Message to Philippine Federation of Catholic Broadcasters

Message of Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara on the occasion of the 83rd General Assembly of the Philippine Federation of Catholic Broadcasters, held last Feb. 22, 2014 at the Lay Force, San Carlos Seminary Compound, Makati, MM

Magandang hapon po sa inyong lahat.

First of all, I would like to thank you for inviting me to deliver a short message to this 83^rd  Bi-Annual Assembly of the Philippine Federation of Catholic Broadcasters-Catholic Media Network (PCFB-CMN).  To tell honestly, I feel a bit inadequate to address you, as I continue to ask the Lord why I was given this new job to become the Chairman of the Episcopal Commission on Social Communications and Mass Media.  As you might know, my previous job for the past 8 years in the CBCP was Chair of the Episcopal Commission on Seminaries.  So I am still in awe and wonder how it turned up that from seminary formation, I am now in social communications.

Anyway, let me just highlight three thoughts (in the tradition of the homilies of Pope Francis)  which I want to impart to you that, I think and feel, will be my disposition in this new CBCP Ministry.  Three words: Listening, Learning and Forming.

1. Listening

In your job as broadcasters, you and I know that you care so much for your listeners- what they listen to from the radio and how they react to what they listen to. In the same vein, I want to assure you that my ministry in Social Communications will be a listening ministry. I am aware that in order to know your needs, I have to listen first, listen well and listen with my mind and heart so that I can best respond to what is needed in our task to proclaim the Gospel so that our listeners, especially the masses, the poorest of the poor, may be able to eventually listen to no one else but God who speaks through us. In the words of Morton Kesley: “Real listening is a kind of prayer, for as one listens, he penetrates through the human ego and hears the Spirit of God which dwells in the heart of every man.  Real Listening is a religious experience.”

2.  Learning

I make a ‘leap of faith’ as I embark into this ministry of social communications.  I must admit and I humbly tell you: “Marami po akong hindi alam sa gawaing ito.”  For this reason, I also take this task as a learning ministry.  I am here to learn from you and my hope is that my learnings will empower each of us to better proclaim the truth of Jesus Christ effectively, explore more opportunities to reach out to those who need to know His Good News and, in so doing, fulfill our vocation to be agents of evangelization and change. It will not be easy to learn.  Why?  Well, you and I also know, that in learning, we have to un-learn and re-learn.  This will demand a lot of humility on my part and yours since there is a tendency to think that we know a lot of things or that we are the know-all and be-all of everything.  Let us just be consoled that we have only one teacher, our true Master, our only Rabbi- our Lord Jesus Christ.  So let us learn from no one lese but Him.

3. Forming

In listening and learning, consequently, we go through a process of formation, our minds and hearts are formed to become better persons, perhaps better bearers of the Good News, better evangelizers.  So I also see this new task with you as ministry of forming.  In fact, I feel that I have to be the first one formed in many things about how to better communicate the Gospel in this day and age.  We, bishops, had a dose of this last July during our week-long CBCP Meeting when most of us were taught and formed how to open and use Facebook to evangelize and especially target the youth in proclaiming the Gospel of joy.  I hope that as I am formed through and with you, especially in broadcasting, we can implement more programs in the formation of broadcasters in this era of new evangelization  

Let me end with some words from the address of Pope Francis to the Plenary Assembly of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications last year (Sept. 23, 2013). The Holy Father pointed out that the challenge we face in social communications is not principally technological but something personal.   I think it would be much better if I quote his words directly:

We must ask ourselves: are we capable of bringing Christ into this area, or rather, of bringing about the encounter with Christ? To walk with the pilgrim through life, but as Jesus walked with the pilgrims of Emmaus, warming their hearts and leading them to the Lord? Are we capable of communicating the face of a Church which can be a “home” to everyone? We talk about the Church behind closed doors. But this is more than a Church with open doors, it’s more! Finding “home” together, building “home”, building the Church. It’s this: building the Church as we walk. A challenge! To lead to the rediscovery, through means of social communication as well as by personal contact, of the beauty which is at the heart of our existence and our journey, the beauty of faith, the beauty of the encounter with Christ. Even in the context of social communications, the Church is required to bring warmth, to warm hearts. Do our presence and plans measure up to this requirement, or do we remain mired in technicalities? We hold a precious treasure that is to be passed on, a treasure that brings light and hope. They are greatly needed. All this, however, requires a careful and thorough formation in this area for priests, for religious men and women, for laity. The great digital continent does not only involve technology, but is made up of real men and women who bring with them what they carry inside, their hopes, their suffering, their concerns, their pursuit of truth, beauty, and good.

These words of the Holy Father remind me of a story where a group of young Christians attending an international summer camp were brainstorming on how to spread the gospel in this day and age.  There were many creative suggestions on how best to proclaim the gospel on TV, radio, newspaper columns, bible camps and, of course, the internet.  When all ideas were expressed, a young African girl shared how they evangelized in their country.  She shared: “When Christians in my country go to a pagan village, they don’t send the people living there books and missionaries.  They send them a good Christian family.  The family’s example converts the villagers.” (Mark Link, SJ)

 

Let us pray that in whatever we learn during in these days about ‘Media for the Masses’, and in whatever we do and with whatever resources we will use to evangelize, we will take to heart that it is the person of Christ whom the persons entrusted to our pastoral care look forward to encounter in their lives.  Maraming Salamat po!