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VOTF At Work in
the World
USCCB to meet November
14-17, 2005 as will the VOTF National Representative Council (NRC) November
12-13. Watch the USCCB site for details
on the agenda for the bishops’ meeting and check for what National
Catholic Reporter John Allen gleaned from talks with past USCCB presidents
Archbishops Wilton Gregory of Atlanta and Joseph Fiorenza of Galveston-Houston.
While the bishops may be
narrowing their focus, VOTF Council representatives are sharpening their
own focus on the resolutions that emerged from the VOTF Indianapolis Convocation
in July. Frank Douglas, NRC Steering Committee member, reports below.
National Representative
Council reports from the NRC Steering Committee submitted by Frank Douglas
-- August 8, 2005 and August 23, 2005
August 8, 2005 Report:
To meet the communications and administrative requirements for 25 elected representatives
throughout the country, the Steering Committee (SC) of the National Representative
Council (NRC) has set up an Internet-based infrastructure. The central
component of that infrastructure is a Yahoogroup listserv. This e-mail-based
group-communications tool provides the capabilities needed for a geographically
disbursed council to easily exchange messages among members, to archive
messages, to post computer files, to maintain databases, and, perhaps most
important, to vote online so that your representatives can conduct Council
business without meeting face-to-face.
So far, we have conducted
three polls.
In the first poll, the
NRC decided that it will hold its next meeting the weekend of Nov. 12-13,
2005, in the Washington, D.C., area. In the second and third polls, to enhance
communications among VOTF decision-makers, the NRC decided to invite the
Trustees, the officers, and the heads of the six VOTF national working groups
to join the NRC listserv.
Council members are now
discussing and soon will be voting on five basic SC-drafted procedures needed
to do its work: election and responsibilities of NRC members; voting processes;
consultation and consent on proposed substantive matters such as policy statements
and associated action plans; implementing policies and action plans; and
recordkeeping.
As VOTF members ponder
and discuss the nine draft July Indianapolis convocation resolutions (also
called findings and recommendations), the SC participated in its first conference
call with the Convocation Implementation Team (CIT), headed by President
Jim Post. The CIT will coordinate the integration and synthesis of comments,
including suggested priorities, from VOTF affiliates and regions and from
the NRC, on the findings and recommendations from Indy.
The NRC has initiated preliminary
discussion on what our strategic focus should be in three designated areas
of lay accountability, financial accountability, and bishops' accountability.
Educating the laity for action and financial accountability have been other
recent topics of discussion.
The NRC's Bylaws Committee
has been representing the Council in the ongoing process of amending VOTF's
official bylaws. The Committee sent comments to the VOTF Board of Trustees
on the proposals for amending the Bylaws distributed by Board Chairman David
Castaldi at the July Convocation. The Committee also sent comments on the
proposal for amending the Bylaws regarding Working Groups, recently sent
to the Committee by David Castaldi for comment. The committee consists of
three NRC members: Bill Culleton from Philadelphia (Region 3-PA, NJ), Bob
Kaintz from St. Louis (Region 9-IA, KS, MO, NB), and Genny O'Toole from Evanston,
IL, (Region 7-IL, IN, WI).
August 23, 2005 Report:
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The Convocation Implementation
Team (CIT), in partnership with the members of the Council Steering Committee
(SC), has defined the process for narrowing down and prioritizing the
nine Indianapolis draft resolutions by affiliates and non-affiliated
members. Mary Pat Fox, Region 2 (NY), the Council's representative on
the CIT, has forwarded the definition of the process to all affiliates
and Council members. The nine draft resolutions will be initially narrowed
down to three by early October in accordance with criteria defined in
the memos that clarify the process. All VOTF affiliates and members will
be involved in a truly grassroots-driven, democratic decision-making
process.
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The SC continued to
set up databases and post files on the Council's listserv Website needed
to conduct Council business.
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Council members passed
two procedures on Voting and Recordkeeping. (This was a substantive matter
requiring approval by two-thirds of the Representatives voting.) Council
members are now discussing Procedure III, Consultation and Consent on
Proposed Substantive Matters, and Procedure IV, Implementing Policies
and Action Plans, prior to a vote on them.
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VOTF President Jim
Post has asked Council members to provide recommendations and ideas to
Ray Joyce and VOTF Treasurer, Julie Rafferty, of the Development Committee,
about executing a fund-raising strategy that can meet VOTF's many needs.
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Planning for, and
discussion about the logistical details of the Council meeting in November
in the Washington, D.C., area continued via the Council listserv and
SC communications with Evelyn Mercantini, Representative from Region
4 (DC, DE, MD, VA). Evelyn is the Chair of the Site Preparation Committee.
VOTF Louisville Area,
KY – Vince Grenough reports some good news:
Last week, three of us
Voice of the Faithful members met with Dr. Brian Reynolds at the Louisville
archdiocesan Chancery Office. Brian is the Chancellor for the archdiocese
and the Chief Operations Officer. Jim Williams, who arranged this meeting,
Jack Avery and I were the three members of VOTF.
It is my opinion that this
dialogue was a good one. It allowed each of us to share our hopes and concerns
for the healing of our Church. We all agreed to meet again in a month to
continue listening to one another. It is our wish to be transparent with
our Church leaders and to collaborate with them whenever possible. Not very
many diocesan bishops or officers welcome members of Voice of the Faithful
to come and talk, because of misunderstandings or mistrust. We, in Louisville,
are happy to be an exception to that unfortunate rule.
Boston SCHOOL Closings
beg larger questions
From Mike Gustin, Chair
of the Boston Council Steering Committee:
The abrupt closing of the
Little Flower elementary school in Somerville, coming within a week of the
closing of St. Anthony’s school in Allston, and so quickly on the heels of
the nighttime lockout at Our Lady of the Presentation in Brighton, begs a
number of questions.
How can the leadership
of the Archdiocese be so insensitive to the parents and children enrolled
in its own parochial schools? How could the decisions on St. Anthony’s and
Little Flower be made only two weeks before school begins? Do church leaders
really believe it’s reasonable to expect little children, first, second,
and third graders to travel from Brighton, Allston, and Somerville to Medford,
Malden, and Everett to attend parochial elementary schools? What about the
devoted teachers who are told two weeks before school begins that they have
no jobs? Is anyone in the chancery listening and, if so, what are they learning?
Is there no compassion?
Clearly, there needs to
be put in place a broad and responsive structure as Rev. O'Keefe, dean of
the Lynch School of Education at Boston College, notes, ''As long as the
structure remains the way it is, this is going to happen."
Boston Voice of the Faithful
is ready to work with Church leaders to effect the structural changes necessary
for a much more compassionate, organized, and lay-involved process.
Read more:
The National
Catholic Reporter's August
26th issue cover story, “Digging
In To Stay and Pray” , is about Boston and so is the
editorial, “The
courage to buck the culture”.
Weeks before the first
day of school, the Archdiocese of Boston closed two more schools. See the Boston
Globe and Boston
Herald.
Washington
Post story on lessons learned in Boston. More coverage at the Boston
Globe.
Follow coverage on the
Vatican decision against Boston’s archdiocesan claim to funds from the sale
of parishes. Check out the Boston
Herald.
Elsewhere, the Buffalo
News quoted Bishop Edward Kmiec of the Buffalo, NY diocese as saying
that the effort in that diocese is a “grassroots endeavor.” He has assembled “… a
24-member strategic planning commission of clergy, religious brothers and
sisters and parishioners to draft a mission statement and provide direction
for the planning process. The first meeting is scheduled Aug. 25 and 26
at Christ the King Seminary in East Aurora.” Interesting to VOTFers, the
meeting is not open to the public. Oh, well. To follow this diocese’s reconfiguration
process, click here.
Walsh legislation introduced
in Boston, MA would require churches to open their books. What evolves
in Boston is expected to have a broad ripple effect across the country.
From John Hynes, VOTF Boston
Area Council:
By any measure, we would
have to regard last week's response to the Voice of the Faithful's call for
action on behalf of Senator Marian Walsh's proposed legislation as a huge
success.
Last week's response was
all about Massachusetts VOTF members doing for others:
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for clergy and other
parish staff members whose pension benefits have been misused;
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for parishioners whose
churches have been unfairly closed, and/or whose contributions have been
misappropriated;
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and for all those
generous citizens of Massachusetts, who have a right to know a) how their
funds are being spent and b) that all appeals for funds in this Commonwealth
are truthful and accurate.
This hearing was just the
first step in what is a marathon-like process. Within the next month or so,
we need to convince the Judiciary Committee to vote S1074 out of committee
to the full Senate. Eventually, we need to convince the entire legislature
that they should pass this bill. Some of you will be able to help with one
phase of this effort; others will be able to do more. As a minimum, we are
hoping that you will all contact your Senator and Representative ASAP and
ask them to support Senate Bill 1074.
For more information on
this bill click here.
For legislator contact
info click here.
Action is needed NOW. The
Chancery's strategy is to try and delay this process as long as they can
and, if possible, to see to it that this proposed legislation is buried in
committee. YOU can help prevent that from happening by contacting you legislators
NOW.
We will be writing to you
again shortly with some very specific ideas for additional actions.
For all that you do, for
all that we will do together, we thank you.
Read more: click
here.
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