WORKING
GROUPS REPORT
Ad
Hoc Election Committee
Reported by Jim Walsh
We
have moved from officers elected by some 30 +/- steering committee
members in July 2002 to an election of officers by 142 eligible
council representatives on January 23, 2003. Those 142 individuals
represent about 10,000 VOTF Parish Voice members. We can expect
that by the next election at the end of 2003, all members will
be substantially better represented as the VOTF organization continues
to grow and develop. The Board of Trustees will also be expanded
to provide much broader representation. Furthermore, Parish Voice
growth is continuing unabated - this, too, will enhance overall
voter representation. The direction is clear - a fully representative
organization is being developed. Not bad for a volunteer organization
that is not yet one year old!
Our
thanks go out to those officers and their families who served
VOTF so well in the last six months and those who have volunteered
to carry on for the remainder of 2003.
Seventy-five
people were nominated for five positions (see
website for greater detail). The results are as follows:
President
- Jim Post
Vice-President - Ann Carroll
Secretary - Cathy Fallon
Treasurer - Scott Fraser
Moderator - Maura O'Brien
VOTF
Structural Change Working Group
at Structural
Change
Since
July 2002, a group of VOTF members called the Structural Change
Working Group (SCWG) has been working to define what VOTF means
by its third goal - to shape structural change in our Church.
This group is made up of nine faithful and active Catholics, young
and old, male and female, from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut
and Pennsylvania, working to understand and clarify church structures
-
as
they are defined (e.g. in canon law and by local statutes)
-
as
they actually function
-
as
they ought to be (to fulfill the vision of Vatican II.)
The
SCWG has reviewed the documents of the Second Vatican Council,
applicable canon law, and diocesan synod documents. The group
has also consulted with Fr. Ladislas Orsy, S.J. in an effort to
ensure that its conclusions are sound, and its statements clear.
Fr. Orsy has been retained by VOTF as a professional outside consultant
in canon law and related matters.
VOTF
does not seek any change in church doctrine, and the problems
which have come to light in the present crisis are more truly
cultural than structural. The crisis has shown us flaws in the
human institutional life of the church, and, as faithful members
of the church, we have a right and a duty to work to change them.
The working paper, which appears on our website, represents the
first steps in the process of developing recommendations for change
in our church, not the last word. We are pilgrims on a journey
with no map to follow, but we are trying to heed the advice of
John Paul II in his letter, On the Threshold of a New Millennium,
to "listen to what all the faithful say, because in every one
of them the Spirit of God breathes."
The
group's initial conclusions were presented to the VOTF Lay Leadership
Council, and on September 26, 2002, the Council unanimously approved
an initial working document on Structural Change. This first draft
was put on the VOTF website for our membership and distributed
to the U. S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) for comments.
A second draft of the working paper, incorporating the comments
received, was presented to the Lay Leadership Council at its meeting
on January 23, 2003. It is under consideration by our membership
until a vote at the next Council meeting on February 22, 2003.
VOTF
Protecting Our Children
votfprotect@yahoo.com
The
Conference being organized by the Massachusetts Child Sexual Abuse
Prevention Partnership is scheduled for Saturday, April 5th, at
John Hancock Hall in Boston. VOTF Protecting Our Children
has begun work on the logistics. Already, organizers of the July
20, 2002 VOTF Conference have signed on to help. We need many
more volunteers for a program that promises to attract parents,
teachers, social workers, doctors, police, firefighters - all
those interested in prevention of child sexual abuse.
The
MCSAPP consists of policy and program experts and leaders with
statewide reach and experience in child abuse prevention, sexual
violence prevention, sex offender management, child protection,
public health, victim advocacy and services, and research and
evaluation. The Center for Disease Control (CDC), which considers
child sexual abuse a national health issue, has funded the MCSAPP
program because it proposes community-based and comprehensive
action in schools, churches, police and fire departments, media,
families, and social services. Through plenary sessions and interactive
workshops, the Conference will present programs of proven effectiveness
and engage in discussion with those communities from across the
state interested in piloting a program. Contact and registration
information follows.
Taking
Action to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse: Strategies for YOUR Community
Saturday,
April 5, 2003
8:30 AM - 5:00 PM
John Hancock
Conference Center
Boston, MA
Who
should attend? Parents, community leaders, educators, concerned
adults, professionals - anyone interested in developing a community
response to prevent child sexual abuse.
What
will you learn? Through plenary sessions and interactive workshops
led by national and state experts, including child advocates who
are adult survivors of child sexual abuse, participants will learn
about:
-
Groundbreaking
research that links child abuse to adult health risk behaviors
responsible for the leading causes of death in America
-
Myths
and facts about child sexual abuse and its victims and perpetrators
-
What
to watch out for when adults are interacting with children
-
Five
factors to guide parents in assessing the difference between
normal sexual exploration behavior in children and sexually
offending behaviors
-
The
five essential steps communities need to take to develop an
effective response to prevent child sexual abuse
-
Specific
prevention programs and strategies that have reduced proven
cases of child sexual abuse
This
conference is organized by: the Massachusetts Child Sexual Abuse
Prevention Partnership (MCSAPP) and funded through a grant from
the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Registration
Form
Partnership
members include the following state-level private agencies: Massachusetts
Citizens for Children (MCC), the state chapter of Prevent Child
Abuse America and the lead agency for this grant; Massachusetts
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (MSPCC); Jane
Doe, Inc., Massachusetts Coalition Against Sexual Assault and
Domestic Violence; Massachusetts Alliance of Children's Advocacy
Centers; Massachusetts Medical Society; American Academy of Pediatrics
- MA Chapter; Massachusetts Child Abuse Prevention Program (CAPP);
Parents Helping Parents; Voice of the Faithful; National Association
of Social Workers - MA Chapter and Survivors, Parents and Partners.
Public agency members include: Department of Public Health, Department
of Social Services, Department of Mental Health; Massachusetts
Children's Trust Fund, Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry Board;
Executive Office of Public Safety - Programs Division, Office
of Child Care Services; and the Massachusetts Office of Victim
Assistance.
VOTF
Prayerful Voice
PrayerfulVoice@votf.org
The
Prayerful Voice group is calling for all affiliates to mark the
first anniversary of VOTF by centering ourselves in prayer and
rededication to the mission and goals of VOTF. We are working
on a Mass of Rededication to be held Friday, 2/28 but we encourage
our many affiliates and Parish Voices to choose whatever date
works best or means the most to them. A complete liturgy will
be made available for the Mass of Rededication on the website,
www.votf.org under Prayerful Voice.
We
have asked each affiliate to have their Prayerful Voice representative
contact via e-mail the national Prayerful Voice team at PrayerfulVoice@votf.org
. Our hope is to build a truly nationwide network of Prayerful
Voice groups to ensure the central place of prayer in our lives
and in all of our VOTF activities.
VOTF
Priests' Support Working Group
at Clergy Support
In
collaboration with Parish Affiliate Coordinators and the Membership
committee, we are contacting individual priests in our ongoing
efforts to create opportunities for mutual support and collaboration.
In
each of the five regions of the Boston archdiocese, we are inviting
priests to be part of informal "sounding boards" so we might listen
to one another and discover ways to work together in rebuilding
trust in our church. In February, we will be meeting with a second
group of priests for this purpose.
We
continue to encourage people to engage our priests and pastors
in creating opportunities to relate to each other in new ways,
and to work together to achieve our goals. We eagerly await the
results of a priest survey conducted by the Winchester, MA Area
Parish Voice chapter last May. These results will help guide us
toward mutual support, understanding and healing.
We
are in the planning stage of a spring-time gathering based on
a proposal to discuss the topic of Bishop selection. We hope to
engage a coalition of laity, priests and theologians - we are
discussing collaboration with the Boston Priests Forum.
Our
committee has identified some recommended reading for better understanding
of the priesthood. Donald B. Cozzens books are The Spirituality
of the Diocesan Priest and Sacred Silence. Also recommended
is Richard A. Schoenherr's Goodbye Father: The Celibate Male
Priesthood and the Future of the Catholic Church.
VOTF
Parish Voices Committee
at Parish Voice
Interest
in Parish Voices has tripled since Christmas, as evidenced by
the new affiliates and the need to find coordinators in the areas
where our numbers are growing. In one week, we listed 15 new affiliates
and have new coordinators in the Dioceses of Spokane and Seattle,
WA and Ft. Worth, TX. Just this week, we added five new affiliates
in the San Francisco area, CA as well as another Cape Cod, MA
affiliate in Orleans. We also have new coordinators in Missouri
and Ohio. Please see our website at www.votf.org at Parish Voices
for additional information, including contacts and changes as
they happen. Read affiliates reports in this issue at Voices,
Voices Everywhere! Mary Ann Keyes
Links:
Representative
Leadership Council Report - covering the 1/23 Council
Working
Groups - ongoing progress reports on goal-related work
Reporters
at Large - members covering key events in Naples, FL and Manchester,
NH
Voices,
Voices Everywhere! - updates from affiliates coast-to-coast
Notes
from Members - members share information about resources supportive
of female victims of abuse and an upcoming talk by Fr. Austin
Fleming in Concord, MA.
Jim
Post's Speaking Schedule