 |
GAP BETWEEN CHURCH TEACHING AND PRACTICE
The documents of Vatican II exhort Sacred Pastors (bishops) to provide greater opportunities for the laity to have a voice in the life of the Church. At times, it is even the duty of the laity to make their voice heard for the good of the Church (Lumen Gentium).
But in practice, over the past 40 years since Vatican II, there has been relatively little done to make this a reality in the Church. Where efforts have been made, they have often met with failure. But in some dioceses and in some parishes, there are shining exceptions to the prevailing pattern of a passive lay voice.
The sexual abuse scandal and cover-up by certain bishops have given rise on the part of the laity to speak up and to assert their canonical rights to voice their concerns. Voice of the Faithful, originating in Boston in early 2001, is a lay movement that supports victims of sexual abuse, supports and honors priests who have been faithful and the unfortunate victims of a tarnished priestly image in the Church, and calls for structural change in the Church.
This latter issue, structural change, boils down to a call for full implementation of the reforms of Vatican II. It will require the establishment of lay pastoral councils at the diocesan, vicariate, and parish levels, which are fully collaborative, representative, and active. It will require the development of uniform diocesan guidelines, and a system of accountability to assure full implementation of these guidelines.
Approximately 35 were in attendance at the Bloomington session, and many stayed an additional 30 minutes to continue the discussion. There was evident interest and a desire to be involved in this movement.
This workshop will be offered in Peoria after the first of the year. Mike Bromley, VOTF Coordinator for the Peoria area, will present that workshop.