News from: Voice of the Faithful of Greater Philadelphia

 HISTORIAN TO SPEAK ON ROLE OF LAITY

           Joseph O'Callaghan, a historian and author, will speak on "Counsel and Consent: Restoring the Laity's Role in the Governance of the Church" at a general meeting of Voice of the Faithful of Greater Philadelphia on Tuesday evening, March 15, at Chestnut Hill College.

The program, which is free and open to the public, will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Social Room of Fournier Hall.

O'Callaghan, a professor emeritus of medieval history at Fordham University and past president of the American Catholic Historical Society, is the author of "Counsel and Consent as Christian Virtues: Five Proposals for Structural Change in the Catholic Church," a document produced by the Bridgeport, Conn., affiliate of Voice of the Faithful.

Among its recommendations for changes in church structure, the Bridgeport document proposes the election of bishops by the Catholic community and the selection of pastors by parish faithful. The document also calls for the ownership of church property by a parish corporation.

O'Callaghan, the former director of the Center for Medieval Studies at Fordham, has written seven books on medieval Spain and translated The Autobiography of St. Ignatius Loyola.

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 For further information contact: Walter Fox at 215-247-9645 or wfox@netreach.net   A photo of the speaker is available at http://www.netreach.net/~wfox/ocallagh.htm.