By FR. JOHN P. LOVELL
As co-founder of the Coalition for Canceled Priests (CFCP), I am often asked what my biggest headache is and what is one of my greatest joys at the Coalition. I laugh because the answer is one and the same: our annual conference. In June of 2021 Craig Holuj and I founded the CFCP and in less than two weeks, we organized a thousand-person event in Lombard, Ill., which we dubbed “Breaking the Silence.” It was a wonderful evening featuring Fr. Altman, who was not canceled yet, and me, explaining the plight of priests who were sidelined not for any crime, but for standing up for the truth of our faith.
The event was simple and only lasted a couple of hours. The location allowed faithful from three dioceses to come together to listen and share their experiences and frustrations with the Church’s hierarchy, their love for the priesthood of Jesus Christ, and their hope that the canceled priests they know may return to ministry.
A few months after this inaugural event, Craig and I had the great (or foolish) idea to have an anniversary event. Fearing that the COVID madness would never end in Illinois, we decided to look for a location either in Indiana or Wisconsin. We were fortunate to find a wonderful location in Beloit, Wis., and on the evening of June 23, 2022 we kicked off our first anniversary conference titled, “Finding Hope in the Desert.” Despite some setbacks we were amazed at the turnout and support.
The highlight of the event happened the next morning, on the dual Feast of the Sacred Heart and our patron St. John. As our first speaker, Dr. Peter Kwasniewski, was speaking on the importance of the Baptist, the master of ceremonies interrupted him and asked him to announce that Roe had just been overturned! The room exploded in excitement and tears. I knew then that our second anniversary event must commemorate not only our second anniversary, but the first anniversary of the Dobbs decision.
This year we decided to have a full two-day event starting the morning of the vigil of St. John (Friday, June 23) with Abby Johnson and concluding the next day with our keynote speaker, John-Henry Westen. This year we chose The Hilton in Rosemont, Ill., for our location.
I want to address a concern that many have shared either on social media or in correspondence with the Coalition, that they do not want to come to Chicago since it is unsafe. Let me be clear: Our conference is not in Chicago. Rosemont, Ill., is a safe suburb that I have worked in for many years and we picked the Hilton for its convenience of location and easy accessibility to O’Hare International Airport (ORD).
Our events committee looks for the most cost effective and convenient locations and for this year’s event, it came down to two locations: the Hilton and an Orthodox church hall in Northwest Indiana. The church hall had no nearby hotels while the Hilton Rosemont runs a shuttle every thirty minutes to and from ORD. It also has the convenience of a sizable parking lot for those driving to the conference.
I freely admit that I do not care much for mission statements, themes, or titles of conferences. I was perfectly happy in keeping the same name from last year, “Finding Hope in the Desert.” However, our new head of communications, Joseph Gallagher, approached me about an idea he has been pondering for a while. Joe suggested that we title our conference “A House United” and focus on putting aside the differences that separate conservative Catholics and traditional Catholics.
I have spoken and written often that the so-called Catholic right is divided into three main camps: trads, charismatics, and neocons. As in the political world, the “right” in the Church has a bad habit of nitpicking and attacking each other. The left has no problems putting aside their differences and uniting behind a single main issue, but orthodox Catholics, no matter the stripe, seem to obsess over minor issues and lose focus on the actual craziness going on in the Church.
At first, I was skeptical of Joe’s idea. I told him that we already have movements calling for uniting the clans. Joe praised that idea but said he wants to take it a step further. He wants the vitriol to stop, the name calling to stop, declaring each other schismatic or not “in full communion” to stop. He wants to see CFCP be a true Coalition and to this end, this June we will be asking all our allies and supporters (many of whom are our speakers) to agree to stop the infighting and unite. Is it idealistic? Perhaps. But we need to start holding our friends to account when they get a little carried away with their zeal.
I hope that our supporters will put up with the minor annoyances of Chicago area traffic, O’Hare airport, and proximity to a major city (though not in the city!) to come out and meet our canceled priests and show their support for all priests who have been canceled simply for trying to be good shepherds. “A House United” will be a two-day master class where clergy and laity can come together in prayer and fellowship and listen to both scholars and activists speak, debate, and learn from each other.
Please know that all the priests who have been supported by CFCP are praying for you daily!
Powered by WPtouch Mobile Suite for WordPress