A Response to the Holy Father
The expressed primary purpose of this Catholic mass media launch is to help meet the objectives outlined by Pope John Paul II in his apostolic exhortation, Ecclesia in America (The Church in America). In this 1999, post-synodal document, which was delivered in Mexico City following the 1997 Synod of the bishops of North, Central and South America, the Holy Father called for “one Church, one America,” while still acknowledging the cultural differences between the different countries in these regions. New Evangelization of America (NEA), founded under the leadership of Bishop Charles V. Grahmann of Dallas, represents the united episcopal response to the Holy Father's directives as outlined in his document.
A secondary aim of the bishops is to help remedy a lack of dynamic evangelization and proper catechetical instruction which has led to a massive exodus from the Catholic faith among the people of Latin America over the past several years. “There can be no effective evangelization without effective use of mass communication,” underscored Nicolás de Jesús Cardinal López RodrÃguez of the Dominican Republic, Primate of America and honorary chairman of NEA.
Most Reverend John Foley, Archbishop, Pontifical Council for Social Communications, actively participated in the four-day conference. He told attending episcopal and Catholic communications leaders that the Holy Father extends His Apostolic Blessing to NEA and to its mass media communications initiatives. He also pointed to the need for credible Catholic public relations to help regain the inclusion of religious programming and news coverage on mainstream U.S. secular radio and television networks, as was the case in the past. He noted that the Holy Father's Midnight Mass this past Christmas Eve was broadcast in 47 countries and on 67 different networks.
Bringing the Gospel to Millions
“As Christian communicators, we should be actively contemplating, ready to share ourselves with the world and others,” said Archbishop Foley. He pointed out that the Catholic radio station in Portugal is the country's most popular station and that the one in Spain is Spain's second most popular station. He called it a disgrace that air space on mainstream U.S. media networks was no longer made available for religious programming, saying that this reflected “thinking only of the bottom line and not at all about people…about the spiritual and human needs of the human person.” The Archbishop praised the work currently being done in Catholic mass media throughout the Americas, especially highlighting the benefits of the hierarchy and laity working together to serve the Church with high-quality programming and doctrinally sound, yet varied programming. He exhorted Catholic communicators and bishops to continue to work together to bring the Gospel of Christ “to millions who have not yet heard it, or who have forgotten it.”
“This conference is the first time in the history of Catholic communications that all forms of mass media have been under one roof,” noted Bishop Grahmann about the Miami conference. “We're already seeing great interest among communications leaders here in collaborating and initiating various new forms of media for the entire North and South American continents. NEA was basically designed to be a catalyst; a facilitator in listening to all these voices and in connecting needs with resources that already exist. NEA is already impacting the Church by drawing together bishops and prominent lay persons from the entire Western Hemisphere.”
Foremost among the initiatives launched and discussed at the NEA conference was Televida International, a Pan American expansion of Cardinal RodrÃguez' Dominican Republic-based, highly successful Catholic television station. At the conference, it was decided that Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil-based Fr. Edward Dougherty, S.J., president of a large television production center called Associacao Do Senhor Jesus, will become general manager of the Televida International launch. The international organization will feature Catholic programming in Spanish, with some programs in Portuguese.
“This is a huge project for the entire Western Hemisphere,” explained Cardinal RodrÃguez about Televida International. “Up to now, Televida has provided programming for the Dominican Republic. From the beginning, we tried to acquire the groups we needed to develop our television plan. We bought all the necessary equipment, cameras and so forth. We are connected with Mother Angelica's satellite. We do most of our own programs and use Mother Angelica during the late hours. Now we will expand this Catholic television programming and evangelization effort to reach all the countries, stretching from Alaska to Chile.” Fr. Dougherty plans to begin these expansion efforts immediately, by opening a Televida International office in Miami within the next few months.
“Together we can do so much,” explained Fr. Dougherty. “What is so fantastic about Televida is the fantastic leadership of the Cardinal!”
Using Media in the Work of Evangelization
“Our infinite God has infinite blessings for us,” added Fr. Dougherty. “We, through mass media, can be instruments of the blessing of God. One of the key things needed for the Church for these blessings to happen is a well-designed integration of Catholic mass media efforts, including television, radio, internet and video-on-demand. We're designing a spiritual revolution; to enter through their [the listener or viewer] doors and leave through God's.”
Other Catholic initiatives discussed at the conference include the Pan-American expansion of the Florida-based Catholic Radio Association, which was co-founded several years ago by three Catholic Radio groups to share expertise, experience and resources among those involved in Catholic Radio. Various Internet ideas, tele-emersion, DVDs, holographic monitors and internet-integrated concepts were discussed, including internet-satellite-radio transmissions being used by Miami-based Pax Catholic Communications which is heard throughout Latin America.
Other successful Catholic programs were represented, such as the Bogatá, Colombia-based El Minuto de Dios which has been on air since 1950; Hollywood-based Family Theater Productions which was founded by Fr. Patrick Peyton in the ’50s; the 24-hour, free satellite downloadable television and radio programs in Spanish and English of EWTN and EWEN; the National Council of Catholic Bishop's Conference production of The Face of Christ in Art, and the work of Catholic movie and film writers and producers such as Catholic Exchange editor and president Tom Allen, Act One founder Barbara Nicolosi and Leonardo Defilippis. Defilippis is slated to release Saint Luke Production's first full-feature film to theaters late this year, a film on St. Therese of Lisieux.
“The goal of NEA is not to have meetings,” emphasized Bishop Grahmann, “but to have concrete results.” NEA managing director Alan Napleton agreed. “The media initiatives discussed here are an excellent example of the Holy Father's expressed desire to use media in the work of evangelization. We've made enormous steps this weekend and NEA as an organization is going to work hard to make these a reality. We also want to help to foster an effective dialog with Hollywood, the established mass media vehicles and the very effective Christian groups who are doing such an effective job in utilizing media to spread the Gospel message. We are very pleased to have the support and guidance of the Vatican, Archbishop Foley and Cardinal RodrÃguez and our own Bishop Grahmann.”
This year's conference was held in Miami at the invitation of Archbishop John Favalora, who announced in his homily on the final day that he was very pleased to see the birth of NEA as a result of Ecclesia in America, and that his strong support of this effort traces back to his active role in pursuing evangelization through mass media even prior to his assignment in Miami from the St. Petersburg-Tampa diocese.
For more information on the work of NEA and Pan-American Catholic mass communications, please contact Alan Napleton at 972-570-8632 or email at neaconference@aol.com.
