Minutes/Reports

In attendance: Dennis Kirby, Carolyn Gray, Lori Nyi , Mary Kay Zeter, and John Ryan

Meeting took place in residence of John Ryan, and convened at 10 am.

After the opening prayer, we reviewed the proposed agenda:

Agenda Outcomes

• Agreement on a set of clearly defined goals re structural change in the Church
• Formation of an initial strategy for selling our ideas and attracting new members
• A strategy for "going public", ie, announcing our presence and purpose

Our discussion quickly became focused on the fact that we were having a difficult time in selling votf locally to people who otherwise have been sympathetic to change in the Church. This led to some of the following notions:

• Friends who are practicing Catholics and who see a need for change in the Church are hesitant to affiliate with us
• Many in the hierarchy, priesthood, and others, see VOTF as a radical group
• Many votf affiliates (across the country) not directly affected by the sex abuse scandal seem to lack focus
• National VOTF has yet to put forward an agenda around goal number three
• Most of the early growth of national votf stemmed from the outrage and anger surrounding the sexual abuse issue, mostly in the northeast
• The sexual abuse issue is not a primary issue in the Peoria diocese (at present) and will not be the factor that attracts people to support votf.

These are some of the conclusions that we discussed based on the above considerations:

• We need a strategy to address these issues, short and long term, particularly one that will attract people to our cause
• Our strategy for bringing about structural change in the Church needs to be nurtured by Catholics who have a sound theological, scriptural, and conciliar understanding of their faith and of the Church
• This motif (previous statement) should become the image by which VOTF is perceived, both locally and nationally
• VOTF should promote lay formation programs, both locally and nationally
• Our strategy for addressing structural change in the Church should be based as much as possible on what might be described as "common ground" with the bishops (ie, the overall demise of Catholicism in the US, the serious decline in the
• numbers of practicing Catholics, the disconnect between the Church and the majority of young , formerly practicing Catholics)
• The agenda for bringing about structural change in the Church needs to have an evangelical dimension, reaching out to formerly practicing Catholics and the young adults.
• The program should promote lay participation in parish councils and committees, as well as at the diocesan levels
• VOTF National must acknowledge that it has taken a theological position on the role of the laity as part of its effort to bring about change in the Church

Next Steps (discussed):

• Engage national votf leadership (Executive Leadership and affiliate leadership across the country) in a dialogue about this approach
• Engage our local support group in the diocese and others in this exploration of future direction
• Foster the formation of "cluster" groups throughout the diocese as a way to provide people with accessible ways to network with people who support these goals
• Involve local clergy for input and ask how they may want to be involved
• Establish a strong working relationship with the Roncalli Society
• Establish contact with Yvonne DeBruin, Lay Formation Director for the Joliet diocese. We can proceed on our own agenda of formation locally while awaiting to see what National Votf decides on future direction
• Defer from "going public" in a big way, at least for the time being
• Work on formulating a "mission statement" that clearly defines what we are all about in the diocese of Peoria
• Prepare a brochure that can be used as a recruiting tool
• Pray for guidance

Meeting adjourned at 2 pm.

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