FABC Communication I N F O FEDERATION OF ASIAN BISHOPS’ CONFERENCES - OFFICE OF SOCIAL COMMUNICATION OSC P.O. Box 2036, Manila 1099 Tel: (+63 2) 732 7170, 338 7769 Fax: (+63 2) 732 7171 Email: [email protected], [email protected] t Vol. XXV, No. 11 November 2010

INDIAN BISHOP HEADS FABC-OSC INDONESIA: ONLINE CATHOLIC LAUNCHED Bishop Chacko Thottumarickal SVD, Bishop of Indore and The first online Catholic news agency of the Church in Indonesia Chairman, CBCI (Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India) was launched in May this year. “PEN@,” for “Pastoral and Commission for Social Communication, has been appointed Ecclesiastical News Agency,” is accessible at with news, features, archives, photo gallery OSC). He succeeds Lawrence Saldanha of Lahore, who and editorial sections all in Bahasa Indonesia language. headed the office for the past seven years. 61-year old Bishop Correspondents are stationed at their respective dioceses and Chacko has a Master’s degree in communications from the U.K. contribute stories via email. PEN@ aims to provide information He also chairs the National Institute of Social Communications, about the local churches to a wider online audience. This project Research and Training (NISCORT) in India. The other members of was conceived and is being managed by Dominican Father Andreas the FABC-OSC are Bishop Philip Huang of Hualien, Taiwan, Kurniawan, veteran Church journalist Paul Pati, and a lay Dominican Bishop Honesto Ongtioco of Cubao, Philippines, Bishop Petrus volunteer serving as the site’s web master. They hope to offer an Turang from Indonesia, Bishop Joseph Prathan Sridarunsil, sdb of English version of the site in the near future. (OSC) Surat Thani, Thailand. Each of them heads the communication SRI LANKA: SIGNIS-SRI LANKA CHOOSES BEST FILM commission in their respective countries. SIGNIS-Sri Lanka has selected Akasa Kusum (Flowers of the MALAYSIA: CHRISTIANS CONDEMN PREACHER'S VIDEO Sky) as the best Sri Lankan creative film of 2009. Archbishop Joseph Christian groups have denounced a former Muslim, now Spiteri, Apostolic Nuncio to Sri Lanka, joined a large crowd of Christian-preacher for his video insulting and making fun of Islam church people, film stars, film makers and well-wishers at the and Prophet Muhammad. Amidst concerns that the videos may Bandaranayake Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) further strain already fractured interreligious relations, several in Colombo for the Nov 26 SIGNIS awards ceremony. Akasa Kusum Christians urged authorities to quickly arrest and prosecute made its world premiere at the Pusan International Film Festival in Benjamin Stephen, who moved to Sarawak to become a preacher. October 2008, and has won numerous awards at various festivals. The Council of Churches of Malaysia (CCM) said “the so-called The film depicts a mother’s struggle to take responsibility for her preacher had acted as an individual representing his own views estranged daughter and newborn grand-child. (UCANEWS) and not the official views of the churches.” “As Catholics, we VIETNAM: CHURCH URGED TO REACH ETHNIC GROUPS assure our Muslim friends that we have the utmost respect for K’hor ethnic catechist, Marie K’Diep of Dalat diocese, has urged Islam,” said Adrian Gomez. Alfred Tais from the National local Church leaders in Vietnam to evangelize ethnic minority Evangelical Christian Fellowship (NECF) told local media that to groups with improved material and . Speaking at the third humiliate your former religion or speak badly about any other session of the Congress of God’s People held in Ho Chi Minh city religion is against Christian teaching and values. (CBCP NEWS) on Nov 24, K’Diep said “The local Church should preserve and INDIA: CHRISTIAN ART IS A SACRAMENT, SAYS respect traditions, festivals, music and cultures, and integrate “Christian art is a sign of unseen grace,” said Fr Paul Kattukaran, Christian values into (ethnic) cultures.” The Church should provide and should be encouraged by the Church in India. Fr. Kattukaran, copies of the Scriptures in ethnic languages. Local missioners the new national coordinator of the Indian Christian Artists’ Forum should create close relations with ethnic people, she added. (ICAF), said the Church could effectively use Christian visual art “Missioners should live among them, work with them on fields or in spiritual formation, pastoral care and other works. Propagation forests, eat what they eat and give health care and education.” of good Christian images is essential for promoting Christian faith, K’hor is one of 20 ethnic groups living in the diocesan territory. he said. “My faith is generated and nourished by art,” adding that The country has 53 ethnic minority groups excluding Kinh people “Images of Jesus Christ in the Bible are a great faith experience.” or the Vietnamese majority. (UCANEWS) The priest hopes that Christian visual art becomes the basis of evangelization, mission, and catechism. Every diocese, he adds, must provide art education to children and adults because the first priority is to promote Christian art among Christians. (CBCP NEWS) Communications in and by the Church is essentially communication of the Good News of Jesus Christ. Aetatis Novae (1992, 9) PHILIPPINES: CHURCH RADIO STATION SPONSORS SINGAPORE: MUSLIMS VISIT CATHOLIC CATHEDRAL PROGRAMS FOR TRIBALS About 30 members and volunteers of Baalwie Mosque visited DXCP, the Church-run radio station in city, has the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd on Nov 14. The guests added programs for B’laan and Manobo tribal people of the included the mosque’s Imam Habib Hassan Al-Attas, who were southern Philippine province of Sarangani. The weekly program received by Archbishop Nicholas Chia, Canossian Sr Theresa Seow, features a live discussion of problems facing tribal communities in of the Archdiocesan Council for Interreligious and Ecumenical the region such as ancestral domains, peace, and women Dialogue, and Cathedral Rector Father Adrian Anthony. The group empowerment. “Since we started the program, a lot of B’laans from was toured inside the oldest Roman in Singapore. Sarangani and South Cotabato have been calling us to share their The two-hour visit concluded with Habib Hassan presenting the views and their problems,” said Pedro Moranos, a fulong (tribal Archbishop with a Chinese calligraphy painting with the words, elder) who has been hosting the show since last year. “Because “In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful” and a Persian we are allowed to use our language we are able to encourage the rug. In return, the Archbishop presented a book on the history of tribal leaders to come together and discuss the problem,” said Catholicism in Singapore. Imam Hassan said the visit allowed “us Clarito Palalisan, a co-host of the show. DXCP-AM is a member of to meet our Catholic brothers and sisters and to better understand CMN (Catholic Media Network), the Catholic AM their faith.” (CN) in the Philippines. (UCANEWS) INDIA: HEARING CENTER WINS NATIONAL AWARD INDONESIA: INTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUE FORUM The Ferrando Speech and Hearing Centre, managed by the More than 50 journalists and communication professionals met Missionary Sisters of Mary Help of Christians in the state capital in Nov 9-12 for an international seminar organized by of Shillong, received the National Award for Child Welfare from Indonesia’s association of Catholic journalists. Along with 23 Indian President Pratibha Patil at a function in New on resource speakers, the participants reflected on “Interreligious November 14. “Our service to the less privileged has been Dialogue for Prosperity.” They agree that dialogue is more than recognized by the state and the country. We are motivated and just talking about commonalities and differences. Dialogue is encouraged to do more,” said Sister Katherine Joseph, head of the sharing essential points that bring people together: love and how congregation in Meghalaya. The school founded in 1996 caters to to make people’s lives more meaningful. The participants represent some 1,500 speech and hearing-impaired children who come from organizations like the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), Kompass all seven states in northeastern India. (UCANEWS) Group, Jakarta Post, TVS, Bloomberg Indonesia, Jakarta Globe, IPS, DOWNLOADABLE GUIDE TO MANAGING REPUTATION UCIP (International Union of the Catholic Press), FABC-OSC, and The “Catholic Media Council” (CAMECO) is offering a 48-page ARC (Asian Research Center for Religion and Social practical guide on managing reputation entitled “Managing Your Communication) in . The meeting was capped with a Reputation-A Guide to Crisis Management for Church session at the Jakarta Islamic State University joined by senior mass Communicators.” CAMECO, the communications consultancy communication students of the same university. (UCIP/OSC) based in Aachen, Germany, offers the guide in downloadable pdf INDIA: MALAYALAM CATHOLIC PAPER REACHES U.S. format for free from its website at Orders for READERS print copies are charged 8Euros plus shipping and handling. The The Malayalam language Catholic weekly Sunday Shalom, read guide contains concrete advice on how to prepare for a crisis, by members of all Churches in Kerala, has reached out to overseas establishing a “Crisis Management” team and developing a Christians through its US edition that was launched middle of respective action plan as well as guidelines in respective media November this year. “We aim to inform, inspire and unite Christians communications. (CAMECO) by sharing the rich heritage of the Church,” said Benny Punnathara, MALAYSIA: CATHOLICS PROMOTE FREEDOM FILMFEST chief editor and chairperson of Shalom Media Group. He said Penang Catholic groups have played a prominent role at this Sunday Shalom subscribers come from all Christian denominations year’s Freedom Film Fest, an annual event in Malaysia focusing in India. The 12-page US edition, with a four-page English language on films with a human rights perspective. The festival is organized section, will carry news about the Catholic Church from all over by the Malaysian NGO KOMAS and its partners, with funding by the world. It will also include features, inspiring stories, testimonials the European Union in co-operation with the German foundation and the teachings of the Church. (UCANEWS) Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung. This year’s event, which was co- KOREA: RETREATING IN TWITTER STREET organized in Penang on Nov. 13-14 by the human rights NGO Like St. Ignatius Loyola, Korean Jesuit Father Albert Cho In- Suaram, featured 14 Malaysian and international human rights young is taking retreats away from monasteries to where the people documentaries on the theme “Dare to Document.” (UCANEWS) are: the streets, via cyberspace. The priest uses Twitter for his INDONESIA: BIASED REMARK DISAPPOINTS BISHOPS outreach dubbed “Street Retreat,” tweeting 140-word biblical The religious prejudice expressed by a certain group over the phrases and directions to retreat participants each week. Seventy- help extended by the Indonesian Bishops’ Conference (KWI) to two people have already joined since Fr Cho began this project victims of the Mount Merapi explosion, has disappointed prelates. on Sept 6. (SE) We offered help sincerely, Bishop Johannes Maria Trilaksyanta Pujasumarta of Bandung, KWI’s secretary general, told reporters at a Nov. 12 press conference in Jakarta. On Nov. 5, hundreds of Transform the media into burning torches and powerful people, including 98 Muslims, stayed in the of Jesus beacons illuminating the path to Church compound in Bantul, Yogyakarta. Certain groups tried to the only true happiness. move the evacuees to other shelters because of fear of proselytism. Pope Paul VI, World Communication Day 1974 (UCANEWS)