MESSAGE TO WORLD CONGRESS OF CATHOLIC TELEVISION

VATICAN CITY, OCT 10, 2006 (VIS) - Made public today was a Message from Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B., to Archbishop John P. Foley, president of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, for the World Congress of Catholic Television, being held in Madrid, Spain, from October 10 to 12.

  In his English-language Message, Cardinal Bertone affirms the need for "great unity between the Holy See and the local hierarchies in order to inspire and support the various television companies, and those that will develop in the future, helping them to remain faithful to their Catholic identity while preserving their diverse styles, sensibilities and cultural characteristics."

  "The new forms of communication offer a highly favorable framework for more active participation of the public together with the media, promoting the inclusion of less fortunate sectors of the public and adapting themselves in a particular way to the experience of communion that is at the very heart of the Church."

  To this end, concludes the cardinal secretary of State, "it is necessary, without fear of technology, with intrepid hope and faith, to promote a joyful, creative and professional presence in television. We must be co-workers of the truth so as to offer the Good News of our Lord in the multiple formats of audiovisual media, while also witnessing to the beauty of creation."
SS/CATHOLIC TELEVISION/BERTONE:FOLEY                VIS 20061010 (230)