Voices Of The Faithful? (votf)

[Sinner]

This group is quite active in my Parish and my Diocese. At first glance they seem to be against abuse that has happened in the Church....and that seems admirable. But in looking further into their agenda, it seems they may have a generally more liberal agenda. So what do ya think about this group?

[littleflower+JMJ]

[b]THEIR BAD!!![/b]

heres a review of their site.....they got a [b][color=red]DANGER WARNING[/color][/b]

[url="http://www.catholicculture.org/sites/site_view.cfm?recnum=1912"]http://www.catholicculture.org/sites/site_...cfm?recnum=1912[/url]



[color=red]Voice of the Faithful is a group of dissenters parading under the false guise of being centrist, apolitical, and faithful to the Magisterium. VOTF appeals to the frustration, hurt and anger that Catholics may feel as a result of the sexual scandals, in order to attract otherwise faithful Catholics to join them. Opposition to Church authority and moral teachings is advocated by prominent participants in this group.

Voice of the Faithful (VOTF) began in January 2002 and with strong media support ballooned to having a contact list of over 22,000 names with new branches (called "Parish Voices") cropping up throughout the U.S. At a July 20 VOTF conference, with over 4,000 attendees, there were prominent speakers who are known to support homosexuality, abortion, contraception, female priests and generally throwing out many of the Church's central teachings.

Deal Hudson (Crisis) points out that the VOTF website deceives faithful Catholics into believing it is a legitimate Catholic organization with slogans such as "support those who have been abused" and "support priests of integrity". However, the group is tied to dissident, radical, anti-Vatican groups such as Call to Action and We are Church which strongly reject traditional Catholic moral principles.

The Massachusetts Catholic League also exposed the VOTF fraud in a July 22 story. League representative C.J. Doyle is quoted as saying "What we are witnessing here today is the cynical exploitation of a tragedy by dissidents with an agenda. When an organization which purports to be Catholic has a speaker affiliated with Planned Parenthood, it tells us all we need to know about its alleged Catholic credentials". Doyle continued that "It is grotesque hypocrisy for an organization which claims to be Catholic to promote the views of those who reject Catholic doctrine and repudiate Christian morality...As an organization marketing itself as Catholic, Voice of the Faithful is engaged in consumer fraud."


STRENGTHS
None Reported.

WEAKNESSES
· Front organization for dissenters (Fidelity)
Example(s)
· Dissident authors recommended (Fidelity)
Example(s)
· Dissidents quoted on the site (Fidelity)
Example(s)
· Promotes turning the Church into a democracy (Fidelity)
Example(s)
· Link to dissident organization (Fidelity)
Example(s)
· Banned in several dioceses from meeting on church property (Fidelity)
Example(s)


CATEGORIES
Issues > Controversies
Institutions > Organizations


MORE INFO
Voice of the Faithful
P.O. Box 423
Newton Upper Falls, MA 02464
USA
617-558-5252
webmaster@votf.org
[/color]

[Dave]

Better to check out the counter-group to Voice of the Faithful -- Faithful Voice -- which is loyal to the Church: [url="http://www.faithfulvoice.com/"]http://www.faithfulvoice.com/[/url]

[phatcatholic]

[b][url="http://catholicculture.org/docs/doc_view.cfm?recnum=4462"]When Wolves Dress Like Sheep: Close Look at Voice of the Faithful[/url][/b]

[b]HUMBLE BEGINNINGS[/b]

Voice of the Faithful began in January 2002 as a support group for parishioners who wanted to express their concerns about the sex-abuse scandal. What started in one church basement in Wellesley, Massachusetts, has now grown into a full-blown organization with a contact list of over 22,000 names, new branches (called "Parish Voices") cropping up all over the country, and its own conference held on July 20 with over 4,000 attendees.

If you visit its Web site (www.votf.org), you are greeted with Voice of the Faithful's slogan: "Keep the Faith, Change the Church." Leaders of VOTF are very adamant that their group is neither left-wing nor right-wing, but that it addresses universal concerns of ALL Catholics across the board. Also listed on the site is the group's mission statement, which 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." Following the mission statement are the three main goals of VOTF: to "support those who have been abused, support priests of integrity, [and] shape structural change within the church."

But notice the bait-and-switch tactic used in listing its three goals. Everyone can rally behind the cry of supporting faithful priests and the abused, but "change within the church" could encompass a variety of "changes" that are well outside the Church's teaching. Most people agree that some sort of change is needed, but it dodges the REAL question: What kind of change? What role do lay Catholics have in changing the Church? And how do you know that you're keeping the authentic Faith?

Being "attentive to the Spirit" is hardly reassuring. What about being attentive to the magisterium or Tradition? Appealing to the Spirit sounds a lot like those who advocate radical change in the Church while finding recourse in the "spirit" of Vatican II. Too much emphasis on one's personal interpretation of the Spirit can very easily lead one away from the Church and its teachings.

[b]THE VOTF PLAYERS[/b]

While VOTF has been operating largely on a volunteer basis up to this point, many of those associated with its leadership are involved with other dissenting groups, like Call to Action (www.cta-usa.org), CORPUS, and We Are the Church (www.we-are-church.org). Jan Leary, a member of VOTF's steering committee, serves as the contact for Save Our Sacrament/Annulment Reform, and Andrea Johnson, another steering committee member, is the contact for the Women's Ordination Conference in Virginia.

But this barely scratches the surface. Many of the people invited to speak at VOTF's national convention on July 20 espouse other radical views that are not in line with Church teaching. The following people were all invited to speak at the Boston conference:

** Leonard Swidler, professor of Catholic thought at Temple University. Well-known for his work in the formation of a "global ethic" with dissenting theologian Hans Kung, Swidler is also the founder of the Association for the Rights of Catholics in the Church (www.arcc-catholic-rights.org). As the chair of the association's constitution international drafting committee, he's responsible for drawing up a constitution for a more "democratic" church which includes the proposal for elected leaders; term limits for those leaders; a legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government; and opening up leadership positions to all people, including "women and minorities."

** James Carroll, columnist for the Boston Globe. Carroll, a self-proclaimed Catholic, was ordained a priest in 1969 but left the priesthood in 1974 and married before his laicization, effectively excommunicating himself. His columns in the Globe confirm that he believes in contraception, abortion, and women's ordination. Additionally, he rejects numerous fundamental Church teachings, such as the divinity of Jesus Christ. In a July 16 column, Carroll stated that at the VOTF convention, "deeper questions must be confronted as well — the role of the laity in church governance, assumptions of sexual morality, the place of women, the pathologies of clericallism, the 'creeping infallibility' that corrupts church teaching."

** Debra Haffner, a member and former president of the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS). SIECUS promotes guidelines for sex education for children grades K-12, guidelines which approve of children ages 5-8 being taught that masturbation and homosexuality are acceptable practices. Not only that, they also urge that 12- to 15-year-olds be taught how to obtain and use contraceptives.

Haffner is also the cofounder of the Religious Institute on Sexual Morality, Justice, and Healing (www.religionproject.org). The institute's "Religious Declaration on Sexual Morality, Justice, and Healing" calls for "theological reflection that integrates the wisdom of excluded, often silenced peoples, and insights about sexuality from medicine, social science, the arts and humanities; full inclusion of women and sexual minorities in congregational life, including their ordination and the blessing of same sex unions...[and] support for those who challenge sexual oppression and who work for justice within their congregations and denomination." Haffner has also been quoted as saying, "No matter what gender orientation you have — bisexual, transgender — no matter what sex you are, no matter what age you are, no matter what marital status you are, no matter what sexual orientation you are, you have a right to sex."

** Tom Groome, professor of theology at Boston College. Groome gave an interview to BBC 4 World Forum on the sex-abuse scandal in which he commented on the Church: "Catholic Christians are...distinguishing between their faith in the tradition and their faith in the institution.... The Church is terribly important to us, but we won't exaggerate the importance, as it were, of the institution." On priestly celibacy and women's ordination: "I think that [priestly celibacy] has to be revisited, likewise the exclusion of women from ministry has to be rethought. But that's not a liberal position...." On ecclesial hierarchy: "I would love to see an overhaul in how our bishops are chosen because right now they're chosen by a kind of subterfuge — a kind of backroom politics." And finally, on the pope: "I do think that the problem of an enfeebled pope becomes fairly trransparent, especially when the Church faces such a tragedy in a crisis time as we are in at the moment."

** Michele Dillon, professor of sociology at the University of New Hampshire. Dillon has published several books, including Debating Divorce: Moral Conflict in Ireland; Gay and Lesbian Catholics; and Catholic Identity: Balancing Reason, Faith, and Power, a work focusing on why "pro-change" Catholics (such as those who support abortion, women's ordination, and homosexuality) remain in the Church.

[b]DISCERNING THE SPIRIT [/b]

Nowhere are problems with VOTF more clear than in its document on change, titled "Discerning the Spirit: A Guide for Renewing and Restructuring the Catholic Church." The guide refers to our Church's "clerical culture" that is noted for its "power and secrecy...isolation from the laity...ignorance of the human body and sex, a mindset that degrades women and marriage, [and] a spiritually distorted, psychologically troubled view of celibacy." Here, the argument quickly devolves from a real problem seen in the current scandal — clericalism — to a misinterpretation of Church teaching on women, marriage, and celibacy. These are then lumped together sso that if a person accepts the first claim, he must automatically accept the second. A typical bait-and-switch technique.

The guide also relies heavily on the Vatican II document Lumen Gentium to support VOTF's push for a more "democratic" Catholic Church. It quotes the following passage in support of greater lay governance in the Church: "Thus every layman, by virtue of the very gifts bestowed upon him, is at the same time a witness and a living instrument of the mission of the Church herself" (LG §33). However, lay involvement is quite a different thing from the kind of "democratic" Church that VOTF so desperately wants. The establishment of a democratic Church was not the intent of Vatican II, as a later passage in Lumen Gentium explains: "The laity should promptly accept in Christian obedience what is decided by the pastors who, as teachers and rulers of the Church, represent Christ" (LG §37). This kind of selective reading of Church documents can be dangerously misleading.

Finally, the guide urges renewal of the Church so that it "will more clearly express the American features of the beautiful face of Christ." This renewal involves the laity "in discerning the Spirit's intentions for today's society and times." Again, no mention is made of any authority other than a private interpretation of the Spirit. In this way, VOTF is paving the way for a separate American Catholic Church based on popular public sentiment.

It's true that lay involvement is crucial to addressing this present crisis. But that involvement CAN'T be about changing Catholic doctrine handed to us by Christ. This is the crucial point VOTF appears to miss.

[b]ROBBING PETER TO PAY VOICE OF THE FAITHFUL [/b]

Voice of the Faithful has begun its own charity drive called Voice of Compassion to serve as a substitute to Bernard Cardinal Law's annual appeal. Those boycotting the cardinal's fund-raiser because of the scandal could give to VOTF, who in turn would give the money to the diocese...but ONLY if the funds went directly to charities and not to fund the diocese.

While this may sound fine to a lot of justly outraged Boston Catholics, it's a little more complicated than what VOTF would have us believe. The money raised in the cardinal's appeal doesn't go into Cardinal Law's pocket. Rather, it's spent on many important programs that rely on the fund-raiser to keep them afloat. For example, the money helps pay the salaries of all the people who work in the Church. It also goes towards Catholic schools and other programs run directly through the diocese, like youth ministry and RCIA. In other words, the cardinal's appeal helps keep the entire diocese running.

The Voice of Compassion fund, on the other hand, is only giving money to the kinds of programs VOTF wants to fund. On top of that, VOTF just announced that it's starting an additional fund-raiser in order to keep its own operation running, to the tune of $1 million. In short, it encourages people not to contribute to the cardinal's appeal, a fund-raiser that helps keep the local churches running, but then asks these same people to contribute to its OWN appeal to keep ITS operation running.

[b]A FREE VOICE?[/b]

One simple reason why a lot of people are suspicious of VOTF is that many of them feel uncomfortable with VOTF's presumption that it represents the real "voice" of faithful lay Catholics. The organization's leaders claim that they're open to all voices in the Church, whether on the right or left, and that they encourage an open exchange of ideas with room for all under the VOTF banner.

To facilitate this exchange, VOTF set up a message board on its Web site where users could post questions, concerns, and opinions that could then be discussed openly. But this open forum quickly became restricted — users were given only two small windows of time a day when they could post messages, and even then they had to limit their posts to three a day. Some forum members began a discussion of the dubious background of Debra Haffner, but their e-mail posts were immediately deleted. A post made last Saturday by an administrator read, "Posts in regard to this message board decision [to delete the Haffner thread] will not be accepted. Inquiries to admin. about this thread will not be answered. The board may go on view only for an extended period of time. The possibility of shutting the board down is being seriously considered."

Shortly thereafter, the board was shut down completely.

While it's possible the board needed to be removed for other reasons, the most glaring likelihood is the group's unwillingness to tolerate criticism of anything related to VOTF. Its own cover-up and dismissal of public concern is astoundingly similar to the actions of the very bishops it criticizes. Voice of the Faithful is no more trustworthy in providing a free "voice" than any other group.

And yet, it insists it's the voice for faithful Catholics.

In the end, VOTF has every right to its own voice and opinion. There have always been dissenting groups in the Church, and VOTF isn't saying anything new. The real problem is its patent dishonesty: It claims to be faithful to the magisterium while rejecting the teachings of the Catholic Church.

Claiming that it's "faithful" doesn't make it so. Nor can Voice of the Faithful be considered in any way the voice of the one true Church.

[PedroX]

Voice of the Faithful is quite literally the Smoke of Satan that has entered the Church. Stay as far away from them as you can.

St. Michael the Archangel defend us in battle!

peace...

[phatcatholic]

[b][url="http://catholicculture.org/docs/doc_view.cfm?recnum=4610"]Dissidents Advance Usual Agenda[/url][/b]

While some bishops took a preemptive strike against the Call to Action clone Voice of the Faithful setting up chapters in their dioceses and parishes, Bishop Joseph Charron of Des Moines invited Dr. Robert A. Ludwig, a regular on the Call to Action and Dignity circuits, to offer three days of "faith formation," October 18, 19, and 20, to all Catholic school teachers, catechists, youth ministers, pastors, Catholic parents, pastoral staffs, and grandparents.

Dr. Ludwig, director of university ministry and professor of Catholic studies at De Paul University in Chicago, author of Reconstructing Catholicism for a New Generation, is an expert at "deconstructing Catholicism" — as his signature in support on the Voice of the Faithful petition indicates. It appears there with some of the most notorious Catholic dissenters in the United States, including Sr. Margaret Farley, R.S.M., of Yale, a radical feminist.

Ludwig's appearance in Des Moines, along with the recent appearances of high-profile dissidents in other dioceses — such as Australian ex-priest Michael Morwood in Los Angeles, New Age proselytizer St. Jose Hobday in Altoona-Johnstown, Pa., Sr. Fran Ferder and Fr. John Heagle in Boise, Idaho — not only demonstrates the commitment of a significant number of bishops to the ongoing destruction of the Church in America, but most importantly signals the determination of the hijackers of Vatican II to take advantage of the sex abuse scandals to maintain control and continue Amchurch's triumphal march.

The growing controversy generated by the sudden rise of Voice of the Faithful, and declarations from bishops in five states that VOTF will not be allowed in their dioceses, also highlights the vast chasm that already exists among bishops and priests which so many Church leaders try to ignore or pretend does not exist.

Ludwig's book, Reconstructing Catholicism, wrote Geraldine Stafford in Homiletic & Pastoral Review (November 2000) in part two of "Why Johnny Doesn't Believe," takes its place among those of other professional religious educators who are attempting to reach "Generation X" by subverting The Catechism of the Catholic Church and insinuating that the Church's doctrines are irrelevant.

After citing an essay Ludwig wrote for The Catechist, Stafford observed:

"Ludwig's harsh attitude regarding the Church's hierarchy and his misrepresentation of its teachings should come as no surprise to those familiar with his book, Reconstructing Catholicism. Regarding this book, reviewer Mary Schneider wrote: "The reconstructed Catholicism which Professor Ludwig has formulated has little in common with the Catholic faith. It is a veritable Hydra of heresies' (Homiletic & Pastoral Review, July 1996).

"What should alarm bishops, pastors, and all Catholics who love the Church," wrote Stafford, "is that Ludwig, a board member of Call to Action, promotes his hostile, anti-Catholic views on the pages of The Catechist, a magazine which shapes the faith of thousands of American catechists. His article typifies the disdain and disrespect many catechetical leaders have shown for the Church and its teachings during the last 30 years."

A key element of his deconstructive work, Stafford pointed out at the time, is attacking the historicity of the Gospels and debunking the teachings of Christ.

"Ludwig tells catechists that 'it is not always easy to determine what materials date from Jesus' own historical context and those which date from later periods, which materials are historical fact, and which are included for the sake of interpretation to bring out the meaning of the facts' . . .

"According to Ludwig, his unnamed historians tell us that Jesus 'no doubt' was a disciple of John the Baptist. 'After John's arrest, Jesus began to move in a different way, softer and more mystical than the hard asceticism of John.' Ludwig's historians would have us believe Jesus taught that 'one must live here and now as though divine rule were the only rule, shattering the legitimacy of conventional authorities'."

From the other side of the gaping chasm that separates faithful Catholics from the Call to Action retreads of VOTF is a July 1997 U.S. Catholic interview with Ludwig. It appeared under the heading, "Can Catholicism Seem Cool to Your Kids?"

After explaining to the editors why "Catholicism needs to be reconstructed in light of Vatican II . . . from the bottom up," he pleaded:

"If we would begin to make a few changes, it would be so much easier to be publicly Catholic. It would be very different if the Church would say that we're going to ordain women and married people, because it would provide so much more credibility, vitality, and hope for Catholics.

"The present strong authoritarian papacy that goes after theologians like Hans Kung, Charles Curran, and Leonardo Boff, that reiterates the stand against birth control, and that takes a limited view on women's roles in the Church makes things difficult for Catholics. If, as Catholics, we don't believe those things, we're a little bit ashamed that our Church keeps promoting them. That's why claiming to be Catholic can be so hard — because it appears that we must support all these ideas."

The announcement of Ludwig's selection to lead a "faith-formation" workshop in Des Moines caught many of the lay faithful by surprise, especially since in the age of the Internet, there is no shortage of reliable information about him. Search his name on the World Wide Web, and one of the first references to appear is a brief review of an address he gave to the homosexual activist group Dignity.

What happens when Catholics do organize, research, and protest the invitation of a dissenter into their diocese to brainwash religion teachers and catechists is illustrated by the recent controversy in the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown, Pa. There, Bishop Joseph Adamec excoriated Catholics who protested the appearance of Sr. Jose Hobday.

The local Catholic Family Association of America and other concerned Catholics objected to Hobday's appearance at a diocesan "Catholic Life Conference," sponsored by the diocesan education office, held September 28 at Mount Aloysius College in Cresson, Pa.

For decades, these Catholics pointed out in newspaper articles, letters to the editor, through the Internet, especially through the local Diocese Report web site, Hobday has advanced an agenda "diametrically opposed to Roman Catholicism."

Accessing information available to just about anyone in the world, these lay faithful showed that Hobday is an associate of Starhawk, a self-proclaimed witch, that she was a colleague of the creator of "creation spirituality," the ex-Dominican, ex-Catholic Matthew Fox, that she is a regular on the Call to Action circuit, which openly advocates a change in Church teaching on contraception and abortion, promotes women's ordination, sanctions the right of married couples to divorce and remarry.

She also, the CFAA informed Bishop Adamec, "attended [and] participated in conferences that worship 'Sophia,' celebrating her as the biblical goddess of creation, as well as conferences where lesbian women 'celebrate the miracle of being lesbian, out, and Christian'."

Hobday has also stated publicly that Catholic teachers "should forget about any Church doctrine prior to 20 years ago. Cut the umbilical cord to the Church and start in a new direction."

When these concerns regarding Hobday were presented to Bishop Adamec by both laity as well as his diocesan priests, Adamec wrote in his regular column in the diocesan newspaper:

"It's Getting Wearisome: The continual badgering of this Diocesan Church by a handful of individuals and one of our secular newspapers does get tedious. The latest salvo has to do with Sr. Jose Hobday. However, she is a Franciscan Sister in good standing. Since I am responsible for the teaching that is done in our Diocesan Church, my office took the step of checking with the Bishop's Office of Sr. Hobday's diocese. They recommend her without reservation. I regret that she has been publicly maligned by some of our Diocesan Church."

Adamec further stated:

"I regret the negative reaction that is being generated by some of our Faithful. The Roman Catholic Church is a hierarchical church. What that means, among other things, is that we ought to depend on the judgment of appropriate church leaders and superiors in confirming the legitimacy of someone's ministry. This applies whether or not we personally agree with the individual's message. It would seem to me that this judgment of legitimate leaders in the Church supersedes that of other individuals or groups."

The bishop's spokesman, Sr. Mary Parks, also defended Hobday in a letter to a Catholic who criticized the diocese for inviting her, explaining:

"The list of theologians, priests, sisters, bishops, and other good Catholic faithful who have over its 30-year history participated in one or more conferences sponsored by 'Call to Action' is extremely long!

"I do not subscribe to all of its official agenda, but I did attend a conference in Chicago during the mid 1990s! I met two bishops there.

"I think you need to go easy here. We Catholics come from many different ideologies and yet we believe in the same Jesus. We pray the creed. We uphold the church. We share the faith, but perhaps some of us feel more drawn to the church's pro-life stance, others feel drawn to our liturgy. Some think we are moving too fast. Others say we are moving too slow. But we are all Catholic. When we cease to be Catholic by our actions and words that is a different matter. Her bishop in Gallup, N.M. [Donald Pelotte, S.S.S.], has vouched for Sister. Her Franciscan community says she is in good standing. I do not think it appropriate to question her when we do not know her as her bishop and sisters know her!

"We cannot automatically drum everyone in Opus Dei or Call to Action out of the church!"


[b]Drawing The Lines [/b]

As of October 15, bishops in Massachusetts, Maine, Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey have declared that VOTF is not eligible to meet on Church property.

Bernard Cardinal Law in Boston, where VOTF originated, said existing chapters of the organization could continue meeting in parishes, but no new chapters would be allowed to meet.

In the Archdiocese of Newark, N.J., Archbishop John Myers banned the group from meeting on Church property, saying VOTF is "anti-Church and, ultimately, anti-Catholic." In Bridgeport, Conn., Bishop William Lori barred the group from meeting in parishes, saying VOTF threatened to tear the Church apart by promoting "private dissenting opinions."

VOTF has responded to these allegations by issuing a "Theologian Petition" asserting VOTF has the right to exist, prepared by Fr. William Clark, S.J., president of Holy Cross, Boston College's Dr. Thomas Beaudoin, and Dr. Anthony Massimini, a married former priest, of the Pennsylvania College of Art & Design. Most of the signatories of the statement were Jesuits from Jesuit institutions who placed "Dr." before their name rather than "Fr."

The brief statement, citing Vatican II's Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, declares the Catholic lay faithful have the right to form apostolic associations and, therefore, "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."

Among the signers of the statement, however, aside from the gaggle of Jesuits, were some of the leading proponents of a "reconstructed" Church, such as Leonard Swidler of Temple University; major radical feminist theologians, such as Sr. Farley of Yale and Elisabeth Schussler-Fiorenza of Harvard; former Notre Dame theologian Dr. Mark Jordan; Ex Corde Ecclesiae critic Dr. Terrence Tilley of the University of Dayton; David Tracy of the University of Chicago, et al.

For those closely watching the rise of VOTF in parishes across the United States, and episcopal reaction, it is of more than passing interest that a number of VOTF's supportive theologians will be speaking at Roger Cardinal Mahony's annual Religious Education Congress, including Robert A. Ludwig and Dr. Thomas Beaudoin.

[phatcatholic]

[b][url="http://www.ewtn.com/library/ISSUES/ZVOTFCRT.HTM"]Critique of Voice of the Faithful[/url][/b]


[b]What Faith Are They Trying to Keep?[/b]

HYANNIS, Massachusetts, 19 NOV. 2003 (ZENIT).
Several priests in the Diocese of Fall River recently sent out a pastoral letter to parishioners, to clarify the nature of Voice of the Faithful, a group that gained attention in the wake of the clergy sex-abuse scandals. Here we reprint the letter.


* * *


A Pastoral Letter From Your Priests

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

In recent days, several parishioners have asked us for clarification about the group called "Voice of the Faithful," which is trying to make inroads on Cape Cod and within our Diocese of Fall River. Because we think that many parishioners beyond those who have approached us might have similar questions, we thought it would be appropriate to respond by means of a parish letter.

Voice of the Faithful (VOTF) was founded in the basement of a Wellesley church in January 2002 by those who wanted to express their concerns about the clergy sex-abuse scandals. Over the course of subsequent months, many good Catholic lay people, who were horrified (as were we!) by the scandals, joined the group as a means of expressing their justifiable outrage and firm commitment that this dark page in our Church's history must never be repeated.

When VOTF had its first major convention in Boston on July 20, 2002, many of us followed it closely to try discern its spirit. We were saddened to see the direction it took. The star speakers that day were well-known and oft-quoted critics of the Holy Father who publicly dissent from the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church. There's a truism that you can often learn a lot about someone from the people with whom he chooses to associate. The same goes for VOTF, the leaders of which, of course, invited and paid for these speakers to come to address those at the convention.

When faithful Catholic clergy and lay people criticized what was coming out of the convention, spokesmen from VOTF publicly stated that the group does not take any formal positions on the controversial issues being advanced by several of the convention speakers and VOTF members. But this is not sufficient. It is impossible for a group that wants to be authentically Catholic not to take a position on issues such as the ordination of women, sexual morality, abortion, and the divine foundation of the papacy — all of which the Church has taken a position on. Not to take a position on such issues is to take a position; one cannot be both "agnostic" and "Catholic."

In short, because VOTF has given no indication that it fully supports all the defined teachings of the Church, we have grave misgivings about it and cannot recommend it to you.

As your priests, our foremost duty is to teach and defend the faith that has been handed down to us by Christ through the apostles and their successors. This is the Church's treasure and is the source of our unity as disciples of the Lord. The Church is not a society of independent thinkers with equally-valuable opinions, but the community of believers founded by Christ that remains faithful to His voice and follows His teaching as it has been handed on to us faithfully by the Church he founded. To be truly Catholic, you can't pick and choose some truths to follow and others to ignore. Embracing the Catholic faith means embracing all of it.

We have particular concern for those Catholics who want to remain faithful to the Church who now belong to an organization that calls itself Catholic but refuses publicly to embrace authentic Catholic teaching. VOTF says its motto is "Keep the Faith; Change the Church." But if the leaders of VOTF are unwilling to assent fully to Catholic teaching, what faith — Catholics could legitimately ask — are they trying to keep? And if organization is not really keeping the Catholic faith, then its proposals to "change the Church" should be viewed by faithful Catholics with justifiable suspicion. We encourage faithful Catholics who belong to VOTF to demand that the leadership of the organization explicitly avow Church teachings. If the leaders are not willing to do that, then we urge faithful Catholics to leave the organization.

The burden of proof is, of course, on VOTF to demonstrate its complete fidelity to Church teaching, by dissociating itself completely from groups and individuals that are obviously in dissent from Church teaching and gladly and willingly affirming their Catholic faith in all the defined teachings of the magisterium. No organization could never honestly claim to be the voice of faithful Catholic lay people without doing so — as several parishioners, angry that the group claims to speak for them, have pointed out to us.

Until such time that VOTF demonstrates a transparent faithfulness to the teachings of the Church, no priest who takes his responsibility before God seriously to promote, preserve and defend the faith would countenance allowing the group to use Church property for their meetings. The people of ancient Troy learned a valuable lesson once and pastors would be derelict in their duty to do otherwise. We love you and love Christ too much to do otherwise.

If you find some of the statements of Voice of the Faithful to be attractive, we want you to know that we do, too. For instance, we agree with several of the organization's stated objectives:

1) We all support those who have been abused and want to prevent any recurrence of abuse.

2) We all support "priests of integrity" (although you might find it interesting that no priest from any of the parishes on Cape Cod present at our last meeting stated that he has received any sign of support from VOTF, which makes one wonder whether for VOTF this is just a paper objective).

3) We agree that there is a need for "cultural change" in the Church, if we define cultural change to mean a transparently greater cult (worship) of Christ among all of us in our daily decisions. The scandals resulted from the failure of priests to be faithful to Christ and to their promise of celibacy and of bishops to protect the flock from wolves in shepherd's clothing. But this grew within a general culture that was taking its moral obligations before God less seriously. Truly positive change will be directed toward a culture of greater fidelity to Christ in all the persons and activities of the Church.

4) We agree that there is a need for greater education of the laity in the teaching and ways of the faith, which is why, over the course of this year, we will be doing an extensive adult education series and why we have already started discussion sessions for parents of those in our CCD program and school.

5) We also welcome and strongly encourage a greater lay involvement in the mission of the Church, bringing Christ's teaching and love as leaven into our world.

In all of these areas priests and laity are already working together and, with God's help, bearing much fruit. If these were the only objectives of VOTF, the organization would not be objectionable.

The reason why VOTF is controversial, however, and why we cannot support it or recommend it to you is because VOTF has given indications by its deeds that its objectives transcend these publicly stated ones. By its failure to subscribe openly to the whole deposit of faith while at the same time publicly associating with groups that oppose the faith, VOTF has done nothing but strengthen suspicions that, while appearing to promote dialogue and cooperation, it actually promotes an agenda in conflict with the teachings of the Catholic faith.

There is a better alternative than VOTF for lay Catholics who want truly to "keep the faith and change the Church" in ways that are manifestly consistent with our Catholic faith. We invite them to become more involved in the mission of the Church here at St. Francis Xavier. We encourage them to join their priests and fellow lay people as together we strive to fulfill the mission which the Second Vatican Council and Pope John Paul II have entrusted to us: to live the faith and thereby, with God's help, strengthen the Church so as to change the world.

Yours in Christ,
Fr. Thomas A. Frechette
Fr. Paul T. Lamb
Fr. Roger J. Landry

[phatcatholic]

that should just about settle the issue

[phatcatholic]

[quote name='Dave' date='May 28 2004, 10:55 AM'] Better to check out the counter-group to Voice of the Faithful -- Faithful Voice -- which is loyal to the Church: [url="http://www.faithfulvoice.com/"]http://www.faithfulvoice.com/[/url] [/quote]
thanks for the link dave!

that site is basically a huge resource of articles against VOTF.........good stuff

[littleflower+JMJ]

bump.

pointing out a wolf in sheep's clothing....

[Quietfire]

Perchè è che chiedo a qualcuno che sostenga essere un seme della senape, un vincitore che è vita più thier perdente per l'agnello, una domanda. E tutto che ottenga nel ritorno è babble. Se capite che cosa a macchina sto scrivendo, risponda prego in inglese. Il relativo molto più veloce affinchè me leggano. Tutto che abbia chiesto è per la verità da questa persona, che desidera condurre la mia sorella fuori strada da God.(I pensa) tuttavia le sue risposte sono più come le domande ed il babble. Molto fustrating. Indovino che ho bisogno appena di una certa comodità e ho bisogno di rant. Prego perdonimi il dio.

Peace and Love to all my phamily.

If its easier to respond in another language then fine.

Edited May 28, 2004 by Quietfire

[Sinner]

So what to do about this stuff when it is tolerated, and maybe even supported by your Priest or Priests in nearby Parishes? I get invitations to their meetings by email, they have announcements in the Parish bulletin..... a nearby Parish is having a talk supported by them given by a Priest I love who was himself abused in the past. It is so tempting to say something in an email.....thus far I pray.
sigh........

[Sinner]

I take it there are not alot of VOTF members in Phatmass?

:ph34r:

[phatcatholic]

[quote name='Sinner' date='May 29 2004, 01:27 AM'] I take it there are not alot of VOTF members in Phatmass?

:ph34r: [/quote]
they would find out what it [i]truly [/i]meant to be orthodox and run for the hills!

[Anna]

[quote name='Sinner' date='May 29 2004, 03:16 AM'] So what to do about this stuff when it is tolerated, and maybe even supported by your Priest or Priests in nearby Parishes? I get invitations to their meetings by email, they have announcements in the Parish bulletin..... a nearby Parish is having a talk supported by them given by a Priest I love who was himself abused in the past. It is so tempting to say something in an email.....thus far I pray.
sigh........ [/quote]
You must be a true voice for the faithful!
Contact the counter group, Faithful Voice, and see if you can join it and get some literature.
Each time you see VOTF holding a meeting on Church property, request equal time for meetings which promote loyalty, not dissent. (Even if only two people come and pray the rosary together, it still counters what a hundred dissidents will accomplish!)

When you see a VOTF announcement in the parish bulletin or diocesan paper, submit a Faithful Voice announcement to counter.

Wherever they pop up, offer a little opposition. You don't have to confront them; just offer Catholic Truth wherever dissent is being offered.

If anyone contacts you about your meetings or group, just explain, in charity, that your group is faithful to the Magisterium, and will not deviate, while the other group, in fact, does deviate from authentic Catholic teaching.

If VOTF was a big balloon, Faithful Voice would be a little pin.

Pax Christi. <><