PRIESTS Support Working Group
Submitted by Svea Fraser
The National Ministry Summit held in Orlando, Florida, last month was an unprecedented gathering of laity, priests, deacons, and religious (along with a few bishops) to discuss ways to creatively adapt to the changing environment of our universal church. A full account is available on the NMS website: www.emergingmodels.org John Ryan and I were there to represent the National Priest Support Working Group in particular, and Voice of the Faithful in general. John’s comprehensive report is available in the May 8, 2008, issue of In the Vineyard. My remarks support and supplement his reflections.
Our Voice of the Faithful organization was represented as exhibitor, as active participant in the action groups at the conference, and as host to the 40th anniversary dinner of the NFPC. How did this come about? Thanks to the invitation of a priest.
Last September, John Ryan convened our national working group in Chicago. For some of us who have been working together for two years, it was the first opportunity to meet face-to-face. Because we are continually seeking ways to collaborate with our priests, we invited Fr. Don Cozzens to join us, as well as Fr. Richard Vega, president of the National Federation of Priests Councils. During the course of the meeting, Fr. Vega acknowledged us as “co-workers in the vineyard.” As a tangible first step, he invited us to host the 40th anniversary dinner of the NFPC, which was to be held at the close of the National Ministry Summit in April, 2008.
The Working Group saw this as an excellent opportunity to build relationships with the clergy. Everyone contributed money for the $3,000 price tag to be present at the banquet. In addition to hosting this event, we were able to have an exhibit at the conference as well as to register as attendees. John and I were unique in wearing two name tags because of that dual role. I was even more unique in being a temporary member of the NFPC—which was indicated by a white ribbon on my name tag. It also saved us $200 apiece on the registration fee. VOTF National helped defray the cost by contributing to the exhibit and registration fees. Thank you to all of you who made this possible. We believe it was money well spent.
Why do we believe this was money well spent?
First and foremost, the benefits of building relationships in person are priceless. We met people—clergy and lay—who support VOTF; we met people who were surprised we were there; and we met others who knew next to nothing about our cause. We must continually seek ways to be present to one another. As a priest from the Midwest wrote to me in an email, “I get your VOF (sic) emails regularly and will more devotedly pay attention to them (we get so many email newsletters) since meeting you and catching the spirit of your enthusiasm.”
Secondly, we have something unique to contribute to the conversation: Ours is a voice that both challenges and encourages. We are different from the six ecclesial organizations that we joined at the Summit, all of them operating within the parameters of the institutional church. As an independent lay movement, we are freer to ask the hard questions, and to stress the need for identifying the underlying causes of the current situation. Parish life as we know it will never be the same, and the changes resulting from the revelations of the past years, along with seismic demographic shifts, force every Catholic to accept responsibility for its renewal. VOTF began as a result of the revelations of clergy sexual abuse and its subsequent cover-up: We insist on the structural and cultural changes that insure transparency and accountability from our leadership, safety for our children, and justice for all. We share common goals with organizations both within and outside the institutional church’s boundaries, and each one of us has a voice that needs to be heard.
Thirdly, the language at the Summit was rich in Vatican II concepts: collaboration, subsidiarity, collegiality, active participation of the laity, transparency and accountability. It resonates with our vision, mission and goals. And being part of the Summit resonates with David O’Brien’s insistence that we must be both prayerful and political in networking with others to share responsibility for the future of our church. (His comments are available on a DVD of the panel presentation, “Priesthood in Crisis: Everyone’s Crisis”, VOTF Providence Convention).
This is a political moment for VOTF: There are conversations taking place that extend well beyond the horizon that has been ours for the past six years. Inclusion in this Summit let us in on what others are saying, and reminded us that we have much in common. A place at this particular table does not guarantee that our efforts have prevailed (nor does it mean that we will not continue to support our friends in organizations outside these ecclesial ones), but it does give us encouragement that we are being heard. (If you log onto “Exhibitors” on the Summit website, VOTF is listed with a direct link to our website.)
The 40th anniversary banquet of the NFPC was held on the closing day of the Summit. By then John and I had met quite a few priests from around the country, and overseas. (The President of the National Conference of Priests of England and Wales went home with two VOTF DVD’s.) Although it was a bit awkward being the only woman at the cocktail reception, John and I were warmly received and given an introduction at the banquet, along with gratitude offered for our contribution. There were over 200 priests in attendance—200 people whom we hope will be more open to the untapped resources of the Voice of the Faithful in their home dioceses.
Fr. Ron Knott (Archdiocese of Louisville) was honored at this banquet, and in his acceptance speech he challenged the priests to overcome “tribalism” in the clergy by a radical conversion of mind and heart toward the good of one another. He also acknowledged that, “Priests are waiting to be led by shepherds whose voices are convincing enough to follow.” In his closing remarks he quoted Nikos Kazantzakis, whose words are a fitting conclusion to this report:
“By believing passionately in that which does not exist we create it. That which is non-existent has not been sufficiently desired.” For those who are suspicious of some kind of “just believe it and you will see it” approach, I would refer to Dale Carnegie’s words,
“Believe that you will succeed…believe it firmly and you will do what is necessary to bring it to success.” Believing is different from wishing. Believing leads to positive action on our part. Wishing simply waits for others to act on our behalf
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