Contact: Suzanne Morse 617-680-2131, smorse@votf.org

For Immediate Release

Voice of the Faithful Offers to Facilitate Meeting with Ford Motor Company, Survivors over Controversial Ad

Organization Congratulates SNAP for Drawing Attention to Ad Perceived as Trivializing Clergy Sexual Abuse, Commends Ford Motor Company for Pulling Ad

Newton, Mass. – February 3, 2005 – Leaders of Voice of the Faithful are calling on officials of Ford Motor Company to meet with survivors of clergy sexual abuse after the survivor organization SNAP successfully stopped Ford from airing an ad SNAP felt trivialized clergy sexual abuse during this Sunday’s Super Bowl broadcast. Additionally, the organization of lay Catholics is calling on the Ford Motor Company to drop the ad from any advertising campaign. Currently, Ford has only agreed to not play it during the Super Bowl.

“The issues facing survivors of clergy sexual abuse are complex. It would benefit Ford Motor Company executives and their ad firm to sit down to discuss with survivors their experience,” said James E. Post, President of Voice of the Faithful. “The consequences of this crisis have profoundly affected the Catholic Church, and because of that, have influenced American society as a whole. We believe this is an opportunity to educate an important sector of American society about the sensitivities around anything that might appear to be making fun of clergy sexual abuse. Voice of the Faithful would be happy to facilitate such a discussion.”

Leaders of Voice of the Faithful, which formed in Boston in 2002 in the wake of the revelations of the archdiocese of Boston’s cover up of hundreds of allegations against sexually abusive priests, are congratulating SNAP and others for drawing attention to the ad. Additionally, the organization is commending officials at Ford Motor Company for pulling the ad for the 2006 Lincoln Mark LT luxury pick-up truck, which featured a priest caressing a truck, looking at a young girl, and posting the word “lust” outside his parish.

“Survivors and Catholics are still coming to terms with the magnitude of the clergy sexual abuse crisis in the United States, and to see a major American company use these images only magnifies the pain that both groups continue to feel,” said Suzanne Morse, Communications Manager for Voice of the Faithful. “We are pleased that Ford has chosen to pull this ad, we are urging them to remove it from all advertising campaigns, and we hope that this incident will call attention to the ongoing challenges facing survivors and Catholics around sexual abuse.”

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About Voice of the Faithful: Voice of the Faithful (VOTF) is a worldwide movement of concerned mainstream 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 in full accordance and harmony with Church teaching. VOTF’s supporting membership exceeds 30,000 registered persons from 50 U.S. states, 39 countries and 210 Parish Voice affiliates throughout the world.