"We're all talking about it, but it's finally time to come together to do something," Kline said.
Organized by a local chapter of the worldwide group Voice of the Faithful, the rally was the first of two gatherings planned for the weekend.
Another group from Chicago - the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP) - was to hold two meetings Sunday at the Crowne Plaza Hotel at 1800 Market St. in Center City. A session set for 4 p.m. was to be open to the public, but a meeting to follow was to be private and only for people who have been sexually assaulted by priests.
At Saturday's rally, Charles McMahon, 77, a member of the steering committee for Voice of the Faithful, pushed for legislative action in Pennsylvania.
Two bills that will be submitted in Harrisburg would make it easier for victims to come forward.
One bill would remove the statute of limitations on future offenses of child abuse; the other would open a two-year window to allow for civil complaints to be filed on past cases.
After a 2005 grand jury report on sexual abuse in the church, most of the accused could not be prosecuted because the statute of limitations covering their crimes had run out.
With the wind drowning out his voice, McMahon read from an 11-point call to action from Voice of the Faithful. The final point: refusing to support a $200 million capital fund-raising campaign for the diocese.
"Don't accuse us of being Catholic bashers," McMahon told the crowd. "We are Catholics. We are the church."
Arthur Baselice Jr. wanted justice for his son, Arthur 3d, who died of a drug overdose in 2006 at 28. Holding a poster board with his graduation photo, Baselice said his son's drug habit was started and fed by an abusive priest at Archbishop Ryan High School.
Baselice, too, was advocating for new laws. "It's not a Catholic thing. It's not designed to be against the Catholic Church," he said.
"It's designed to give any victim the opportunity to come forward and seek justice."
Contact staff writer Jennifer Lin at 215-854-5659 or jlin@phillynews.com.
