June 2001 Call to Action News

Egan's last letter to Call To Action

Three months ago, as plans for this year's CTA 25th anniversary conferences were finalized, Jack Egan sent these vivid recollections to co-directors Sheila and Dan Daley:

The first Call To Action meeting in the great Cobo Hall in Detroit in 1976 was one of the turning points in my life — to stand before that distinguished audience as the co-chair and direct all the delegates to the appropriate conclusions. And we did it — all 82 of the resolutions were either voted up or down, and we left with great joy. Now, 25 years later, you have developed Call To Action into one of the most influential movements in the Church today — a movement which points the way to Vatican III, to consider all the unfinished work for Vatican II to be brought to fulfillment.

I remember the personnel who brought the first Call To Action about and those who almost destroyed the work of the previous two years. Cardinal Dearden championed the cause and spent his time and talent to get all the bishops lined up. The great Sr. Margaret Cafferty worked so hard to make it a success for the entire Church. Then Archbishop Bernardin panicked at the thought of proposing some of the resolutions to the bishops, and in his fear of what Rome would say, issued that strong statement as president of the bishops' conference that he felt the entire Call To Action effort did not represent all of the people, and that the gathering was taken over by small groups to satisfy their own agenda. What a terrible mistake he made, and I had to reply to him in the press. Bishop James Rausch, secretary of the bishops’ conference, was with us all the way. And the great and faithful Marjorie Tuite labored so hard with the focus groups so that everybody's voice would be heard.

They are all dead now, but Call To Action goes on, thanks to you and your sterling staff. I shall certainly be with you Nov. 2-4 in Chicago.