With you and for you

“With you and for you for ten years”: on May 6-7 “the Catholic Media Centre” www.catholic-media.org, established in Ukraine on May 3 2001 on the occasion of the visit of John Paul II, celebrated in Kyiv its tenth anniversary. “Our task – is written in the brochure published for the occasion – is to portray the Catholic Church of Latin rite in religious and lay media, offering Ukrainian society wholesome information on the life of the Church in Ukraine and in the world”.The birth, the first year of life, and the visit of John Paul II. The Centre, recalled its first chairman, Fr Krzysztof Kawa, “was set up in 2011 on the initiative of Msgr. Stanislaw Szyrokoradiuk, auxiliary bishop of the diocese of Kyiv-Zhytomyr, with the support of bishop Msgr. Jan Purwinski” and with “the financial contribution of several foundations and individuals”. The first year’s activities, he explained, mostly consisted “in the planning of formats and programs” with the “purpose of providing broad media coverage of the activity of the Roman-Catholic Church in Ukraine”. This implied “working in close cooperation with lay media” within a global scenario “of mostly regional Catholic media, notably the press”, marked by “the absence of a central organism that would encompass these different realities, that would act as a bridge linking the Catholic and lay realms”. CMC, continues Fr Kawa, contributed to the preparations for the visit of John Paul II (June 23-27), it provided assistance to lay media by supplying informative material on the Catholic Church, the Holy See and the Pope, and followed all the events of that “unforgettable encounter”.A faithful image of the Church. In the media universe, remarks Msgr. Ivan Jurkovic, former apostolic nuncio in Ukraine, “it is necessary to act in a mature manner, to be vigil and responsible”, understanding “the vulnerable sides of viewers and the importance of handling with care” those news items “that deal with spiritual aspects” as well as with “the human soul”. The Archbishop of Lviv of the Latins, President of the Ukrainian Bishops’ Conference Msgr. Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki, underlined the relationship between the Apostolic Visitation of John Paul II and the creation of the CMC that “draws renewed vigour and motivation from the beatification of Pope Wojtyla”. The Archbishop equally mentioned “the Christians roots of Europe, which John Paul II repeatedly referred to”. The bishop of Kyiv-Zhytomyr, Msgr. Jan Purwinski, underlined that “the tenth anniversary of the Centre” coincides with the “hundredth issue of the children magazine Vodogray”, and highlighted “the importance of this tool in the Church, which enables people to convey their questions and find information on the Catholic Church”. Cardinal Lubomyr Husar, former Major Archbishop of the Greek-Catholic Church conveyed his appreciation of the Vodogray magazine (www.vodograj.org) which he described as a “praiseworthy commitment for children”. “Apostles” of Christ and of the Gospel. Msgr. Leon Dubrawski, bishop of Kamyanets-Podilskyy underlined that the “mission” of the Catholic Church in Ukraine is that of “proposing God to society, prompting debates on issues pertaining to Church-State relations and on interreligious dialogue as well as advocating the protection of life”. Msgr. Dubrawski pointed out that CMC is tasked with “highlighting important current events and presenting the faithful picture of the Church”. “The most important aspect of your work -Msgr. Markiyan Trofmyak, bishop of Lutsk told the media officers attending the meeting – is that for many people, notably Internet users, you are the apostles of Christ and of His Gospel”. Thus “your commitment is important not only for Catholics in our Country but for society as a whole”. The new media are “a very important arena, in which the Church cannot afford being absent”, especially “in our Country, which on the wake of Communist rule is in dire need of renewed evangelization”, namely of a “contemporary form of preaching”, underlined Msgr. Vitaliy Skomarowsky, President of the Commission for the Media of the Catholic Bishops of Latin rite. For Fr Pavlo Vyshkovskyy, who was appointed the Centre’s chairman in 2005, the commitment pertaining to the communication sector of the Ukrainian Catholic Church of Latin rite “is meant to be a tool for Gospel proclamation in our land, along with a cultural reflection on our society providing formation of Catholic professionals. To this regard special attention is devoted to the formation of young media workers”. The Chief editor of SIR Europe Paolo Bustaffa, who has been networking with the Centre for many years, underlined “the role of Catholic media in communicating the activity of European Churches whilst providing a contribution to European institutions to build together the common European Home”. The Centre provides television and radio broadcasting services, while approximately 12 thousand daily visitors log on the website www.catholic-media.org, amounting to some 85 000 per week.