April 26, 2002
Dear Sisters and Brothers,
            In the past week, both Boston papers featured a large, front page picture of the American cardinals seated in a semi-circle around the pope.  The Herald's stark headline, It's A Crime, obviously refers to the pope's denunciation of sexual abuse of minors as criminal - but that headline, paired with the page one photo, admits of other interpretations, too:  It's a crime that our American prelates seem to have forgotten so soon the lesson they appeared to be learning in their own dioceses - that serious discussion of and response to this crisis cannot happen without the active participation of those outside the clerical circle, and especially outside the circle of those accused of unwarranted secrecy and cover ups.  It's a crime that our church continues to confront such urgent and critical issues without the presence and participation of women.   It's a crime that this meeting did not include the participation of law enforcement personnel, medical and psychiatric professionals, social workers, survivors of abuse and their family members, and priests in parish ministry.  It's a crime that the two documents produced by this summit meeting do not contain a word of apology to survivors of abuse, their families and the church at large.   It's a crime that the second document is a letter to priests rather than to all the people of the church and to those who have been abused in particular.  It's a crime that these meetings still take place in secrecy, behind closed doors, followed by a press conference that can best be described as unprepared, inept and inconclusive.  It's a crime that the major document produced by this historic and unprecedented meeting could have been written three months ago and should have been written seventeen years ago when the National Catholic Reporter's front page story informed us that:  In cases throughout the nation, the Catholic church is facing scandals and being forced to pay millions of dollars in claims to families whose sons have been molested by Catholic priests. These are serious and damaging matters that have victimized the young and innocent and fuel old suspicions against the Catholic church and a celibate clergy. But a related and broader scandal seemingly rests with local bishops and a national episcopal leadership that has, as yet, no set policy on how to respond to these cases.  (NCR, June 7, 1985)
              It's a crime that only at their June 2002 meeting will the American bishops begin to discuss  a set of national standards which the Holy See will properly review, in which essential elements for policies dealing with the sexual abuse of minors in dioceses...in the United States are set forth.
            My comments here are not a plea for the ordination of women or for changing the discipline of celibacy.  Rather, like many of you, I look for realities that are right at hand and simpler to achieve:  the recognition of the gifts and talents of all the people of God; a humble and contrite word of apology; an acceptance, from the gathered leadership of our church, of some responsibility for harm done ; an acknowledgement that systemic dysfunction has seriously crippled the churchs mission; and an openness and trust that respects the dignity and intelligence of the people of God.
            Last week I made a brief announcement concerning the Cardinal's Annual Appeal collection which will be taken up in all parishes on the first weekend in May.  Many of you caught a lack of support for this effort in the tone and length of my announcement.  Over the last month I have also received a number of inquiries (perhaps three dozen) about the appropriateness of a financial response to the present crisis.  Two households in the parish have told me that they have stopped contributing to the parish and will not resume contributing until Cardinal Law resigns.  Three households have, at least for now, stopped payment on their pledge to our parish building campaign.  Are contributions down in our parish? 
            In general, our parish offertory collection shows only a slight decline in comparison to contributions in the same time period in 2001.  (Please note:  In the table at the top of the next page,  1st Feb refers to the first weekend in February, Ò2nd Feb to the second weekend, etc.  Also note:  those who use our envelope system know that each month, on the second weekend, an extra envelope is provided for the parish monthly collection.)
            Regular Week Parish Offertory             Parish Monthly Collection
                                    2001                2002                            2001                      2002
1st Feb                        5769                4978               
2nd Feb                      5086                5556                            3806                4107   
3rd Feb                       4614                4732
4th Feb                       5219                5628
1st Mar                       5411                5127
2nd Mar                     5208                5252                            6323                5868
3rd Mar                      5767                4944
4th Mar                      5484                5372
5th Mar                      N.A.                Easter*
 
1st Apr                       5581                5105
2nd Apr                     5868                4320                            4568                3787
3rd Apr                      Easter*           5310
4th Apr                       5491                _____              ____                _____
                                    59,498             56,324**                     14,697             13,762
                                               
*Easter                        9802                9210
(The Easter and Christmas collections support retired and sick priests and are sent to the archdiocese.  By civil and canon law, these funds cannot be used to pay settlements.  These totals are listed here for your information.)
**Note:  this total does not include this weekend, the 4th Sunday in April of 2002, but the two columns each include 11 Sundays, not counting Easter Sunday.  The difference is a decline of $3,174 over three months.  The overall difference in the parish monthly collection over the same three months is a decline of $935.
    Three e-mail messages I received this week represent some of what I am hearing in the parish:
E-mail A:  Every day I feel less hope that the resolution or at the least the start of the resolution of these issues and the beginning of the healing process is going to ever begin...  I had come to the conclusion weeks before, unfortunately, that there were only two ways that Cardinal Law would resign. Either criminal charges would be brought against him OR Catholics would withhold money from the church.   Power, i.e., money, has been a driving force is the Church for thousands of years.  If the Church has no money, it loses its power.  This has nothing to do with our faith, but with what the Church can and can't do. Granted, many wonderful programs would end and that would be a terrible thing.  So the reason for my e-mail to you is to find out how our parish finances work.  Specifically regarding the Cardinal's appeal.  Is each parish assessed an amount to donate to the appeal?  If so, if we don't make that quota, does the general parish fund have to make up the difference.  I certainly do NOT want to impact our wonderful parish, but at the same time I do not want to see money we donate for OUR parish's use to be funneled to the Cardinal.
E-mail B:  I feel strongly that withdrawing support from the Cardinal's Appeal will only hurt the most vulnerable among us. I know you are well aware that the Archdiocese of Boston is second only to the Commonwealth in providing services for the neediest among us.  It only compounds the tragedy of the Church if Catholics' response to the oversights and misdeeds of the Cardinal is to withhold the lifeblood of programs vital to those who most need our continued care and attention.   Regardless of my personal reaction to the sex abuse scandal, confused as it is by the fact that I try to be both a caring mother and a forgiving person,  I fully intend to contribute to the extent I can to the Cardinal's Appeal. I hope all of our parishioners who are able will give as well. Withholding our support may send a message to the Cardinal, but it will do so at the expense of those least able to fend for themselves.
E-mail C:  It has occurred to me that many people may want to show their displeasure with the present administration in Boston by not giving to the Cardinal's Appeal.  Only trouble is that many needy people and causes will suffer. We have decided to give our usual  amount but instead of sending it to the Cardinal, we intend to send it directly to Emmanuel House in Roxbury, a Franciscan settlement house with which we have had a long connection and which is one of the beneficiaries of the Cardinal's Appeal.  I wondered if you could print in the bulletin a list of the charities that are usually the recipients of money raised by stewardship  so that people who don't want to give to the Cardinal will have worthwhile places for their donations.
My response:
1) As your pastor, I sincerely respect the decisions individuals make, prayerfully and as a matter of conscience, regarding the stewardship of their funds in light of their responsibility to support the larger church, the local parish and,  in a particular way, the poor.
2) Monies collected by the parish (regular offertory collection, parish monthly collection, parish grand annual collection and building fund pledges) are restricted for use by the parish.  Contrary to persistent, popular opinion parishes do not send a percentage of their offertory collection to the archdiocese on any regular basis.  There are two exceptions to this rule:  (a) each parish is taxed 6% of its annual regular offertory total for the support of parochial schools throughout the archdiocese.  Our parish sends its 6% tax, by check, directly to Our Lady of Grace Parish School in Chelsea;  (b) each parish is asked to make an annual, voluntary contribution to the cathedraticum, which is a fund from which the archbishop helps charitable causes.  Our parish contributes $4,000 annually to this fund.  By civil and canon law, monies collected for the cathedraticum cannot be used for the payment of settlements.
            Special collections designated for particular purposes (e.g., the annual, national Campaign for Human Development; the collection for Home and Indian Missions, etc.) and for relief from natural disasters are forwarded from the parish to the archdiocese and from there to the appropriate agencies and Catholic Relief Services.  By civil and canon law, monies collected for these purposes cannot be used for the payment of settlements.
3)  Each parish is assigned a goal for the annual Cardinal's Appeal collection.  Parishes which do not achieve their assigned goal from voluntary contributions are not required to make up the difference.  By civil and canon law, monies contributed to the Cardinal's Appeal cannot be used for the payment of settlements.
4) A parish savings are deposited in either:  (a) the archdiocesan Revolving Loan Fund, from which poorer parishes can take out loans at 7% interest, and from which depositing parishes earn 7% interest; and (b) the archdiocesan Common Investment Fund, a kind of mutual fund from which the parish earns income as the stock market fluctuates.  By civil and canon law, monies deposited in the Revolving Loan Fund and the CIF cannot be used for the payment of settlements.
5) The Vatican does not bale out dioceses in financial trouble.  Several dioceses in the US have been on the verge of bankruptcy due to payment of claims and settlements in sexual abuse cases but none was rescued by Rome.  In such dioceses, help came from wealthy contributors and funds from the sale of diocesan properties.  So it will be, I believe, in the Archdiocese of Boston.  The popular notion that a portion of one's offering on Sunday morning goes right to the chancery, and that a portion of that is sent to Rome is simply not true - nor, to my knowledge, has it ever been true.
6) At this point in time it is perhaps very unfortunate that the annual archdiocesan appeal is known as the Cardinal's Appeal  This annual fund raising effort might be better named, The Catholic Peoples Appeal for People in Need: a collection taken up by the church, for the church. While it is, indeed, the archbishop who makes the appeal, he does so on behalf of more than 80 programs, ministries and agencies of the church of Boston, including, but not exhausted by, the following:  social service programs that care for the marginalized; archdiocesan religious education programs; campus ministry for college students; programs for parish renewal; support for construction and renovation projects; spiritual development programs; adult education programs; the apostolate for the deaf; the Archdiocesan Institute for Lay Ministry;  the Office of AIDS Ministry; the Institute for Pastoral Ministry; the Ecumenical Commission; outreach to ethnic groups and immigrants (including the Irish Pastoral Center, the Haitian Social Service Center, El Centro de Cardinal, Emmanuel House, and the Laboure Center); the Family Life Apostolate; Health Care Ministry; inner city parishes; the Irish Pastoral Center for immigrants; the Lay Volunteer Office; the Office for Black Catholics; prison ministry; the Pro-Life Office.
7) In the present circumstances, financial support of the church has become a two sided coin, raising the question, Does my support of the church's ministries imply my support of a church administration which I choose not to support?  My response to this is a paraphrase of what Jesus said when he was handed the coin for the Roman tax and asked if it was lawful to pay it:  render to the people of God what belongs to them, and to the administration of the church what belongs to it.  
            I repeat what I noted above:   I sincerely respect the decisions individuals make, prayerfully and as a matter of conscience, regarding the stewardship of their funds in light of their responsibility to support the larger church, the local parish and,  in a particular way, the poor. 
            This Sunday night, April 28, at 7:00 p.m. in the church hall, we will have another listening session.   I will facilitate the session along with Dr. David Gleason, a parishioner and clinical psychologist, who will be available as a resource person.  Join us!
            In the press and in our parish bulletin you may have read about the group forming at St. John Parish in Wellesley:  Voice of the Faithful (VOTF).  If you visit their website (www.voiceofthefaithful.org) you will learn that The VOTF Mission 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.   The three goals of VOTF are:  to support people who have been abused; to support priests of integrity;  to shape institutional change in the church.  The VOTF e-mail list has grown from 1600 to 2550 people this past week and includes people from all over the United States and 18 countries around the world.  The website continues its explosive growth as over 13,000 Catholics have visited the website this month.
            Donna Selacuse of our parish has been attending meetings of Voice of the Faithful in Wellesley and will give a brief overview of that group's efforts at our listening session this Sunday evening.  If you are interested in helping to form such a group in our parish, please come to a meeting this Wednesday evening, May 1, at 7:30 p.m. in the church hall.   In next week's bulletin you will find more information about this group and about our beginning a chapter of Voice of the Faithful here at Our Lady Help of Christians Parish.   (For the record:  Voice of the Faithful is not the organization which you may have read or heard about this weekend whose goal is forming an association of Parish Pastoral Councils and against which the Cardinal has spoken.)
                                                                                       Sincerely,
                                                                                       Fr. Fleming
 
For your information:
Cardinal Bernard Law
2101 Commonwealth Avenue
Brighton, MA  02135

***************************************************

Come, Holy Spirit,
and renew the face of the earth!
 
May 12, 2002
 
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
            There is an old custom of praying a novena (9 days of prayer) in preparation for the celebration of Pentecost (sometimes called the birthday of the church) which is the last of the 50 days of the Easter Season.  The Pentecost novena begins on the day after Ascension Thursday. This year Ascension Thursday falls on May 9. On Ascension Thursday we will celebrate Mass at 9:15 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.  (Saint Bernard Parish will celebrate Mass for the Ascension on Wednesday, May 8, at 5:30 p.m., and on Thursday, May 9 at 7:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon.)  
            The coming feast of Pentecost and its novena of preparation offer us a unique opportunity to pray for the church in these troubled times.  This brochure offers prayers for a novena which this year would begin on May 10.  Let us join together in prayer for the coming of God's healing Spirit upon  the church.          
            This novena may be prayed alone, by a family, or by a group of friends or neighbors.  If prayed by a group, a leader might pray the bold print call to prayer, while individuals share in announcing each of the  intercessions.  All  pray aloud the concluding Come, Holy Spirit and Our Father.                                                                               
                                                                                                Sincerely,
                                                                                                Fr. Fleming
  Novena Prayer
 
(Call to prayer:  Leader)
Gracious God,
prepare us for the celebration of Pentecost
and to receive the gifts of your Holy Spirit
as we pray...
For the healing of
the hearts, the minds and the memories
of those who have been abused,
and for the healing of their families and friends,
let us pray to the Lord...
For the healing of the whole church:
for the people of God
and for those who serve them in ministry,
let us pray to the Lord...
For a spirit of repentance in the hearts of those
who have been unfaithful in their ministry,
let us pray to the Lord...
For the protection and safety of children,
everywhere and at all times,
let us pray to the Lord...
For a just and healing resolution
of this crisis in the life of our church,
let us pray to the Lord...
For the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
for the spirit of right judgment and courage,
and for the spirit of knowledge and reverence,
let us pray to the Lord...
For the sweet fruits of the Holy Spirit to nourish us in our Christian lives:
for love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity,
faithfulness, gentleness and self-control,
let us pray to the Lord...
For a spirit of wonder and awe in God's presence:
to deepen our life of prayer and lead us to live holy lives,
let us pray to the Lord...
For a new Pentecost in the life of our church:
for leadership which serves and for service which leads,
let us pray to the Lord...
For the guidance of the Holy Spirit:
to strengthen the mission of the church,
to make bold our proclamation of the gospel,
to deepen our commitment to the poor,
and to bring peace among the nations of the world,
let us pray to the Lord...
 
(All)
Come, Holy Spirit!
Come with healing to make whole
the lives of those who have been hurt;
come with justice to make right our wrongs;
come with strength to make safe our lives;
come with fire to make bold our faith.
Come with peace to calm our fears
and grace to mend your people's hearts.
Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful
and kindle within us the fire of your love.
Send forth your Spirit and change our hearts
that you might renew the face of the earth.
Our Father...

****************
May 17, 2002
Dear Sisters and Brothers,
            This weekend marks the 29th anniversary of my ordination to the priesthood.  I was ordained on Saturday morning (May 19) and presided at mass for the first time the next day which, in 1973, was Pentecost Sunday, as it is this year.  Two things have my attention this weekend.  First, I confess to no small amount of dissatisfaction with the Lord who, for reasons unfathomable to me, has taken my mother and father home to himself when I surely believe they should be alive and well and driving to Concord this weekend to celebrate this anniversary with me.  My father died when I was in my first assignment in Wollaston.  My mother was hospitalized days after I arrived at Our Lady Parish in March 1994 and never came home again before her death in October of that year.   That my parents share in this, my happiest assignment, from their box seats in heaven does not make me miss any less their presence in the pews of our church.   
            The other reality that focuses my attention on this anniversary weekend is the one that rivets all of us to the daily news.  As I have said to some of you:  these are horrific and amazing times in the life of our church.  The unfolding story is sad beyond belief and comprehension.  I pray that the unfolding opportunity for grace and growth will be equal to the task before us: the healing of the abused, of the whole church, and the building up of what has been so seriously wounded within and among us.
            I take heart in how Catholic people have responded both here in our parish and in the church at large.  The response of the people of our church has revealed clearly how deep is their faith in the heart of who we are:  the gospel of Jesus, his presence among us in the sacraments, and the mission he shares with us to bring good news to the poor.  I take heart in the formation of Voice of the Faithful as an important way for many to reach out and to begin the work of healing and rebuilding.  I take heart in the continuing formation of the Priests Forum which will hold an important organizational meeting on June 7.  I take heart in the initiative of Boston College as it makes plans to address the crisis and its implications through the gifts and ministry of the academic community.  I take heart every time I walk into our parish church and find you gathered to celebrate the sacrament which makes us one in Christ.
            On May 19, 1973, I placed my hands in the hands of Cardinal Humberto Medeiros and promised him and his successors my obedience and respect.  Every priest does this at his ordination.  In this spring time when many clerics are celebrating their ordination anniversaries, I ask you to pray for us that we priests find faithful, creative, sincere and genuine ways to live out the promise we made for the sake of the gospel and the building up of the body of Christ.
                                                                                    Sincerely,
                                                                                    Fr. Fleming
********************

May 30, 2002
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
 
            I have attended the last two meetings of our parish chapter of Voice Of The Faithful (VOTF).  The history of our chapter finds its roots in the experience of a woman from our parish who was attending VOTF meetings at St. John Parish in Wellesley and who asked to share her experience at our last listening session (April 28).  It was clear that evening that others from our parish had also been to the Wellesley meetings, while still others knew a great deal about VOTF from its website (www.voiceofthefaithful.org).  At that listening session, those present decided to meet again to discuss the possibility of VOTF in our parish.   Some 65 people came to that first meeting and subsequent meetings have drawn 50 or more each week.  A smaller group serves as a steering committee.
            The mission statement of VOTF 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.    The three goals of VOTF are:  (1) Support those who have been abused;  (2) Support priests of integrity;  and (3) Shape structural change within Church.
            The meetings of our chapter of VOTF draw newcomers every week both from our parish and from neighboring parishes.  The meeting begin and end with prayer.  At each meeting there is a brief overview of VOTF;  an opportunity for those present, especially newcomers, to share the reasons for their presence; and more recently an opportunity to participate in working groups related to the organizationÕs mission and goals.
            I encourage you to come to a meeting of VOTF.  There are no strings attached.  You will not be required to speak - you may simply come and listen.  It is clear that the end of the story of the crisis is not around the corner.  Those who have been abused are in need of healing, and indeed, the whole church is in need of healing.  It has been said that the first sin was the abuse of children, that the second sin was the cover-up, and that the third sin will be our failure to respond.  I am not suggesting that VOTF is the only way to respond, but I can tell you that it is one way to respond, and that at VOTF meetings you will meet others who share your hurt, your deep disappointment, your questions and your desire to act.
            It was just about a year ago that I was out sick for 7 weeks with Graves disease, a disease of hyperactivity in my thyroid.  Last week I had a treatment of radioactive iodine.  The treatment itself was simple:  three outpatient visits to Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.  On day one my throat was read by a Geiger counter and I took a test dose (a pill) of the radioactive iodine.  On day two my throat was again read by the Geiger counter to see how my thyroid had responded to the test dose.  On day three I returned for the actual dose (another pill) and was once again read by a Geiger counter.  Each day's treatment lasted any where from 1-3 minutes!  The rush hour drive each morning and the parking garage fees were the only bad side effects of my treatment - I'm grateful that it was so easy.  In a month or so I will be checked to see how what the iodine has done to my thyroid.  As always, I thank you for your prayer and your concern.
            I should note here that because the church hall had been previously booked for another purpose, our VOTF chapter will not meet this week.  Our next meeting will be held on Wednesday, June 12.  (See bulletin for more details.)
                                                                                                            Sincerely,
                                                                                                            Fr. Fleming
 ************************
 
  A Novena for the Bishops of the United States
 
The bishops of the United States will meet in Dallas from June 13 -15.
A large part of their agenda will be the work of responding to the crisis in the church occasioned by the sexual abuse of children by Catholic clergy.
This novena begins on Friday, June 7, and concludes on Saturday, June 15,
 the last day of the bishopsÕ meeting.  A special prayer intention for each day
is listed below, along with the Novena Prayer to be said on each of the nine days.
 
Friday, June 7 - Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus
Let us pray today that our bishops will turn to the just and compassionate heart of Jesus as the model for their ministry and their response to the faithful, especially those who have been abused...
 
Novena Prayer
God of our Lord Jesus Christ,
though your people walk in the valley of darkness, no evil should they fear,
for they follow in faith the call of the Good Shepherd
whom you have sent for their hope and their strength.
Guide our bishops with the power of your Holy Spirit
and enlighten their minds and hearts with your wisdom and counsel.
Attune their minds to the sound of your voice
and lead their steps along the path of your word.
Let their work be filled with contrition and compassion
as they seek a just resolution and loving response to the burdens our church bears.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.  Amen.*
 
Saturday, June 8 - Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
Let us pray today for the mothers and fathers of those who have been abused, and for their families and friends...  May Mary, the Mother of us all, show our bishops how to minister to the faithful with the tenderness of a motherÕs loving heart...
Sunday, June 9 - Tenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Let us pray for all the faithful who gather this weekend to celebrate the eucharist on the LordÕs own day...  And let us pray for our bishops whom we remember by name each time we celebrate the LordÕs supper...
 
Monday, June 10
Let us pray  for our bishops who preach the gospel as pastors of the diocesan church...  May their preaching be rooted in the scriptures and graced by the work of the Holy Spirit...
 
Tuesday, June 11 - Memorial of St. Barnabas, Apostle
Let us pray that our bishops, like Barnabas, will be faithful apostles of Jesus in whose ministry they share...  And let us pray that our bishops will welcome the ministry which belongs to the people of God by virtue of their baptism...
 
 
Wednesday, June 12
Let us pray that our bishops will be attentive to the voice of the faithful, the voice of the people of God, and that the peoplesÕ voice will be filled with the wisdom and counsel of the Holy Spirit...
 
 
Thursday, June 13 - Memorial of St. Anthony of Padua
St. Anthony is known as the patron saint of lost articles...  Let us pray for the recovery of what so many have lost through this crisis:  faith, trust, hope, and communion with the body of Christ...
 
 
Friday, June 14
Let us pray for a renewal of our bishopsÕ ministry to anoint them freshly with compassion for GodÕs people, with hunger for justice, and with zeal for the gospel of Christ...
 
 
Saturday, June 15
Let us pray for the church, that the ministry of the baptized faithful and the ministry of those ordained to serve them will be strengthened and made one in the power of GodÕs Holy Spirit...
 
*The Novena Prayer is an adaptation of the Opening Prayer for Mass on the Fourth Sunday of Easter.

*******************
 June 15, 2002
 
   Dear Brothers and Sisters,                                                                                
 
            The American bishops have approved their Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People and a set of Essential Norms for Diocesan/Eparchial Policies Dealing with Allegations of Sexual Abuse of Minors by Priests, Deacons, or Other Church Personnel.   The bishopsÕ approval came in the form of a 239-13 vote by secret ballot.  Not everyone is pleased by what the bishopsÕ meeting produced.  VictimsÕ groups, and some of the bishops, do not believe the documents are strong enough.  Other bishops and observers believe that the documents go too far.   I am glad that the bishops heard the stories of victims of abuse.  I thank God that these men and women found the courage and grace to tell their stories yet again in such a public forum.  I am surprised and pleased that the bishops invited Scott Appleby and Margaret Steinfells to address their assembly.  These two are respected voices in the American Catholic church, but certainly the bishops knew that their remarks would be openly critical as well as intelligent and theologically sound.  One of the greatest outcomes of this meeting is the establishment of a special lay commission to address the crisis of confidence in our church.  Governor Frank Keating of Oklahoma has accepted an invitation to chair this commission.  His words in an op-ed piece in todayÕs New York Times are striking and strong:
 
            The first task of the commission will be to ensure that the policies stated in the charter are carried out, with no exceptions or excuses... I applaud the bishops for adopting this charter, but like so many Catholic laymen (sic), I am aware that many of these problems are self-inflicted.  In far too many cases, leaders in the highest positions of trust and responsibility were passive accomplices to the violation of that trust and avoided any responsibility...  It has been reported that as many as two-thirds of the diocesan leaders in the church have been complicit in transferring abusive priests, paying secret Òhush moneyÓ settlements to victims or engaging in activities that allowed problems to continue.  This is unacceptable for leaders of an institution that is supposed to adhere to a rigorous moral code, and which demands from its believers personal accountability and repentance for sin...   I envision the commission as apart from the conference of bishops, answering first of all to the laity we represent...   I agree... that bishops must be held accountable for what has occurred -and for what will occur- on their watch.  The commission will see to that.  In any case where a bishop is found to have provable knowledge of illegal activities committed by a priest under his charge, and where that bishop knowingly covered up such activities, he should also be held legally accountable as an accessory to the crimes involved.  The commission is capable of calling the publicÕs attention to bishops who do not follow the guidelines adopted yesterday, and we intend to do so.   (NYT, 6/15/02, p. A29)
 
            What is most striking about the formation of the commission and Governor KeatingÕs remarks is that this is an indication that the American Catholic bishops may develop a relationship with a body outside its own structures, a body charged with critique of church policy and those who administer it, and a body composed of lay men and women:  the voice of some of the faithful.
 
            Will change happen?  Certainly changes are being made in the way our church responds to the crime and sin of sexual abuse of minors.  Will deeper systemic change take place in the life of the church in response to a host of issues including but much more extensive than the present crisis?  I donÕt know the answer to that question.  I do know that I do not look to the bishops or the Vatican to be the source or catalyst of systemic change.  Governor KeatingÕs commission, as valuable as I believe it will be, is charged with specific tasks and cannot be expected to accomplish tasks beyond its mission.  In 3, 5 or 10 years from now we might look back and see that while our churchÕs response to sexual abuse has changed,  everything else is pretty much business as usual.  In fact, I believe, the stage is set for just such a reality, and if that is the case,  then we will have only ourselves to blame.   Watching C-Span, reading the newspapers and parish bulletins, chatting about Òthe churchÓ over coffee or at soccer games is simply not enough.   If the bishops of our country do not hear loud and clear and consistently from their people and their pastors that our church is in need of deep healing and reform, then it will be easy for those who are blind to those needs to ride out the rough seas in which we find ourselves until things calm down. 
 
            I do not believe that we can wait for our bishops to initiate such systemic change but we do need to make every effort to work with them and not against them or around them.  Nor can you, the laity, rely on pastors to carry this standard alone, for without you their ministry and their call for change is empty.  We pastors cannot dump all this in the lap of the laity, hoping that you'll take it on the chin while we protect our relationship with the bishop.  Finally, we cannot expect the group, Voice of the Faithful, to go out there and be a voice for the rest of us who stay home and grumble to one another, hoping that someone else will do the hard work:  WE are the faithful, all of us, and OUR voices, everyone of them, need to be heard.
 

Sincerely,

Fr. Fleming

***********************************

June 29, 2002

Dear Brothers and Sisters,
    This week the archdiocese announced that Fr. Jim Nyhan of St. Mary Parish in Billerica and Fr. Ron Bourgault of St. Zepherin Parish in Wayland had been placed on administrative leave pending investigation of allegations against them concerning the sexual abuse of minors.
The language of these announcements is obviously coached by archdiocesan attorneys and, sadly, the phrasing is becoming recognizable and predictable.  But, for me, there was something different about this press release.  One of the two priests, Fr. Jim Nyhan, is a classmate of mine from the seminary.  For eight years at Cardinal O’Connell Seminary in Jamaica Plain and St. John Seminary in Brighton (college and graduate school), Jim and our classmates and I lived in the same buildings, attended the same classes, ate the same food, participated in the same liturgies, made fun of the same professors - we even dressed alike: first in cassocks and then in clerical shirts and collars.   
    I have known Jim Nyhan for 37 years.  We are not best friends but we are classmates and brother priests.  Nothing I know about Jim would have led me to think that he was capable of what he stands accused of doing. 
    I’m not altogether sure why I’m writing this to you...  Perhaps it’s  because Jim’s name is not simply a name in the news to me but rather the name of someone who shared in my eight long years of preparing for ordination to the priesthood.  Perhaps I’m writing because this tears me up - and I simply need to share it with you.
    As you have read in the papers, Jim was accused of abuse some years ago but the accuser recanted and apologized.  That happened in the days of silence about such things and the first I heard of it was this past week.   Jim is the pastor of St. Mary’s in Billerica where Fr. Jack White lived for a time and you will recall that Jack White’s name is often linked with that of Fr. Paul Shanley.   The circumstances are certainly unhappy ones on many sides...  If I did not know Jim as I do, I would probably jump to the same conclusions I’m sure some people have already reached.  And now I have to ask myself if I really know a man I never had any reason to doubt.
    I pray for Dennis LaCorte, the man who has made the allegation against my classmate.   If the allegation is proved to be true I will pray for Mr. LaCorte’s healing and recovery, and for Jim whose ministry as a priest will be terminated.  And if the allegation is proved to be false? The archdiocesan press release states: “Should the allegation prove to be groundless, efforts will be made to restore the priest’s reputation.”  Efforts will be made...
    Please pray with me for all victims of sexual abuse.
    And please pray with me for all priests.
                                Sincerely,
                                Fr. Fleming
P.S. 
Many have asked for a copy of the prayer of Archbishop Desmond Tutu which I used in my homily last week:
Goodness is stronger than evil; love is stronger than hate;
light is stronger than darkness; life is stronger than death.
Victory is ours, victory is ours through him who loved us.
 
**************************
 July 20, 2002

Dear Brothers and Sisters,                                                
    It was last year, in the summer of 2001, that it occurred to me that a summer schedule of three Masses per weekend might serve our parish needs during the season when so many of our parishioners are away on vacation.   Our weekend population dips every summer but I know that some parishioners are absent from Sunday worship and church activities because of the crisis in the church.  My sense about this, drawn from conversation and correspondence, is that people have withdrawn in response to and not so much in protest of what has been revealed about sexual abuse of minors by priests and bishops.  I am not hearing people say, “I’m never coming back again”  -or  “I’m going to find another church,”  although I know from the media that’s  what some people are deciding and doing. Rather, what I’m hearing is more along the lines of, “I just can’t go to church right now...”    -or-   “I need some time away to think this through...”   -or-  “I’m not sure how to handle this because I have young children...”   -or-   “I’m pleased that our parish is being open about this, but even that’s not enough for me right now...”
    I’d be less than honest if I told you that the absence of these parishioners doesn’t weigh heavily on my heart and mind.  But I believe I understand.  One couple, parents of young children, told me that they are “recoiling” from the church in light of the scandal, but not looking for somewhere else to go.  I understand their feelings, their mistrust of the church, and the place in which they find themselves.  I understand that they, and others with them, will need to discern their own responses and reactions to the crisis and (I hope and pray) their own paths of return to the church, a church that has angered and disappointed all of us.
    Although I know that some who have taken a “leave of absence” remain as  “virtual parishioners” by reading my letters and homilies on the parish website, I know that there are others who may no longer be in touch with the parish.  I hope that you who read this letter might pass it on to someone you know who finds it difficult or even impossible right now to join us on Sundays for prayer.  To these sisters and brothers I want to say:
    I miss you!  I believe I understand your absence and I hope and pray for your return every day.  I want you to know that our parish is doing everything it can to respond honestly and openly to the crisis in the church.  Our parish was the first to establish a local chapter of the growing association known as Voice of the Faithful. More than 50 people from the Concord VOTF will be attending the National Conference at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston this weekend.  The collection of my homilies and letters on the crisis is now 68 pages long, and still growing.  We are most open to hearing from anyone new ideas and suggestions on how we might better respond to the crisis as a parish community.  As pastor, I would be more than willing to meet with individuals or groups of people who might want to address these issues with me.  I understand at least some of the reasons why you may be choosing to stay away right now - there are days, and weekends, when I wish I could go away, too.  I pray that you will find whatever healing, strength or grace you might need to help you come back and be with us again for Sunday prayer.  If the parish can help, if I can help,  please know that we are here for you.   My words here are not about “the obligation to attend Sunday Mass” but rather about the strength we can offer each other in gathering as a community of faith.   We need each other - especially in these troubled and troubling times.  I want you to know that when you come back, as I hope you will, all of us will be stronger for your presence and participation.  We miss you, we need you, and we pray for you - please pray for us, too!
    I am most grateful for your passing this letter along to others...
                                Sincerely,
                                FrAustinFleming@aol.com
                                1404 Main St., Concord, MA  01742

********************************
 August 3, 2002

Dear Sisters and Brothers,                                             
    Last week the bulletin included an insert of two pages of comments from those who attended the national convention of Voice of the Faithful on July 20.  As you may know, VOTF  began at St. John Parish in Wellesley last February.  While the organization has spread to 36 states and 7 countries around the world, our parish was the first to begin a chapter or “parish voice” group.  Because ours is the only parish voice in the immediate vicinity, its members have named the chapter: Concord Area Voice of the Faithful at Our Lady Help of Christians Parish.  The final count reveals that 62 people from the Concord Area VOTF attended the convention.
    If you took the time to read the many comments on the insert in last week’s bulletin you know that they were all positive.  Having also attended the convention, I would add my positive reaction to the day along with the others.  Perhaps you read things in the press, however, that made you wonder about: VOTF; who participated in the convention; and our parish being part of the whole venture.  I am not so naive as to think that everyone in our parish is in favor of VOTF in general or in our parish having a chapter in particular, but  neither have I received any criticism of these efforts.  I would like to respond to what may be the concerns some have.
    In attendance at the July 20 convention were representatives from several groups who take stands opposed to some of the teachings of the Catholic church.  There was no “orthodoxy check” at the doors to the Hynes Center, just as there is no orthodoxy check at the doors of our parish on Sunday morning.  Most gatherings of Catholics for worship, including our own community, will have within them a spectrum of beliefs and understandings of what it means to be Catholic.  You may have read that one group at the Hynes was handing out flyers encouraging people to boycott Mass on a particular Sunday in September.  This was not endorsed by VOTF which has never encouraged people not to worship.  While some of the speakers also belong to groups which have taken stands that question church teachings, VOTF takes no such stands on the so-called “hot button” issues the church faces.  While some of those present at the VOTF convention  disagree with some church teachings, I would be surprised if all of those disagreements are not also reflected in the population of our own parish community.  In both cases (at the Hynes on July 20, and in our parish on any given Sunday) those assembled are a gathering of Catholics who sincerely want to belong to the church and to work towards a church life that is founded on the gospel, shaped by tradition, and guided by the Holy Spirit.
    July 20 was not a hotbed of dissent - it was, rather, a day of great faith and hope for the Catholic church.  Over all, the 4,200+  participants presented a vibrant picture of the Catholic church alive and well and living through very troubled times with hope for the future and with a serious desire to reach out to those who have been abused.
    And now for something completely different!  A few weeks ago at the 10:30 Mass I asked if folks would like to celebrate Mass outdoors, on the sloping lawn, some Sunday this summer.  A number of folks (30-40) raised their hands in the affirmative.  I then asked how many would think that’s not a good idea, and about a dozen folks raised their hands.  More people have spoken to me since then to say they support the idea and so we’re going to give it a try on Sunday, August 25, weather permitting.  I trust that this gives enough notice for those who may want to choose another time for worship that weekend.  Following our Mass on the lawn, we’ll have a parish cookout: burgers and dogs, chips and drinks, and dessert.  Please sign up so we will know how many buns to buy!  Folding chairs will be available for any who might find them helpful.  EVERYONE ELSE:  bring a blanket!
                                Sincerely,
                                Fr. Fleming

*******************************
August10, 2002

Dear Sisters and Brothers,      
          
Last week I wrote:
In attendance at the July 20 Voice of the Faithful (VOTF) national convention were representatives from several groups who take stands opposed to some of the teachings of the Catholic church.  There was no orthodoxy check at the doors to the Hynes Center, just as there is no orthodoxy check at the doors of our parish on Sunday morning.  Most gatherings of Catholics for worship, including our own community, will have within them a spectrum of beliefs and understandings of what it means to be Catholic.  You may have read that one group at the Hynes was handing out flyers encouraging people to boycott Mass on a particular Sunday in September.  This was not endorsed by VOTF which has never encouraged people not to worship.  While some of the speakers also belong to groups which have taken stands that question church teachings, VOTF takes no such stands on the so-called hot button issues the church faces.  While some of those present at the VOTF convention  disagree with some church teachings, I would be surprised if all of those disagreements are not also reflected in the population of our own parish community.  In both cases (at the Hynes on July 20, and in our parish on any given Sunday) those assembled are a gathering of Catholics who sincerely want to belong to the church and to work towards a church life that is founded on the gospel, shaped by tradition, and guided by the Holy Spirit.  July 20 was not a hotbed of dissent - it was, rather, a day of great faith and hope for the Catholic church.  Over all, the 4,200+  participants presented a vibrant picture of the Catholic church alive and well and living through very troubled times with hope for the future and with a serious desire to reach out to those who have been abused.
    One person asked if I was saying that it doesn’t matter whether a person agrees or disagrees with church teaching.  Yes, it matters and sometimes it matters a great deal.  If these realities did not matter they would not be of concern or consequence.    It is certainly not my interest to downplay or soft peddle the importance of church teaching but neither will I join in a witch hunt which smugly points to the presence of some heterodox participant on a program featuring more than 60 speakers in order to condemn the whole enterprise.  A telling example of this is an opinion piece by the editor of the archdiocesan paper, The Pilot, labeled and masquerading as a column of news “analysis” in the July 26 edition.  (This column can be found by following a link on the Archdiocese of Boston website at www.rcab.org.  And for another example of stunningly poor journalism, see the lead editorial in the same edition.)
    I am neither defending those who disagree with church teaching,  nor mounting a defense of their right to disagree: neither is my business here.   I am defending VOTF as an organization which has studiously avoided disagreement with church teaching and has worked hard to base its mission and goals on the teachings of the church as taught in the documents of Vatican Council II.  I am also saying that disagreement with church teaching abounds and that even Catholics who agree with every church teaching have learned how to live, work and worship with those who do not.
    I believe it is fair to say that many more than half the conversations I have with people as a Catholic priest involve discussion of their questioning, disputing or disagreeing with some aspect of church doctrine or discipline.  My regular experience of such conversations is that they are helpful on both sides when the two parties can openly speak to each other from their own points of view.  When either side becomes dogmatic or polemic, the potential for learning, sharing and growth diminishes quickly.
    Our parish is filled with people who agree with and who disagree with various aspects of church teaching and discipline.  We live, work and worship together as one community of faith.   Living with the tension between agreement and disagreement has at least the benefit of keeping all of us more faithful to searching out the truth and interested in understanding it more deeply.
         Sincerely,
         Fr. Fleming
  
*******************************

August 17, 2002

Dear Brothers and Sisters,
    I am pleased to tell you that Claudette Chmura has joined our parish staff as Coordinator of Religious Education for grades K-5.  Last year, Colleen Brennan served as Coordinator of grades K-8 and we are most grateful for the wonderful work she did.  Colleen will continue as Coordinator of our middle school program (6-8).   After Labor Day, in the bulletin, I will introduce Claudette to you at greater length.  If you have questions or concerns regarding religious education in grades K-5, please call Claudette at the parish office at 978-369-2810.
    Judy Dolan, who has worked in our parish office for the past three years, is leaving the parish staff.  Many of you have been warmly welcomed and assisted by Judy and know what a gracious presence and great help she has been on the parish staff.  I am grateful for Judy’s faithful service and join you in promising her our prayer and best wishes.
    As I announced last week at Mass, we have found it necessary to cancel our plans for an outdoor Mass and cookout which we had hoped to have on August 25.  The hillside lawn of the church has been chewed up as part of the process of connecting our new parish ministry center to the water main on Church street.
    I will be away on vacation for the better part of the next two weeks.  Fr. George Winchester, SJ, will be here to preside and preach at Masses on the weekend of August 24/25, and I will be back for Labor Day weekend.  Please note that our summer schedule for Sunday Mass continues through Labor Day weekend.

    In last week’s letter to you, I criticized Antonio Enrique, editor of The Pilot for his August 26 column of “analysis” of the Voice of the Faithful Convention and his lead editorial in which he reported that Cardinal Law’s name was greeted by boo’s each time it was mentioned at the convention.  Having been present to the VOTF July 20 gathering for the whole day, I can report that I do not recall Cardinal Law’s name being mentioned even once by any of the speakers.  I can also report to you that during the course of the day I did not hear any name, church office, or cause greeted by even a single boo.  Red Sox fans may have a particularly derogatory way of greeting the Yankees, but  the VOTF meeting of over 4,200 people was held at the Hynes Auditorium, not Fenway Park, and the tenor of the day was consistently, above the boorish.
    Last week’s editorial in The Pilot (8/9) quotes Governor Frank Keating whom the American bishops appointed, at their Dallas meeting, as chair of the National Review Board on Sexual Abuse.  Here is an excerpt from the editorial, entitled “Is Keating For Real?”:
    Speaking to (WHDH Channel 7 reporter Dan) Hausle, Keating said that Catholics unhappy with their bishop should take action.
    “That’s a time for the lay community of that diocese to say we are not going to write another check, we are not going to go to Mass in this diocese.  In effect a strike, if you wish, a sit down until things change,” Keating said... 
    (Keating’s) well known, non-nonsense attitude may play well in the secular media, but there are certain things that are not admissible in the Church.  For a Church appointed leader to publicly orchestrate a kind of protest that would call for the faithful to stop contributions or, worse, to boycott Sunday Mass -in effect calling all Catholics in a diocese to commit a mortal sin- is just surreal.
        Let’s be real, here, and honest, too!  It is not a sin of any kind to make a decision, in prayerful conscience, about how one will fulfill the Christian obligation to support the work of the church. It is not a sin of any kind to cross a parish or diocesan boundary to pray at Sunday Mass.  And although it may not be sinful to editorially threaten readers “under pain of mortal sin” to agree with a particular point of view, it certainly borders on abuse of editorial privilege to do so.
        Something is becoming more and more clear to your pastor and this may reveal my naivete as much as it threatens my hope for the future.  What is becoming clear to me is that, by and large, our church administration’s respect for the laity and its announced desire for some kind of partnership with them in carrying out the mission of the gospel quickly tumbles back to a defensive position of unilateral authority as soon as the people of the church speak in terms that even hint of questioning the status quo.   When the editor of The Pilot writes that “there are certain things that are inadmissible in the Church,” I have to wonder if he believes that  things as simple as difference of opinion and diversity in approach are inadmissible realities among Catholic people in conversation with each other and with their bishops.
    With the scandal of sexual abuse and its cover up so plainly set before us, and with the need for transparency and dialogue so critically evident,  it is deeply disheartening to think that many of those in authority have a fundamental mistrust of the voice, the mind, the ideas, the concerns and the wisdom of the people of God.  For the editor of The Pilot to charge Governor Keating with leading the faithful into mortal sin is evidence enough for me that Mr. Enrique is among those whose trust in the people of God hangs on their subservience to the hierarchy - which, of course, is not trust at all.
    But the most demoralizing news of the week is the story of the Nash family in Franklin, about which you may have read in the newspapers.  In 1984, Mr. Nash wrote to (then) Archbishop Law with a lengthy, pleading, graphically detailed letter, alleging that a priest in his parish had twice sexually accosted his wife - once in the rectory, and once in the Nash family home while the three Nash children watched TV in  another room and while Mr. Nash was in Florida at his father’s funeral, when the priest in question made an unsolicited visit. Mr. Nash wrote to the Cardinal that both the local pastor and the regional bishop failed to provide comfort or assistance when they were approached but, instead, asked detailed questions about Mrs. Nash’s sexual and psychiatric history and said that if the story were true then Mrs. Nash would need to take some responsibility for having acted provocatively.  Mr. Nash wrote to his archbishop pleading for intervention and pastoral assistance - not for a financial settlement.  Here is the complete text of the Cardinal’s response to Mr. Nash:
    This is to acknowledge your personal and confidential letter to me concerning Rev. Anthony J. Rebeiro, priest of the Archdiocese of Boston.  As you must know, my knowledge of this case is not complete.  After some consultation, I find that this matter is something that is personal to Fr. Rebeiro and must be considered such.  At the same time, however, I am very much concerned about the Church’s pastoral relationship with you, your wife and family.  I ask that you be in contact with your Pastor, Fr. Boivin, in order to reestablish a healthy and spiritually productive relationship with the center of your spiritual life at St. Mary Parish in Franklin.  Please keep me in your prayers and know that you and your family are in mine.
    I have included a good deal of detail here, not because I want to make a tabloid column of this venue, but because I want you all to understand what I’m referring to when I tell you that this story is a turning point for me as we live through this crisis.  At Easter time, I encouraged you to write to the Cardinal, to tell him where you stand on these issues.  Seventy-five people handed me letters to send in a package to the Cardinal.  (I have no way of knowing how many people mailed letters to the cardinal on their own.)  My own letter formed the “cover” of that package of letters from our parish which also included my homilies and weekly letters from late January to mid-April.  At that time I wrote to the cardinal: 
    “In my weekly letters I have always tried to help the people in my parish understand better and appreciate more deeply different aspects of church life and teaching.  Very often I have tried to bridge the gap between “what the church says” and the experience of peoples’ day to day lives.  Over the past three months, however, I have found it increasingly difficult and now virtually impossible to bridge the gap between what is being revealed about  these issues in our church and the experience and common sense of the people of God in Concord.”
    What I felt then I feel a hundred fold now. 
    I never received a response to my letter.  To my knowledge, no one in the parish has received a response to a letter written on this subject in the last 8 months.  I’m going to write to the cardinal again.  I encourage you to write again, too, or to write for the first time.  Some will say that writing is a waste of time, that the Cardinal is not reading these letters.  I don’t know if he reads them or not, but I know that much serious harm and damage has been done by silence in the church and that all of us have a responsibility to break the silence, regardless of what our position may be.
    Next week I will write of what I know of how priests are experiencing this crisis in the church.
                                Sincerely,
                                Fr. Fleming

******************************************

 

********************************************

October 6, 2002

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Many, myself included, have been dismayed this week by the efforts of the archdiocese to keep the pastor and people of St. Michael Parish in North Andover from supporting their local chapter of Voice of the Faithful. To date, I have received no similar communication from anyone in the archdiocese. Because the archdiocese’s course of action will inevitably cause many to doubt the wisdom or propriety of our hosting a “parish Voice” here at OLHC, please bear with me as I offer, one more time, a review of the situation. Those of you with access to the internet should go to www.votf.org to visit the Voice of the Faithful Website. For quick reference here, and for those who are not online, please take a moment to read the following from the VOTF website:

Mission Statement
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.

Our Goals
1. To support those who have been abused
2. To support priests of integrity
3. To shape structural change within Church

Our Centrist Philosophy
Voice of the Faithful members represent the "great middle" of the Catholic Church — "the people in the pews." Our philosophy is "centrist," not extremist. We have joined together with the aim of restoring trust between the Catholic laity and hierarchy — and rebuilding the Church, not tearing it down.

We are also "inclusive," as Jesus was inclusive, and we seek to present this model to the Church hierarchy as an alternative to a closed and deeply flawed clerical culture. We are committed to providing an open and safe forum for ALL Catholics to freely and respectfully discuss the challenges of our Church, regardless of their views on specific issues. We take no position on any sex or gender issues and have no interest in doing so. Our goal is to bring the laity to the table of governance and guidance of the Church per the moral imperatives of Vatican II.

What Is "Structural Change"?
On the national and local levels, Voice of the Faithful's Structural Change Working Groups are developing meaningful, prayerful, and thoughtful articulations of what VOTF actually means by "shaping structural change within the Church." This is not an easy discussion, nor will answers come easily. Please consult (this website) frequently as we continue to advance the dialogue on this complex and critical issue.

To date, our dialogue has brought us this far: Voice of the Faithful is firmly committed to meaningful reform from within the Catholic Church. We do not intend or desire to found a new church. We have no interest in challenging or revising Church dogma. We have no alliances with issue-oriented interest groups. Our call for lay participation in the governance and guidance of the Church is based on the clear teachings of the Second Vatican Council, which provide a strong mandate for the laity's right and responsibility to actively guide the Church as "the People of God."

We believe that working with the hierarchy to create structural mechanisms ("structural change") through which lay Catholics can influence the temporal governance and guidance of the Church - including finances, personnel and administration at all levels - will help restore the Church to spiritual and moral health. We are convinced that the solutions to the current crisis reside largely with the whole rich spectrum of men, women and youth who live their daily lives as faithful Catholics in the real world.

I challenge anyone to find in the mission, goals, philosophy and work of VOTF a threat to orthodoxy or the equanimity of church life.

For the record: the national leadership of VOTF has publicly acknowledged some mistakes it made in screening several speakers invited to offer presentations at its national meeting on July 20, 2002. Some critics of VOTF, however, are on a campaign of what can only be called intentional false information with the aim of painting VOTF as a militant band of dissidents bent on deconstructing the church as we know it. Please refer to the information above for the simple truth about these matters.

Would you like to know what VOTF is doing at OLHC? Go to our parish website (www.olhc.org) and read through the minutes of the meetings dating back to May 1, 2002. There is nothing secretive or subversive about Voice of the Faithful - not on the local level and not on the national level. Did you know that on this past Wednesday night, some 35 people at our parish Voice meeting broke into a number of working groups responding to the mission and goals of VOTF? Did you know that they have hosted, here in our parish, presentations by victim-survivors of abuse by clergy? Do you know about the series of guest speakers our parish Voice is presenting to help anyone interested be better informed on the issues surrounding the crisis in the church? Do you know that the membership of our parish Voice includes your neighbors? the folks who sit around you in church on Sunday mornings? your lectors? your eucharistic ministers? your parish council/commission/committee members? Did you know that this is one group of people in our faith community who have found a number of ways to DO something about the crisis in the church?

At the beginning of this letter I mentioned the dismay many are experiencing because the honest efforts of good and faithful Catholic people are being impugned. An e-mail correspondent of mine wrote this week: At this point, I really want nothing to do with the institutional church. Its leaders are so off base and I am so far from being spiritually fed by any association with it... but then there is our little community in West Concord, full of the light and essence of the spirit. Is it possible to stay a part of this small community but not the larger organization? ... I am confused and frustrated about where to be now... I have received a number of comments just like this one. Here’s my response:

Our parish in West Concord is the church: this is a theological and ecclesiological truth. But our parish is not the whole church. As Cardinal Law says so often, “We are the church: together, we are the church.” The word together in that statement is crucial and it is true in the worst of times as well as in the best of times. Even if, in our own family relationships, a particular household dissociates itself from its families of origin, or from its sibling households or its children’s households, there is no denying the ties that created and bind the members of a family together - in the worst of times as well as in the best of times. The same is true of the church. The very gospel and sacraments of which we are born as a faith family call us to lives of deep and even heroic love for each other - and for all of us, together.

If we want to be a part of the church that reaches out in healing to those who have been abused;
- if we want to be part of the church that supports priests in ministry;
- if we want to be part of a church open to new ways in which the Spirit may choose to shape and
lead us;
- if we want to be a part of the church that worships in Fond des Blancs in Haiti as well as in Concord;
- if we want to be part of the church which is served through Lazarus House in Lawrence, the Family
Life Center in Roxbury, the St. Bonaventure School in New Mexico, and Spring House in Berlin;
- if we want to be a part of the church that, after the Commonwealth, is the largest provider
of social services in the state of Massachusetts;
- if we want to hand on to our children the faith that our parents and their parents, and their parents’ parents handed on to us,
then we must also find ways to be sister and brother -to be church together- with those whose words or actions may hurt, confuse, confound, frustrate or anger us. If it’s true that we find some share of “light and essence of the spirit” here in our West Concord parish, then we have a responsibility for sharing what we have with the larger church - and for recognizing that such light and spirit are our inheritance and responsibility, not our invention or possession.

Be assured that even for someone like myself whose life is tied up with all of this in particularly personal ways, these are not easy words to speak and they are not easy words to live.

These are incredibly difficult days in the life of the church, made even more difficult when the leadership of our church appears to mistrust even those who have been among the most faithful for their whole lives. “Is it possible to stay a part of this small community but not of the larger organization?” A divided Christendom is evidence that such splintering off is not only possible but has become a way of life for the many different “households” in the Christian family. But I cannot counsel us to more divisions. My heart and my faith tell me that the incredibly difficult work of resolution and reconciliation is the Spirit’s healing path to what God is asking of us who are, indeed, a wounded people.
Sincerely,Fr. Fleming

***************************************

October 10, 2002

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

The Archdiocese of Boston is preparing to implement the VIRTUS training program for adults regarding the prevention of child sexual abuse. This program will be the comprehensive vehicle for training all parish clergy, staffs, employees and volunteers in parishes and other institutions in the archdiocese. The VIRTUS program educates and trains adults in the faith community about the dangers of abuse, the warning signs of abuse, ways to prevent abuse, and methods for properly reporting suspicions of abuse. More information on the VIRTUS program is available by going to the archdiocesan website at www.RCAB.org where you can link to the Office of Child Advocacy and from there to VIRTUS.

Each parish in the archdiocese is being asked to send 5 volunteers who will be “trained to train” others in the VIRTUS program. The training of these volunteers is intensive: it includes two full days (arrive 7:45 a.m., with class from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.) The training sessions will be offered on these dates and at these sites around the archdiocese:
Oct 26/27 Mt. St. Joseph Academy, Brighton
Nov 16/17 Boston College H.S., Boston
Nov 23/24 Xaverian Brothers H.S., Westwood
Dec 7/8 Bishop Fenwick H.S., Peabody
Dec 14/15 St. Francis Parish, Medford
Jan 11/12 Marian H.S., Framingham
Jan 18/19 Marian H.S., Framingham
Feb 1/2 Central Catholic H.S., Lawrence
Feb 15/16 Central Catholic H.S., Lawrence
Feb 22/23 Xaverian Brothers H.S., Westwood
Once volunteers from a parish are trained, they will then go back into the parish and train parish administrative staff, employees and volunteers on a schedule to be determined by the parish, not later than June 2003. It is estimated that the “in parish” portion of the trainers’ work would require 24-30 hours in the course of a year. (Each volunteer trainer, like all parish employees and volunteers who work with children and the elderly, will be required to fill out a form allowing the archdiocese to do a CORI check, for the purpose of checking on past criminal offenses.)

If you are interested in being “trained as a trainer” and offering this time and service as one way to respond constructively to the crisis in the church, please call the parish office at your earliest convenience to let us know which training session fits your schedule and so that we can register you for this program.

/////////////////////////////////////

Our annual parish trip to Haiti will leave on Thursday, January 2, 2003 and return on Saturday, January 11. Is this the year that YOU will go to Haiti? There’s more information in the bulletin and I (and any of our “Haiti Alumni/ae” will be happy to answer any questions you have.

Sincerely

Fr. Fleming
******************************************

October 26, 2002

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

A number of people have asked what I think of the Vatican’s response to the American bishops’ Dallas Charter and the commission of American and Vatican bishops which will review the charter in preparation for the US bishops’ November meeting. Here’s what I think. The Dallas Charter and the particular implementation of its norms in the Archdiocese of Boston appear to ignore some although certainly not all of a priests’ rights as provided for in canon law. Let me be clear in pointing out here that such rights provided in canon law are NOT contrary to the demands of civil law in the United States. Those who believe that the Vatican (or local priests) are trying to use canon law to escape the demands of civil law are simply and deeply mistaken. I am not a canon lawyer. I usually only need to consult canon law in reference to issues around marriage. Until this year I have never needed to wonder what my rights as a priest might be in canonical terms. I am learning slowly what those rights are and I know that some of those rights have not been respected in the cases of a number of priests who have been put on administrative leave. I am NOT arguing that they should not be put on leave but I and many others have questions about the process that leads to that decision and how that decision is carried out. I did not read last week’s statement from the Vatican as an insult to survivors of clergy sexual abuse, much less as an abrogation of the great ground that survivors have claimed in their uphill battle over decades of abuse and coverup. I hope that in spite of the hurtful history around these issues that all sides would want the rights of all to be protected, particularly when the rights of the innocent may be at stake.

A number of people have asked what I think about the archdiocese’s recent response to Voice Of The Faithful. As you will recall, the archdiocese informed the pastor of St. Michael Parish in Andover that VOTF should no longer be welcomed to use parish property there for their meetings. This news appeared in the newspapers but was never communicated through the usual channels (a fax followed by a hard copy) to pastors anywhere in the archdiocese. A few days later, the archdiocese announced that the Andover VOTF indeed COULD meet at St. Michael’s and that already established chapters of VOTF could meet on parish property, but that pastors should not allow new chapters to form or use parish property. (Go figure!) Once again, this was news in the media, based on archdiocesan communication with the pastor of St. Michael’s, but again not communicated through the regular archdiocesan channels to pastors. (At a meeting this week with priests [see next paragraph] the cardinal indicated that he wanted more communication with VOTF and was beginning to believe that he could accept the language of VOTF’s third goal concerning church reform, which goal he has heretofore considered problematic.)

A number of people have asked what I think of the meetings Cardinal Law held this past week (one in Medway, one in Arlington) with the priests of the archdiocese. Sharing with you my comments to the cardinal at the Arlington meeting will give you a sense of my thoughts. I told the cardinal (and the approximately 400 other priests there): “This meeting is giving me a disturbing sense of deja vu. This meeting sounds like the Archdiocesan Convocation last March when the members of parish pastoral and financial councils spoke openly and critically to their archbishop. It sounds like the listening sessions in parishes around the archdiocese last winter. It sounds like the regional meetings the cardinal had with priests following last January’s breaking stories on sexual abuse of minors by clergy. We have indeed reached a new level of openness in criticizing our leadership - but to what end? What happens to the notes you take during these meetings, Cardinal Law? For how much longer will we work in this state of paralysis? We (pastors and priests) are supposed to be your greatest collaborators, but you have not met with us in over eight months. You said at the beginning of today’s meeting that you are ‘grateful for this opportunity’ to meet with us. What have we been waiting for? Why were none of the pastors with chapters of VOTF consulted by you or the regional bishops before getting the archdiocese into what can only be described as an embarrassing situation in the press? Why did no one call us and ask, ‘’What’s VOTF? Who is it? What are they doing in your parish? What’s happening? What do you think? What do you think we should do?’ We need to find a way to move beyond this point. It has been suggested that we need a new pastoral plan for the archdiocese to rebuild trust between you and the people and the priests. I don’t know if that’s the answer or if that can work at this point. But I do know if these kinds of meetings are all we can expect, I doubt that I would continue to attend. We must find a way to move on from here.”

A number of people have asked what I think about the cardinal’s statement at these two meetings with clergy in which he said that he has considered resignation, has prayed about it and consulted with his closest advisors, but has decided not to resign. I think he means just what he said.

Sincerely,
Fr. Fleming

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
November 2, 2002
Dear Sisters and Brothers,

Each year the archdiocese asks all parishes to take an actual head count of people at Sunday Mass over three weekends in October. We have just finished our “October count” and I want to share the results with you in the table below. As you can see, our weekend numbers are down from last year, even though our number of registered households increased by 35 from this time a year ago. You will also see that 2001 was our best year for Mass attendance over the past 9 years, with another “peak” year in 1997. It is important to note that these numbers reflect only an annual sampling of three weekends in October and are not based on actual numbers over 12 months. Something as changeable as the weather on October weekends may also be a factor: those who have second homes or who regularly travel north or south on the weekends might be away further into the fall as the weather allows.

Registered Oct count Oct count Oct count
households total Att.* average average
as of Oct 1 wkend att. per Mass att.

2002 942 2782 927 232
2001 907 3059 1020 255
2000 899 3007 1002 200
1999 858 2910 970 194
1998 828 2762 921 230
1997 778 3004 1001 250
1996 761 2759 920 230
1995 742 2606 868 217
1994 712 2312 771 193

*Annual October head count over three weekends, not including the October 12 holiday weekend

Another reality to be reckoned with is the growing phenomenon in the United States of young Catholic families in the United States who register in the the local parish, are faithful in getting their children to religious education classes, but who seldom or only occasionally come to Mass on the weekend. It is not uncommon to receive a registration from a family who responds to the question on the form, “Attend Mass frequently?” with “no” or “seldom.”

I recognize, certainly, that a significant portion of our drop in attendance relates to the crisis we are facing in the Catholic community with regard to the sexual abuse of minors by priests and bishops, and decades of coverup. I am working with the parish staff, the Parish Pastoral Council and the Parish Finance Council on reaching out to those who have drifted away from sharing our Sunday prayer with us. The absence of so many is a great sadness for me, and I’m sure it is for you, too. Pray with me for the hope and healing we need to reconcile with those who have been abused and with those who have drifted away from our prayer on the Lord’s day.

Sincerely,
Father Fleming
*********************************************************
November 10, 2002

Dear Sisters and Brothers,                                                                                                         
While the construction jobs on the OLHC/CCC/HW campus are wreaking havoc with parking and traffic, there is no doubt that significant growth and development are taking place. And the good news is that once all the construction is completed, there will actually be a significant increase in the number of parking spaces for the three entities sharing the common parking area!
Our own project, the parish ministry center, is nearing completion and if all continues to go well, we should be ready to move the parish offices from the rectory at 1404 Main Street to the new building just after the beginning of the new year. Let me take yet another opportunity to express my gratitude to those who have provided the financial support for this important sign of growth in our parish history.
For those who may have more recently joined our parish, it might be helpful to restate the case for our parish ministry center. The two front parlors at the rectory simply no longer provide the kind or amount of space necessary to house and coordinate the ministries of our parish. The new center will provide office and meeting space for parish staff and for the various ministries, councils, commissions and committees through which our parish carries out its gospel mission. We are not alone in such an effort. Some years ago St. Elizabeth Parish in Acton built a similar structure and St. Michael Parish in Bedford is in the process of doing so even as our project nears completion.
Once our move to the new center is complete, we will be in a position to seriously address the question of the disposition of our property at 1404 Main. The original plan was to sell 1404 Main and purchase a smaller home in West Concord as the pastor’s residence. (A clear benefit of this whole project is that the pastor would no longer live over the store.) More recently, I have been considering the value and benefits of living in the company of other priests. I know that since the breaking story of the church crisis last January, I have sought out the company of brother priests as never before and have found it to be a rich source of support and stability. In light of that, I have had conversations with the parish staff, the Parish Finance Council, the Parish Pastoral Council, and the representatives to the Concord Cluster about the possibility of my eventually moving into a rectory in one of the Concord Cluster parishes. Such a move is a real possibility and would be supported by the archdiocese. It is no secret that the dwindling number of clergy in the United States will have significant impact on parish life. Each cluster in the archdiocese is being asked to prepare a plan for the future when there will not be enough priests to provide a resident pastor for each parish. While we don’t know exactly when that reality will touch the Concord Cluster of parishes, it is forecast that by about the year 2007, virtually all parishes in the archdiocese will be one priest parishes. The time will come, the archdiocese tells us, when only three priests will be available to serve the 5 parishes of the Concord Cluster. My term as pastor at OLHC (12 years) will end in 2006. I want to be clear here that I am NOT predicting any time line for such changes and NOT even hinting that all this will come to pass in the next 4 years. I fully expect that a new pastor will be named to OLHC upon my departure. Still, if we take all this seriously, there is certainly some practical and fiscal sense to anticipating the future rather than waiting to react to such changes once they occur.   I bring all of this before you to solicit your comment on the possibility of the pastor of Our Lady Parish living with brother priests in another parish in the Concord Cluster - no further away, then, than Carlisle, Bedford or Lincoln. The real question here is where your pastor would go at the end of the day to put his feet up and relax. Wherever he lays his head down at night, his work and office will be here in West Concord and in the new parish ministry center. Please give this some thought and let me or the members of our Parish Pastoral Council or Parish Finance Council know what you’re thinking. If you have questions about all of this, let me know and, as always, I will be happy to respond to them in this space. Our Parish Pastoral Council members are: Jane Audrey-Neuhauser, Diane Krause, Bob Swanson, Kevin Smith, Connie Davidson, Ed Sasena, Jim Brozek, Nancy Lorch and Linda Norton. Our Parish Finance Council members are: Tom Conway, Gary Lorenz, Nancy Crowley, Mary Ann Haas, Claire Lawton and Chris Webber.
                                                                         Sincerely,
                                                                        Fr. Fleming
                               
**********************************************************
November 14, 2002
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Recently, Cardinal Law met with a group of victim/survivors of sexual abuse by a priest. Two days later the cardinal delivered a statement acknowledging his responsibility for transferring abusive priests and yet another apology for his part in this tragic saga. I’ve been asked by a number of people about my response to these two events. My observation is that although the meeting with survivors was long overdue it was nonetheless an important step and, I hope, only the first of many such encounters. The cardinal himself has said that he must keep on reiterating his apology: I hope that in future statements he will acknowledge his critical role in the crisis as much if not more than in his remarks at the cathedral. Unlike some who no longer trust the archbishop’s sincerity on any level, I believe the cardinal’s recent visit and statement were, indeed, genuine.   Just after these two events a parishioner wrote to me, wondering if this was enough to allow me to move on emotionally and ministerially, from the crisis. My answer was no. It is tempting to want to believe that it’s time to go back to business as usual but that would be a mistake. There are two related realities with which we are dealing here: the reality of the sexual abuse of minors by clergy and the reality of the systemic dysfunction which allowed that abuse to occur and continue and which covered up its existence at the expense of the welfare of children. Addressing the immorality and crime of abusing children and working towards healing and reconciliation comprise the crucial work facing the church. Just as critical, however, is strategizing to identify and rehabilitate the dysfunction with which we live and our recovery from it. We cannot honestly move on from the crisis because there is so much work yet to be done. To pretend otherwise would be folly, would enable the dysfunction and would constitute a denial of much of what we have learned in the past year. This past week’s meeting of the bishops in Washington, for example, was disappointing in several ways: In his opening presidential address, Bishop Wilton Gregory’s reference to false prophets taking advantage of the church’s vulnerability was recklessly vague, particularly in a time when a number of Catholic groups are regarded as suspect simply for wanting to live out their baptismal commitment as Christians.   With regard to the final disposition of the norms for dealing with sexual abuse by clerics, I find neither the original nor the Rome-amended versions adequate to the task. The former was wanting in respecting the rights of the accused while the latter retreats from the Dallas promise of better balancing the participation of ordained and lay persons in the processing of abuse cases.
 Recalling how refreshing and compelling was the inclusion of knowledgeable lay men and women as speakers at the Dallas bishops’ meeting, their total absence in Washington only served to highlight the hotel ballroom filled with men in Roman collars. I had no naive expectation that the bishops would, of a sudden, restructure their administrative processes but the taste of inclusiveness in Dallas gave me a hunger that went unsatisfied in Washington. ¥ Regrettably, the bishops voted down an opportunity to censure those among their membership whose actions, or failures to act, have been most serious.  
One of Voice of the Faithful’s (VOTF) three goals is to shape structural change within the church. While VOTF is, itself, in the process of delineating this goal, this past week is certainly evidence for the need for such change. Expecting that the same administrators, structures and systems that contributed to the crisis can also extricate us from it is a sign of the dysfunction so much in need of attention. Another parishioner spoke to me recently of her concern that the sexual abuse crisis not take on a life of its own and become an evil paralyzing the church and its mission. I agree. As serious as these issues are, they must not be allowed to keep the church from its proclamation of the gospel and its work for justice, peace and charity. The greatest threat to the church, however, is not attention to the sexual abuse crisis but rather inattention to those systemic issues which gave rise to it.
                                                                                                 Sincerely,
                                                                                                 Fr. Fleming
*********************************************************
November 22, 2002
Dear Brothers and Sisters, 
As you can see, attendance at Mass on the weekends has been dropping off. Within the past year we had standing-room-only crowds at the 9:30 and 11:30 Sunday Masses but that is no longer the case. I am sure that this reality is due in large measure to the impact of the scandal of sexual abuse of minors and its subsequent cover-up in the Catholic church. The drop in attendance here is taking place in a parish which has, I believe, made a strong response to the scandal and has made every effort to be open in discussing it. (In fact, I have received some criticism from parishioners who believe I have paid the crisis too much attention.)
 
It is my plan to mail a letter to all the registered households in our parish, sometime around Christmas. In that letter I will particularly address myself to those who have drifted away from worshiping with us on the Lord’s Day. As I think about writing this letter, it seems to me that those whose worship with the community has not been interrupted might be of valuable assistance. Would you be willing to take the time to respond to this question: At a time when many Catholics have decided not to worship with the church on Sunday morning (or Sat. evening), what continues to draw you to Mass at Our Lady Parish? 
(Mail to the rectory, or e-mail me at FrAustinFleming@aol.com,
or drop a note in the collection basket at Mass.) 
I am trying to do everything I can to help our parish navigate its way through these stormy times. You can help me by taking a few moments to respond in the space above (and on the reverse side of this bulletin) to this question. I believe it would be helpful if those who have drifted away could hear from you why you have chosen to stay the course. 
There are, of course, moments of hope and encouragement. We have several people meeting with us on Tuesday evenings in our inquiry group for those interested in becoming Catholic. (The Holy Spirit works in season and out of season!) Two young mothers in our parish have spoken with me about new ways to involve young families in parish life. (Join us at 6:00 p.m. on December 8 for our first lighting of our outdoor creche, followed by refreshments in the hall!) A group of parishioners has taken the initiative to pray the Rosary before daily Mass on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays. There has been a wonderful response from some of our young people to insure the continuance of youth ministry activities while we make long range plans for filling John Fitzsimmons position. And our Voice of the Faithful chapter continues provide a channel for those looking to actively contribute to the healing and resolution of issues facing the church. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!
Sincerely,
 Fr. Fleming  

*******************************************
December 6, 2002
Dear Sisters and Brothers,                                                                                                            
I know that some of you are weary of my writing on these issues. Well, the truth be told, I’m weary of writing of these things, too. But given the news of the past week, I cannot let the most recent events pass without comment. I join you in your deepening dismay, anger and hurt. I, too, stand amazed at the most recent revelations. Like many pastors I feel paralyzed and demoralized by this sad saga. At a time when our greatest need is to rebuild trust and confidence in the church, our trust and confidence continue to be eroded from within and from without.
I wish I could tell you that this is the end of the unending stories, but I don’t know if it is or it isn’t. I wish I could tell you that beginning now we will only hear the unvarnished transparent truth, but I do