FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

VOICE OF THE FAITHFUL CALLS ON BISHOP EMILIO ALLUE
TO RESCIND BAN ON GROUP'S CHURCH
MEETINGS IN NORTH ANDOVER, MASS.

North Andover, Mass., - September 30, 2002 - Voice of the Faithful (VOTF), a group of over 25,000 mainstream lay Catholics who support the teachings of the Church, and who formed in response to the Catholic Church's sexual abuse crisis, today expressed its deep disappointment to learn that Auxiliary Bishop Emilio Allue, the regional Bishop of Merrimack Valley, Mass., has banned its members from assembling within the St. Michael Parish facilities or meeting with their Parish Council.

"We are extremely disappointed in this decision by Bishop Allue," said John Vellante, spokesperson for the St. Michael's VOTF chapter. "We love our Church dearly, and all we have sought from the beginning was open and honest dialogue with our bishops. This crisis in our beloved Church was not of our making. Yet, as we seek solutions, we are being asked to curtail our activity within our parish confines. We will continue to meet somewhere. Our resolve to persevere and our voices and numbers will grow stronger until we are heard."

In a letter to Rev. Paul Keyes, Pastor of St. Michael's, Bishop Allue implied that VOTF has caused scandal within the parish. Steve Krueger, VOTF executive director, commented, "Today's on-going scandal within the Catholic Church was caused by the abuse of power, secrecy and cover-up at the hands of the hierarchy, which today has jeopardized the financial stability of the Boston Archdiocese. To imply that VOTF is the cause of 'scandal and polarity' among the parishioners underscores a hierarchical mindset which continues to feed the crisis and impugn the mission, philosophy and actions of VOTF."

A shared commitment of the hierarchy, clergy and laity to address what Pope John Paul II calls a story of "shame and scandal" requires informed and open dialogue. This point was emphasized in the Theologian Petition released at VOTF's July 20th conference, Response of the Faithful. In the document, 68 prominent nationwide theologians and other signatories signed in support of VOTF's right to assemble. The document states: "…we fully support the right and responsibility of Voice of the Faithful to meet in prayerful discernment of the signs of the times, and to present to the hierarchy for confirmation and implementation what their sense of faith requires them to voice."

Closing out a letter to parishioners in the Sunday, September 29th St. Michael's parish bulletin, Fr. Keyes prayed for VOTF in light of recent events: "Certainly, some faithful parishioners and non-parishioners alike will continue to meet somewhere else as members of the Voice of the Faithful. I pray that God's Holy Spirit will bring them great wisdom and I pray that faithful VOTF members will help bring practical and orthodox solutions and answers to very complicated and challenging issues in our Church."

About Voice of the Faithful
Voice of the Faithful is a Newton, Mass.-based organization of concerned Catholics formed in response to the clergy sexual abuse crisis. The group's mission is to provide a prayerful voice, attentive to the Spirit, through which the Faithful can actively participate in the governance and guidance of the Catholic Church. Its goals are to support victim/survivors of abuse, support priests of integrity, and shape structural change within the Catholic Church. VOTF's supporting membership exceeds 25,000 registered individuals from more than 40 U.S. states and 21 countries.

Mike Emerton
Press Secretary
Voice of the Faithful, Boston, MA
Cell: 617-680-2131

John Vellante
Voice of the Faithful
St. Michael Parish, North Andover, MA
978-687-3343