,119 U.S. Catholics showed more than two-thirds supported more financial reporting at all levels of the church, lay participation in parish spending decisions and the selection of parish priests, said Purdue University sociologist James Davidson, who helped direct the study, published in the Nov. 19 issue of Commonweal magazine. Ken Sauer of Indianapolis, a local organizer of the meeting, hopes the convocation will help affiliates address those concerns. "The organization will have a larger impact if we can learn from one another and act in a coordinated fashion," Sauer said. The Rev. Anthony Pogorelc, a sociologist at Catholic University who has studied the group, said Voice of the Faithful can have a lasting impact on the U.S. church if it keeps trying. "They need to make it more clear that they are the Catholic base. These are very active participants in their parishes, in the church," Pogorelc said.