BishopAccountability.org
	New Priest Closes Door on Meeting of Activist Church Group By Maria Vogel-Short Observer-Tribune [Mendham NJ] March 16, 2005 MENDHAM - The local chapter of Voice of the Faithful (VOTF), a national organization formed to protect people from sexual abuse by priests, will find no welcome at St. Joseph Church. The new pastor at St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church has notified the group that it can’t meet at the church. The group had planned to meet on April 11.The Voice of the Faithful was formed in Boston two years ago in the wake of the scandal involving sexual abuse by priests The group has called for changes in the Catholic church, including more openness in helping those who have been abused by priests. Theresa Padovano, a member of the leadership team of the Voice of the Faithful Northern New Jersey, said the new St. Joseph pastor, Rev. Joseph Anginoli, cancelled the April 11 meeting without explanation. Padovano said the group has been shunned before. The Newark archdiocese, she said, had not allowed the group to have personal speakers or meetings inside churches in the archdiocese, she said. The former pastor at St. Joseph’s Church, the Rev. Phillip Briganti, had allowed the group to meet at the church. Briganti resigned last month after police investigated an extortion attempt against him over a picture sent over the Internet. His replacement, Anginoli, did not return telephone calls for comment. Healing Time Several church members, who asked not to be identified, said the priest made his decision because the church needs a healing period, a time to rest in between losing one pastor and receiving a new one. VOTF had scheduled a meeting and address on April 11 by the Rev. Jeff Mickler. Mickler is a former Ohio pastor who is pastoral director of the Catholic Television Network. He had planned to speak about what religious congregations are doing to address the problem of pedophile priests. The title of Mickler’s speech was to be "The Making of A Naive Priest." Mickler hosts a weekly radio program which airs on WKBN 570 A.M. and WRCW 1040 A.M. Priest abuse has become a sore subject in the Mendham community. A $5 million lawsuit was settled against the Paterson Diocese several weeks ago, alleging abuse by former St. Joseph’s Church pastor James T. Hanley, the Rev. Thomas Rainforth and other priests that allegedly occurred decades ago. Generally, the northern New Jersey VOTF chapter has monthly guest speakers at different parishes, said Padovano. She said the April 11 meeting would have been the first at St. Joseph’s. "We hold these meetings at Catholic churches everywhere. We seek to reach a variety of different places, such as Pompton Lakes, Butler, Whippany and Morristown," said Padovano. But several pastors in other parishes, who asked not to be named, said Voice of the Faithful spends too much time maligning priests, and not enough time, encouraging faith. Monsignor Kenneth Lasch, who retired in August after 21 years at St. Joseph Church, said VOTF had never met at the church before, not because of any philosophical problems but because of scheduling problems. "Dates had always been a problem," said Lasch. Marianna Thompson, a spokesperson for the Paterson Diocese, said the decision to decide if a group meets at the church is under the purview of the pastor. "It’s up to the pastor to decide what groups should meet and when. There are a variety of ways pastors have dealt with this issue. Some pastors allow the Voice of the Faithful, others don’t. Some have had the group meet once, and then not again. It’s really up to him," Thompson said. Paterson Diocese Bishop Arthur J. Serratelli has left it up to each pastor to allow group meetings, said Padovano. VOTF is not out to change doctrine but to support priests of integrity, said Padovano. "Lots of bishops think that our group is anti-church and anti-Catholic," said Padovano. "We aren’t." On the VOTF website, the group said it was "disinvited" to speak by Anginoli. "We will publish the new site for our meeting in the near future. We are very sorry for the confusion this may cause. Please let your friends know of this turn of events," said the website.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.