The Bridgeport Diocese Chapter of Voice of the Faithful heard its national president speak of new initiatives for the organization during a meeting this week in the First Congregational Church on the Green.Dan Barley of Hauphauge, N.Y., spoke of a new push for membership in the organization that hasn't managed to exceed its peak membership of approximately 35,000 achieved two years ago.
"We are in the process of tabulating results from a comprehensive survey undertaken this spring aimed at determining our strengths and weaknesses," he told 30 attendees.
The survey was conceived following the successes of meeting the papal visit head-on with a full page ad in the New York Times funded nearly overnight, he noted.
"It was a clear message from a majority that we need to move forward boldly supported by irrefutable data spoken in a respectfully firm, unmistakable and consistent tone," he said.
Calling VOTF the largest reform group in the Roman Catholic Church, Bartley cited its strength for having attracted a strong core of highly talented members while providing a national voice coupled with strong local activities on the affiliate level led by respected individuals.
However, it's being handicapped by financial strains, insufficient publicity and a lack of brand distinction that makes its intention unclear to non-members.
The Long Island native, once a novitiate and now the chief financial officer for a mid-sized corporation, said a critical goal of the organization is to educate Roman Catholics to understand their rights and responsibilities.
"The current church has inferior leadership because the bishops aren't chosen by the faithful," he said.
Dan Sullivan of New Canaan and Jaime Dance of Darien are the current co-presidents of the local organization.
The next meetings 7:30 p.m. Dec. 4 at the same location.
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(Source: THO)