Important Talk by Angela Bonavoglia

Wonderful, stirring lecture by Angela last night at the Larchmont Episcopal Church on Forest Avenue in Larchmont. She pointed out how very few women were prominent at the pope's events and when they were present were either just nuns or in the choir while male clergy dominated the so called "important" people around the Pope.

Angela gave a great synopsis of her book "Good Catholic Girls" and showed how women are really vigorously active in the church in significant ways and how they are pastors and associate pastors in a majority of churches in the US. A wonderful invitation to women to take courage as their sisters are making a difference in the church, despite the deep resistance of the old boys club on the Tiber.

Places for Pope to Visit for the Magnificat

A picture says a thousand words. The poor will be filled with great things and the rich will go away empty. The pope is seen with the affluent more than he is seen with the downtrodden. Is that because there is no pressure for him to do so? He finally met with victims of clergy abuse after massive demonstrations. Does he need protests for him to visit the poor?

Vatican finally getting it a little bit?

From Votf:
Vatican finally getting it a little bit?


If what we read in the media is accurate, there appears to be some change in tone emanating from the Number 2 person in the Vatican, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone. He has gone in a few days time from saying in a British newspaper that the Church has already "responded with great dignity" to the clergy sexual abuse scandal -- and that the "clamour created in the U.S. around this scandal is really unbearable" -- to telling the Associated Press yesterday: "[Pope Benedict] will try to open the path of healing and reconciliation" in response to the abuse crisis that has caused "so much suffering for the victims, for the families of the victims and above all to the church ..."

(You can see the stories at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/04/07/wpope107.xml and at

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/08/AR2008040801793.html.)

Perhaps the voices of the laity, amplified by the media, are once again resonating with Church officials: Cardinal Bertone’s interview with Associated Press coincidentally occurred the same day Voice of the Faithful’s full page ad appeared in the New York Times.

Of course, the challenge is whether Church leaders can effectively address the unresolved issues of the clergy sexual abuse scandal while also embracing full lay participation in the Church and providing complete financial accountability and transparency. Meeting that challenge could, indeed, transform the Church into one that is governed by compassion, informed by justice, empowered by equality, and animated to act collegially.