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}} The external links give plenty more information if anyone feels like expanding the article.Barbara Shack 15:41, 3 Apr 2004 (UTC)
I would question the objectivity of this page a bit. It reads like it is a VOTF brochure. There are many questions about the groups real goals and the veracity of its membership claims.
Can you give an actual source of what you two are saying? Can it be someone who isn't blanatly opposing the VOTF and who isn't the catholic church?
The article linked to the third citation does not support the assertation that VOTF supports making women deacons. The liked article is to an op-ed, written by the chairman of VOTF who supports making women deacons; however, no where does he state that this is a VOTF oppinion, nor does he refference his role in VOTF. Likewise the link to the proposal that Bishops be elected, goes to the VOTF-Bridgeport, rather than the main VOTF website. There is therefor no way of knowing if this a minority position held by some VOTF charters or a view held by the entire VOTF movement.
While I did not understand User:Tucard's reversions to versions with poorer wording, that issue has been made irrelevant by some good reworking and content additions by User:Mgradel. I have chipped in as well, mostly for organization, minor POV tempering, and wording style.
There is one issue that hounds this page now though. Many of the sources are from the New York Times, and after a week or so they become subscription only. Per external links policy, those are not good links to use. Let's make an effort to replace them with ones which will stand the test of time. Otherwise, a lot of this material becomes unsourced. Baccyak4H (Yak!) 02:10, 17 July 2007 (UTC)[reply]
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I reformatted the refs to a central section at the bottom (non sequitor intended) and updated some redirects. But note that several are still subscription only. Baccyak4H (Yak!) 15:33, 8 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I have a few suggestions for change: Change the use of 'survivor' to 'victim'. Although those sexually abused have suffered genuine harm, the term 'survivor' is generally used to describe someone who faced a direct, substantial risk to their life, for example, those that escape a car accident, or a massacre or a catastrophe of some kind such as the Titanic disaster. Organisations are free in incorporate the term into their own documentation for rhetorical effect but this unique usage of the term is not generally accepted.
VOTF began when a small group of parishioners met in the basement of St. John the Evangelist church in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States, to pray over revelations that a priest has abused local youngsters.
The group demonstrated its influence in American Catholicism when it held a conference in July 2002 that attracted over 4,000 lay Catholics, survivors of clergy sexual abuse, theologians, priests and religious from around the U.S. and the world.
Jim Muller, one of VOTF's co-founders and its first president (as well as a prominent cardiologist and Nobel Peace Prize winner for his work in launching International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW)), has written a book about the group's founding called "Keep the Faith, Change the Church."
VOTF's mission statement 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." It has articulated three goals: 1. To support survivors of clergy sexual abuse; 2. To support priests of integrity; and 3. To shape structural change within Church.
Voice of the Faithful works to support victims of clergy sexual abuse and advocates that bishops should be held accountable for covering up and mishandling complaints of abuse by clergy.
VOTF advocates for structural change in the Church—in general, for lay members to have a greater voice, and especially to have financial oversight in their parishes and dioceses.
Members of the organization in several states have worked to extend the Statute of Limitations for crimes of abuse against minors - often working in opposition to the institutional Church, which has sought to block this kind of criminal reform. One of the more visible victories was the effort to extend the SOL in Massachusetts. That effort was lead by a group called the Coalition to Reform Sex Abuse Lawsbut included many prominent members of Voice of the Faithful.
A two year study conducted by Catholic University of America found that VOTF members "share a deep and highly involved commitment to their Church."[7] and the group has been endorsed by an extensive list of American Catholic theologians.[8] An article in Commonweal called the group "one of the most interesting and hopeful developments to come out of the Catholic Church’s sexual-abuse crisis."[9]
The group has hosted many speakers not in favor with the hierarchy, such as Eugene Kennedy, a long-time observer of the Roman Catholic Church, professor emeritus of psychology at Loyola University in Chicago and author of the book "The Unhealed Wound: The Church and Human Sexuality"; and Rev. Thomas P. Doyle, O.P., J.C.D., an advocate for obtaining justice for victims of sexual abuse by Catholic priests, who has been reprimanded for failing to implement liturgical guidelines.
It would be good if someone could rewrite the whole article from a NPOV if possible. I don't have enough time to do it myself, but the above points might be helpful. GuyIncognito (talk) 23:18, 9 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]
(outdent) Update 2 After almost four months of little if any discussion or editing after I tried to address the above POV concerns, I am going to take the step of removing the neutrality tag. Plaese feel free to return it, but if so please be explicit on the Talk page here why. Baccyak4H (Yak!) 14:46, 4 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]
The article should maybe explain what was the initial reaction of Voice of the Faithful when the Vatican announced a ban on gay seminarians (see Instruction Concerning the Criteria for the Discernment of Vocations with regard to Persons with Homosexual Tendencies in view of their Admission to the Seminary and to Holy Orders). As I seem to recall, Voice of the Faithful was not entirely satisfied, and some in Rome were apparently criticizing Voice of the Faithful for hypocrisy, for wanting on one hand an end to clerical pedophilia, and on the other for being slightly opposed to a ban on gay seminarians. ADM (talk) 21:25, 3 February 2009 (UTC)[reply]
The article's factual content may be correct, but the wording is very subjective and unencyclopedic for instance "shocking revelations" or "the moral, governance, and pastoral failures of Catholic bishops". Hence the POV-tag. --— Erik Jr. 00:50, 21 February 2018 (UTC)[reply]