VOTF Goals:

To support those who have been abused
To support priests of integrity
To shape structural change within the Church

VOTF-NoVa is an affiliate of the National VOTF organization (What/Who We Are).
We are mainstream faithful Catholics who are working to advance VOTF's goals in order to seek healing for those wounded by the clergy sexual abuse scandal in our Church and also to seek Church governance changes that will ensure protection of children and preclude repetition of these abuses in the future.
We schedule meetings (Meetings) and maintain a membership email discussion list (Contact Us) in order to facilitate our work. Direct outreach to and support for survivors of clergy sexual abuse is our primary focus.
We welcome survivors, their families and loved ones, and all those Catholics who have been wounded as well by the scandalous behavior of clergy who sexually abused children and of Bishops/Church leaders who covered up or facilitated the abuses.

NEWS: Sunday April 10, 2011

-- Clergy Abuse – The Survivor and the Community -- On Sunday, April 10 at 11:30am until 1:00pm in the Church basement in Relay,Maryland, Mary Liz Austin, LCPC, licensed therapist and professional counselor, will speak on the clergy sexual abuse crisis and the survivors’ healing process. Her unique perspective on the subject comes from years of working with survivors of sexual abuse, the Catholic Church, and the families and communities affected by the crisis.

To address the collective healing necessary for moving forward, Mary Liz will talk about how family and church systems (including our own community) respond in unhealthy ways. Additionally, since this can be part of our community’s Lenten healing initiative, she will identify, from the survivors’ perspective, the stages of recovery from abuse and how we can help others heal. This session, sponsored and presented by the Catholic Community at Relay’s Peace & Justice Committee, is open to all community members as well as guests from the wider community -- invite your friends and family. -- For more information and/or directions contact Vince Griffiths (vince@SocialSolutions.com) or Greg Bean (gbean@cybergroup.com)

4/15 American Catholic Council Calls for Day of Prayer & Fasting—read full story at votf.org.

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.