Convocation Reflections

On a clear, brisk March 9 of 2002, twelve founding members of Voice of the Faithful took our new name, our red blazers and ties and a consensus-driven statement to the windy waterside of Boston's World Trade Center. There we would join over 3,000 Catholics from all corners of the Boston Archdiocese at convocation, a regular feature of archdiocesan governance held for parish leadership and representatives of parish life. The agenda for these convocations is usually set by the Cardinal and his advisors but in 2002, what would take place at this gathering was driven exclusively by the greatest crisis of the Catholic Church in its 500-year history in this country. Clergy and laity found themselves with one voice - a combination of outrage, pain, prayer and inquiry around the discovery of sexual abuse of children by clergy and what appeared at the time to be a system-wide cover-up. And speak we did.

Representatives from the various parishes met with Cardinal Law in one space while the rest of us were divided into diocesan regions. Each region had its own room and its own facilitator who would record for the Cardinal what was said in words and tone.

VOTF was only weeks old and we hadn't yet refined our mission statement and goals but according to many who were there, the St. John's contingent was remembered for its steady and articulate statements.

Each of us wore something red that day - Svea Fraser's idea since red symbolizes the Holy Spirit. No one remembered to mention this to Jim Muller, the founder. Nonetheless, Jim showed up wearing a red tie and credited the Holy Spirit, Who, it turned out, prevailed throughout the day. March 9, 2002 was the first time VOTF left our birthing space at St. John the Evangelist in Wellesley Hills, MA and took our voices into the fray alongside fellow Catholics we might never have known otherwise. The blessings of that day linger as do memories some of the 13 of us share below. Representing VOTF that day were Kathi Aldridge, Paul Baier, Mary Calcaterra, Luise Dittrich, Svea Fraser, Andrea Johnson, Fr. Bill Kremmell, Jim Muller, Maura O'Brien, John O'Brien, Jeannette Post, Peggie Thorp and Susan Troy.

Convocation Statement Voice of the Faithful,
St. John the Evangelist Church, Wellesley, MA
Delivered on March 9, 2002 at the Boston Archdiocese Convocation,
World Trade Center, Boston, MA

We are the Church.

We speak on behalf of a group of committed Catholics from St. John the Evangelist parish in Wellesley. In our pain, outrage and sense of betrayal we came together six weeks ago to speak out about the crisis in our Church. Strong feelings of anger, anguish, faith and love of Church moved us to put aside an hour after each Mass on two consecutive weekends to address the pedophilia crisis.

Led by parish members, the listening sessions were a powerful indicator of the Faithful's need to be heard individually and as Church, and of our need to speak out and to demand accountability and reform. Hundreds of parishioners participated in these sessions and a weekly 90-minute session has been initiated on Monday nights. Our number grows and those from other parishes who need a place to have their voices heard have joined us. We call ourselves Voice of the Faithful.

Voice of the Faithful seeks consensus in order to effectively respond to this scandal threatening our Church. We are sadly aware that pedophilia is a problem not only here, but in other cities and countries. The culture of secrecy and abuses of power that produced this crisis must end. The overriding concerns that have emerged from our discussions are: the desire to be full responsive to the victims of pedophilia and their families and to ensure that appropriate measures are taken to preclude future occurrences; to support clergy of integrity tarnished by this scandal; and to seek correction of the institutional structures of the Catholic Church that resulted in a gravely flawed response to this terrible betrayal of children.

We urge other parishes to consider this new model of Spirit-driven dialogue. Our weekly sessions are a model for consensus built on mutual respect, genuine listening and a commitment to act. The gospel of Jesus Christ demands our action in support of the most vulnerable among us. We expect Archdiocesan leadership to hear us today and to provide channels for lasting communication and genuine collaboration.

Today, we raise our voices to claim our place at the table.

We are the Church. Come join us.

Convocation Reflections

Midge Nealon Seibert

1 Corinthians, 13 verse 13 " And now abideth faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love."

Then: Reflecting back to Convocation one year ago, I experienced a range of emotions:

Anger: that the titular and moral head of the Archdiocese of Boston, our Shepherd, had permitted priests suspected of sexual abuse to be moved from parish to parish under his watch

Awe: of the historical significance of a laity-empowering movement starting in my own parish

Pride: as an individual that I was part of the committee responsible for drafting the Voice of the Faithful statement that was read at Convocation and would serve as the fundamental blueprint for the beliefs held by VOTF

Faith: that the Voice I heard was the Holy Spirit calling me (for the first time in my life!) to be a full member of my Church and that it would never steer me onto the wrong path

Hope: that our Cardinal and his bishops would comprehend what we, the laity, their sheep, were saying during the listening sessions and that our actions would cause them to take immediate, morally correct and healing steps to resolve the scandal

Love: for my Church which was threatened by the power-preserving actions of the hierarchy, love for the brave, decent priests that encouraged Voice of the Faithful to bloom and love for the victims, men and women whom I had never met.

Now: Today I experience these emotions:

Anger: at the true extent of the sexual abuse scandal and the continued obtuseness of the hierarchy in not recognizing the commitment of concerned laity to solving this problem

Awe: at the progress that Voice of the Faithful has made in one year's time in diffusing awareness of the rights and responsibilities given to the laity by Vatican II

Pride: in all that Voice of the Faithful has accomplished and pride in my small contributions to those successes

Faith: in the strength of the laity and, in Voice of the Faithful in particular, and our ability to stay the course to truly change the Church

Hope: that the centrist, loving message of Voice of the Faithful will continue to be heard and understood by the laity and hierarchy around the world

Love: for my Church, a love which is deeper than I ever imagined, love for the priests who have demonstrated many times this year that they are truly priests of integrity, and love for the victims and survivors, many of whom I have now met.

Svea Fraser

The excitement rose when we prepared to go to the Convocation that Cardinal Law had turned into a Listening Session: We prayed and produced a statement and three goals that I believe were truly Spirit-inspired. We printed a paper with our carefully crafted statement and decided to wear red to the World Trade Center (mistakenly understood by the Boston Globe to be a penitential sign, when in fact it represented the Pentecostal Holy Spirit!). The media was there and was all over us (because we were so organized). Thus were we were launched on the journey that has never slowed.

Andrea Johnson

Those of us from St. John's went into the World Trade Center walking between groups of protestors on either side. Many were survivors whom I would later grow to know and honor. I wanted to tell them "We are outraged, we are upset. We are bringing your pain and suffering inside with us." I remember so much about the meeting that day but especially the strength of person after person, red jacket after red jacket, from our delegation, getting up and expressing their positions, their compassion for the victims and their anger. Many expressed sadness and concern about our church. After the meeting, Jim Muller and I went together to talk to a group of protestors, which would later become The Coalition of Catholics and Survivors. Jim and I drove back to St. John's together. He talked about his experience in the peace movement, about the compelling nature of grassroots work and about the effects on family and work. I felt excited, exhilarated and discouraged by the day. I knew I was committed.

Peggie Thorp

Jim Muller and I had been co-facilitating the first rather wild months of Monday evening Listening Sessions, so by the time we were heading into the convocation, I was feeling both confident and challenged, energized and nervous. Our pastor Fr. Tom Powers saw us off that morning, which made me feel nostalgic on behalf of all the victims for the loving trust denied them. I was no longer sure of my own trust.

When we got to the World Trade Center, I found a new place for my trust as soon as I walked into that cavernous space, the whole definition of "sensus fidelium" came alive. I felt immediately assured by these thousands of people I'd never met. I knew them because I knew me. This is where I would put my trust - in these People of God. I would listen, learn and move accordingly.

I remember the off-putting sight of so many clergy in their formal garb and so many priests serving the Cardinal during the Mass. There was so much ritual and attention to image and propriety. I found it ironic and surreal and not at all comforting. I was missing the Mass even while it was being said, loving its inherent mystery and beauty but feeling oddly disconnected.

I remember all of us blessing Maura O'Brien as she headed into the separate meeting with the cardinal, the surge of a kind of humbling pride that said, stand or fall, we believe.

I remember Mary Calcaterra leaving her seat in the regional meeting to haul a floor mike to my immediate left so I would be among the first to speak. (I had to leave early for a funeral service in NY.)

And I remember hours later feeling that I had stumbled into a new sort of Catholicism. I hoped then and I hope still that the "sensus fidelium" I understood that morning, continues to prevail. What I learned is that our church needs us one by one, day by day, year by year.

Luise Dittrich

I have many intense memories about that day, but what I'd like to share is my surprise and relief that the opinions that our fledgling group, Voice of the Faithful, found so daring and scary to express in our "Declaration" turned out to be - relative to the opinions of other participants - relatively conservative. Many Convocation participants were, in fact, WAY ahead of us -- registering disapproval in stronger terms, calling for Cardinal Law's resignation, etc. Their outspokenness said to me that discontent and disillusionment were Archdiocese-wide, and not confined to our small, suburban, red-blazered band. It also said to me that Voice of the Faithful had a potential movement on our hands. That realization turned out to be prophetic.