Kindness always--what Catholic communicators should know

Pope Francis and Cardinal John Patrick Foley were examples of excellent media communicators which people, especially in the Catholic blogging community, are invited to emulate. This is what Fr. Thomas Rosica, CEO of Salt and Light Television in Canada said in the 3rd Annual John Cardinal Foley Lecture on Social Communications in St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, PA, Feb. 1.

Kindness in the content and in the communicating showed in the example of Pope Francis of recent visit as he highlighted in his speech entitled “Sharing the Joy of the Gospel With the Media and Through the Media “ available in its entirety in the Salt and Light blog. He related that staffers—lay and religious—during the Congress speech coverage were in tears, as was during the Ground Zero prayer memorial that one staffer in DC asked if it is a typical occurrence that everyone is in tears overtime the Pope speaks. Oh, how he truly touches people, Fr. Rosica enthused. Yet Pope Francis was a blossoming of communication gifts in the Vatican, which was personified many years before by Cardinal John Patrick Foley of Philadelphia whom Fr. Rosica felt moved and mobilized the media unlike anyone from the Pontifical Council for Social Communications has done before. Fr. Rosica related that he was welcomed by him and literally held by the hand in his first meeting with him and into their preparation to engage the media for Canada’s World Youth Day in 2002. Cardinal Foley gave Fr. Rosica three tips: One, give as much time to the media and to take them by the hand and accept their questions, even the simple or silly, challenging them when necessary. Two, thank them when they do a good job (again, building each other rather than leaving a “graveyard of corpses” in condemning internet discourse). Three, to see that each and every moment are a teaching or catechetical moment, that it can even lead to journalists asking for the sacraments, as Father’s example was, when one is thoroughly open to be hearing their queries or concerns.

We should be a light that consoles, warms, clarifies, Fr. Rosica reminded. Cardinal Foley added holiness, childlikeness, kindness, humility, humor to every encounter and removed all obstacles the media might have. He also advised Fr. Rosica at the time of outcry against the novel Da Vinci Code to not join in the negative arguments, because it will simply fan the flames and cause more publicity for the book. “Rather, we present the alternate story, which is the truth. The good stuff, the positive stories, the witnesses, we have to flood social media, “Fr. Rosica told the audience which included Archbishop Chaput, visitors and seminarians during the question and answer,. He referenced the Zika virus outbreak as one which can spur examples on the value and beauty of life when everyone is fearing effects on babies and preventing fertility.

“We should not want to be known as people who hate everything but that we stand for Someone, something. This is how we impact culture and transform lives.” He also added that it is not the high numbers of likes or shares that is the target but that social media work leads to encounter with Jesus Christ or that they are moved to come and talk to somebody, “because God didn’t send us a ‘like’, He sent us Flesh.”