Posted on 06/01/2007 12:56:53 PM PDT by SmithL
BOSTON (AP) -- The lay group created to give anguished Roman Catholics a voice as the clergy sex abuse crisis unfolded five years ago is now in a crisis of its own, dealing with a budget deficit and infighting among its leaders.
Voice of the Faithful is projecting a $100,000 deficit in the next fiscal year following a drop in the number of major donors, according to an account of a group leaders' meeting which is posted on Voice's Web site.
Board chairman William Casey said that the group has had trouble adjusting to a long-term strategy as the short-term anger over the scandal has subsided.
"When an emergency and a crisis occurs, people just want to help, they want to do something," Casey said. "But two years out, four years, five, 10 years out, how do you keep that going? ... Trying to struggle to figure that out is a real challenge."
The group is also facing what Casey called a "crisis in leadership" due to infighting, difficulty respecting each other's positions and trouble reaching consensus on decisions, according to the notes of his remarks at a leadership conference in April.
In an interview, Casey acknowledged the problems, but said his remarks should not be interpreted as "the building's on fire," but as part of a normal reassessment of Voice and its goals.
The Newton-based group was founded in 2002 amid outrage over the scandal, which began in Boston after documents showed church leaders for decades shuttled molester priests among parishes and concealed their crimes.
Despite resistance from church officials — some refused to let Voice meet on church property — the group established 120 chapters nationwide. It counts 35,000 members in the U.S. and worldwide, though anyone can join by simply filling out a short form...
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
I’m not surprised.
When people realize that you are falsely advertising a substandard product, you generally go out of business.
Oh, darn.
A few years ago when I exposed the CFFC funding, there were some conservatives that took an interest in the Catholic Church... They felt if the Rockefellers and Fords were against the Catholic Church -- maybe the Catholic Church is a good organization (to be opposed by these groups)...
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