Vatican Radio staff members begin formation courses on culture and humanism

Dec 6, 2007 / 10:35 am

Vatican Radio has begun a series of formational courses that will allow its staff to learn its own history by looking towards the future.  The courses began with the theme, “Vatican Radio: mission and organization. Spreading the magisterium of Benedict XVI in the cultures of today.”

“We are at the service of the Pope in his universal mission in order to contribute to making known his magisterium which is a service to the Church and is full of direction for the men and women of our time,” said Father Federico Lombardi, director of Vatican Radio and of the Holy See’s Press Office.

As the Holy See’s radio station, Father Lombardi explained, “We have the mission of building up a great human family, which knows no boundaries and is a great force of peace, hope and reconciliation.  We have the mission of promoting a great dialogue of truth in the truth,” he said.

Reflecting on its 76 year history, Father Lombardi recalled that in a short period of time, “Vatican Radio grew so much that it was able to provide encouragement to the peoples that fell victim to the tragedy of the Second World War.  A word of peace, of hope, of support, of the future, which led the station, between 1940 and 1946, to broadcast over a million messages about those who had disappeared and to serve as a place of information and communication between families, soldiers and prisoners.”

Today Vatican Radio has nearly 400 employees of 70 different nations.  Each day there are 64 and half hours of programs broadcast live in 29 languages, while the website is offered in 30 different languages. The total broadcast hours per week number 24,000.

Others scheduled to address the Vatican Radio staff include Father Andrzej Kropowski, program director of the station, Alberto Gasbarri, head administrator, Archbishop Pietro Parolin, undersecretary for Relations with States, and Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture.