Coastal Delmarva VOTF

10/12/07
Dear Friends of VOTF:

Please join us on Wednesday, October 24, 2007 (7:00 p.m.) at the Ocean View Town Hall, 32 West Avenue, Ocean View, DE. to hear Reverend Patrick McMahon, O. Carm. address the Coastal Delmarva Chapter of Voice of the Faithful on the status of the Catholic Church.

Father McMahon holds a Masters in Theological Studies from the Washington Theological Union and a Masters and Doctorate in History from NYU. He is currently President of the Carmelite Institute in Rome, Italy. His responsibilities include publishing a scholarly journal on spirituality, coordinating the research projects of an international field of scholars, researching, writing, preaching, and spiritual conferencing. He has lectured not only in the United States and Italy, but in Great Britain, Ireland, Australia, the Czech Republic, France, and the Netherlands.

We're very fortunate to have Fr. Pat agree to add Bethany to that impressive list! Let's fill the Town Hall that evening!

With fiercest hope,

Skip Sullivan

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear Friends of VOTF:

An article by Bill Casey and David O'Brien strongly endorsing the need for Voice of the Faithful to continue its work appears in the October 12 issue of Commonweal. I hope you will read it and take encouragement from it. It's quite an accomplishment to have our cause pleaded in this well-respected journal. I've included a link to the article itself, as well included it in a Word attachment.

Keep the Faith, Change the Church!
Skip Sullivan

Click here: Commonweal - A review of religion, politics and culture
.......................................................................
08/28/07
Dear Friends of VOTF:

As summer draws to a close, I hope that you're feeling rested and refreshed and ready to come together again as "Disciples in Action"! One way to do this is to attend our first meeting of the year on September 26 at 7 p.m. at the Ocean View Town Hall, 32 West Avenue.

Our guest speaker will be Charles Gallagher, Philadelphia Assistant District Attorney. Mr. Gallagher will report to us on the Grand Jury findings from the investigation into clergy sexual abuse in the Diocese of Philadelphia and the Grand Jury's follow-up recommendations to ensure institutional accountability and prevent what he calls the continuing cover-up.

Secondly, join John and me at the National VOTF Convention in Providence, RI on October 19-20. Please see the article below and National's web site for details. Excellent speakers will be addressing a variety of pertinent topics, and John will be a presenter on a panel discussing how to pass Statutes of Limitations legislation. It would be wonderful if we could have a large delegation from Delaware to share the story of our success with S. B. 29! Special rates are available at Providence hotels and reasonable airfares from Philadelphia to ease the expense.

I hope to see you on both occasions!

With fiercest hope,
Skip Sullivan
///
Dear Friends of VOTF:

Here is some exciting news!

Father Richard Reissmann of Holy Angels Parish in Newark will be receiving the National VOTF 2007 Priest of Integrity Award at the VOTF Conference in Providence, RI on Saturday, October 20.

Father Richard is well-deserving of this award. He has not wavered in his commitment to stand firmly and publicly on the side of those who suffer from abuse. Coastal Delmarva VOTF congratulates him and continues to offer him our gratitude, admiration and support.

If you would like to join those honoring Father Richard in person, it's not too late to make arrangements to attend the National Conference. Visit www.votf.org for details.

Hope to see you there!

Skip Sullivan

---------------------------------------------------------

Voice of the Faithful Convention
“ Disciples in Action” October 19-20

Theologian Fr. Richard McBrien, lay activist Edwina Gateley and Judge Michael Merz, Chair of the National Review Board of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) will be among the featured speakers at the Voice of the Faithful National Convention scheduled for October 19-20, 2007 at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence RI.

McBrien, one of this country’s best known Catholic theologians, is a past president of the Catholic Theological Society of America and winner of its John Courtney Murray Award "for outstanding and distinguished achievement in Theology." He has written a syndicated weekly theology column for the Catholic press since 1966, and is a frequent on-air network commentator for Church-related events. McBrien’s keynote address “VOTF and the Church: Where do we go from here?” will open the two-day convention.

Edwina Gateley will address the convention’s theme “Voice of the Faithful – Disciples in Action.” Gateley has dedicated her life to following the call of God. In the 1960's she founded the Volunteer Missionary Movement for lay people. Her ministry has taken her all over the world. She worked in Africa and her current work is in the Chicago area where she founded Sophia's Circle, which befriends and ministers to prostitutes and street people. Edwina's work has been publicly commended many times. She has been praised by the Governor of the State of Illinois, the Mayor of Chicago, the late Cardinal Joseph Bernardin, and former U.S. President Bill Clinton. Edwina is also an author who writes about prayer and spirituality. She draws upon her own experiences of time in the wilderness to assist others in their spiritual journeys.

Merz, a trial judge in Ohio, was named Chair of the National Review Board in June. The National Review Board was established by the USCCB in 2002 when the bishops adopted their Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People. The Board’s purpose is to collaborate with the USCCB to prevent sexual abuse of minors by persons in the service of the Church in the United States.
Other speakers of note include theologians Paul Lakeland, Leonard Swidler, Gaile Pohlhaus , Mary Doyle Roach, Francine Cardman, Gerald Fogarty, S.J. , and William Clark, S.J., as well as church sociologists William D’Antonio and Fr. Anthony Pogorelc and historian Dr. Joseph O’Callaghan.
Among the topics to be addressed in the nearly thirty workshops and panel discussions are: “Discipleship and its revival at Vatican II”; “Called to be Church: A model for participatory pastoral planning”; “Who says its time to blow out the candles?”, a panel on parish closings; and “Googling God”, a workshop on making the Church relevant to the 20-something generation.

The convention will also feature dozens of booths and information tables and an extensive Catholic bookstore. For more information: www.votf.org or call (617) 558 5252.