>> Read and post comments on this article. There are currently 2 comments.
>> Email this post to a friend!
++ Sign up for Catholic Action Alert updates from Call To Action.

^^ Return to main page map.

>> Read and post comments on this article. There are currently 0 comments.
>> Email this post to a friend!
++ Sign up for Catholic Action Alert updates from Call To Action.

^^ Return to main page map.

May 2009:

A month after firing Ruth Kolpack over her thesis on inclusive language and church teaching, Madison's Bishop Morlino met with 350 local Catholics who testified to Ruth's vibrant ministry and the injustice of firing her.

Bishop Morlino has announced his decision after that meeting: He will not reinstate Ruth.

Don't let our church be Ruth-less!

If you live in the Madison Diocese, you are asked to send in the Bishop's Annual Catholic Appeal without money and with the words "Reinstate Ruth" written on the envelope.

If you live outside the Madison Diocese, Ruth's supporters are asking you to write to the Apostolic Nuncio, the Vatican's US representative, asking him to ensure Bishop Morlino reinstates Ruth and creates a worker justice policy for the diocese.

Write to:

Archbishop Pietro Sambi, Apostolic Nuncio
3339 Massachusetts Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20008


March 2009:

Our church speaks about justice for workers, but has no policies to protect its own church workers. Ruth Kolpack, a parish volunteer and employee for 35 years, was fired by Bishop Morlino of Madison this month because she would not renounce her seminary degree's thesis on inclusive language.

Please write to the Papal Nuncio today! Ask him to urge Bishop Morlino to reinstate Ruth and create just workplace policies for lay ministers. There are more than 30,000 lay ministers in our country who can be fired at a priest or bishop’s whim without due process.

Mail your letters to:

Archbishop Pietro Sambi, Apostolic Nuncio
3339 Massachusetts Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20008

To sign the petition in support of Ruth or for other actions and updates, please go to: www.StandwithRuth.com
>> Read and post comments on this article. There are currently 0 comments.
>> Email this post to a friend!
++ Sign up for Catholic Action Alert updates from Call To Action.

^^ Return to main page map.

>> Read and post comments on this article. There are currently 0 comments.
>> Email this post to a friend!
++ Sign up for Catholic Action Alert updates from Call To Action.

^^ Return to main page map.

>> Read and post comments on this article. There are currently 0 comments.
>> Email this post to a friend!
++ Sign up for Catholic Action Alert updates from Call To Action.

^^ Return to main page map.

>> Read and post comments on this article. There are currently 0 comments.
>> Email this post to a friend!
++ Sign up for Catholic Action Alert updates from Call To Action.

^^ Return to main page map.

>> Read and post comments on this article. There are currently 0 comments.
>> Email this post to a friend!
++ Sign up for Catholic Action Alert updates from Call To Action.

^^ Return to main page map.

February 2007:
Call To Action/Rio Grande Valley in Texas is making headlines for their courageous work to share the truth about clergy sexual abuse survivors. In January, the local PBS television station, owned by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brownsville, censored a Frontline film about a survivor of clergy sexual abuse. The documentary, titled "Hand of God," aired in every other PBS station in the country except one. CTA members made headlines when they challenged the station's decision to not air the film. When they inquired about the censorship, they were told that the station's manager, Monsignor Briseno, wanted to watch the film first to see if it was appropriate for local viewers. The news was picked up by the AP wire and was carried in newspapers across the country.

CTA members believed the truth must be told and responded with gospel nonviolent action. They secured a local theater and invited the film's director and his brother, the featured abuse survivor, to share the documentary with Catholics in southern Texas. Now, after increasing pressure, Monsignor Briseno, stated at a recent PBS board meeting that the station will try to find a time to air the documentary film in March.

This is a wonderful success for lay Catholics seeking to reveal the facts about clergy sexual abuse and to ensure that clergy are no longer allowed to hide the truth.

Prior to February 2007:
Since 2003, members of Call To Action/Rio Grande Valley have been engaged in a struggle to support four parish staff and their own rights as laity at Holy Spirit Parish. The four staff members had been part of more than 50 employees in the diocese who unionized under United Farm Workers (UFW) and signed contracts with their pastors. Not only are unions supported by Catholic social justice teaching, but even Vatican workers are part of a union.

When a new pastor was assigned to the parish, he fired these four women workers on his first day of work. 600 parishioners united for an outdoor mass that Sunday, boycotting the regularly scheduled mass. Call To Action/Rio Grande Valley, many of whom were members of Holy Spirit, helped organize the protests, civil suits were filed and the parish workers were reinstated. CTA/Rio Grande Valley members continue their struggle to be followers of Christ, active in their church, active for justice in the world.

Currently, the CTA/Rio Grande Valley invites you to help them in asking Bishop Pena to send a mediator to their church. Their present pastor will not allow parishioners to serve in the church unless they are personally approved by him. Many parishioners are now banned from participating in the life of the church as eucharistic ministers or lectionary readers. He has also abolished scores of lay ministries that provided vital services to the surrounding neighborhood. This pastor's actions have not only hurt the parish community, but also has deep ramifications for the well-being of many who looked to the church for help.

To support CTA/Rio Grande Valley in their current postcard campaign, print this letter and mail it to Bishop Pena (address included in letter).

On Friday, January 19th, CTA/Rio Grande Valley questioned why the local PBS station, owned by the Brownsville Diocese, did not air the nationwide Frontline documentary "Hand of God." The film follows the story of a family whose son was sexually abused by a priest. Every other station in the country, except one, aired the documentary. CTA/Rio Grande Valley responded with gospel nonviolent resistance by inviting the film's director to show the documentary to people in the Brownsville diocese at a local theater. Then, at a board of directors meeting, the station manager conceeded to air the documentary in March of 2007. This is a wonderful success for Catholics seeking to reveal the facts about clergy sexual abuse and to ensure that clergy are no longer allowed to hide the truth.
>> Read and post comments on this article. There are currently 0 comments.
>> Email this post to a friend!
++ Sign up for Catholic Action Alert updates from Call To Action.

^^ Return to main page map.

>> Read and post comments on this article. There are currently 0 comments.
>> Email this post to a friend!
++ Sign up for Catholic Action Alert updates from Call To Action.

^^ Return to main page map.

>> Read and post comments on this article.
>> Email this post to a friend!
++ Sign up for Catholic Action Alert updates from Call To Action.

^^ Return to main page map.