PJI Editorial
Church channels
NOW that the Catholic Church has its own television station, it can no longer claim unfair media treatment of its stand on key issues of the day.
The Church hierarchy quietly launched its own TV station called TV Maria to match the aggressive "televangelism" by other local Christian denominations, according to a broadsheet.
For years, the Church was only able to reach out to its flock through the broadcast media via its radio station Radio Veritas.
But with its new TV station, it is now at par with the Iglesia ni Cristo (Net 25 and Gem TV), Ang Dating Daan (block timer on UNTV 37 and RJTV) and Jesus Is Lord (QTV 11) in reaching out to members and potential converts.
The Archdiocese of Manila, backed by the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines,discreetly launched TV Maria on New Year's Day on Channel 21, CBCP secretary general Monsignor Hernando Coronel said.
Channel 21 has the satellite back-up of businessman Antonio "Tonyboy" Cojuangco's Dream TV.
TV Maria, the first Catholic channel broadcasting from Manila, was so named to honor the role of Mary as the one who points the way toward Jesus.
While other religious stations "sign off" after midnight or a little later, the shows in the new channel air 24 hours daily in a saturation campaign involving Catholic doctrine, family fortification, and the youth. Clearly, this is a big advantage over other sects with limited broadcast capabilities.
The CBCP can thus better expound on its doctrine and not merely give "sound bites" on political issues, particularly the scandals hounding President Arroyo.
TV Maria's launch comes at a time when a number of top Church officials have been complaining about how the media, specifically newspapers, have been reporting about the Church and religion.
Earlier, Archbishops Ricardo Cardinal Vidal and Orlando Quevedo of Cotabato snapped at the media for allegedly portraying bishops as divided on political issues. Malolos Bishop Jose Oliveros had come to the defense of Davao Archbishop Fernando Capalla for his supposed benign approach to the political crisis during his incumbency as CBCP president.
They forget that there are a lot of senior church leaders who also write commentaries in broadsheets and tabloids.
Anyway, TV Maria, according to its proponents, was not designed as a counterweight to critical media and rival sects as Coronel said its programs would be geared toward promoting moral values, especially among the young and poor, noting that this sector comprises about 50 percent and 70 percent of the population, respectively.
"They are the treasures of the Church. We are trying to strengthen our youth because the future of the Catholic faith relies on (them)," he said.
TV Maria's fare should be a refreshing break from the amusing programs of the Iglesia ni Cristo and Ang Dating Daan, which are focused mostly on demolishing each other's doctrines.
Philippine Journal Editorial
Saturday, January 07, 2006
10:15:22 PM
http://search.yehey.com/search_redirect.aspx?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.journal.com.ph%2fnews.asp%3fsid%3d3%26month%3d1%26day%3d7%26year%3d2006
NOW that the Catholic Church has its own television station, it can no longer claim unfair media treatment of its stand on key issues of the day.
The Church hierarchy quietly launched its own TV station called TV Maria to match the aggressive "televangelism" by other local Christian denominations, according to a broadsheet.
For years, the Church was only able to reach out to its flock through the broadcast media via its radio station Radio Veritas.
But with its new TV station, it is now at par with the Iglesia ni Cristo (Net 25 and Gem TV), Ang Dating Daan (block timer on UNTV 37 and RJTV) and Jesus Is Lord (QTV 11) in reaching out to members and potential converts.
The Archdiocese of Manila, backed by the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines,discreetly launched TV Maria on New Year's Day on Channel 21, CBCP secretary general Monsignor Hernando Coronel said.
Channel 21 has the satellite back-up of businessman Antonio "Tonyboy" Cojuangco's Dream TV.
TV Maria, the first Catholic channel broadcasting from Manila, was so named to honor the role of Mary as the one who points the way toward Jesus.
While other religious stations "sign off" after midnight or a little later, the shows in the new channel air 24 hours daily in a saturation campaign involving Catholic doctrine, family fortification, and the youth. Clearly, this is a big advantage over other sects with limited broadcast capabilities.
The CBCP can thus better expound on its doctrine and not merely give "sound bites" on political issues, particularly the scandals hounding President Arroyo.
TV Maria's launch comes at a time when a number of top Church officials have been complaining about how the media, specifically newspapers, have been reporting about the Church and religion.
Earlier, Archbishops Ricardo Cardinal Vidal and Orlando Quevedo of Cotabato snapped at the media for allegedly portraying bishops as divided on political issues. Malolos Bishop Jose Oliveros had come to the defense of Davao Archbishop Fernando Capalla for his supposed benign approach to the political crisis during his incumbency as CBCP president.
They forget that there are a lot of senior church leaders who also write commentaries in broadsheets and tabloids.
Anyway, TV Maria, according to its proponents, was not designed as a counterweight to critical media and rival sects as Coronel said its programs would be geared toward promoting moral values, especially among the young and poor, noting that this sector comprises about 50 percent and 70 percent of the population, respectively.
"They are the treasures of the Church. We are trying to strengthen our youth because the future of the Catholic faith relies on (them)," he said.
TV Maria's fare should be a refreshing break from the amusing programs of the Iglesia ni Cristo and Ang Dating Daan, which are focused mostly on demolishing each other's doctrines.
Philippine Journal Editorial
Saturday, January 07, 2006
10:15:22 PM
http://search.yehey.com/search_redirect.aspx?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.journal.com.ph%2fnews.asp%3fsid%3d3%26month%3d1%26day%3d7%26year%3d2006
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