Five
M.Afr contributed with alacrity to this issue in tribute to John Paul II.
We recall his commitment to mission, dialogue and development in Africa. Special
thanks to our confreres Michael Fitzgerald, Étienne Renaud, Wolfgang
Schonecke, Michel Lelong, and Joseph Vandrisse. From 1974-2002 Fr Vandrisse
was the permanent envoy of the 'Figaro' in Rome. He has written an article
on 'John Paul II and the Media'. Here are some extracts to open this issue:
In May 1988 on board the plane carrying John Paul II to Latin America, journalists
asked him about the importance he attached to the media. He said to us, "The
Gospel says, 'What you hear in whispers, proclaim it on the rooftops'. Well,
in Bolivia you will see nothing but TV aerials on the roofs. So it is by that
means that the Word of God can reach them. I use the media a lot for that
reason."
Contrary to what has been bandied about, the media did not make John Paul
II. The media event came after his initial acts and primary attitudes. He
provoked the media by launching questions on the meaning of life. It is not
true that John Paul II sought to monopolise the media. The media were drawn
to him. At the end of an interview he gave in Thailand he told us, "The
Press try very hard to understand me from the outside whereas it is only possible
from the inside." (Le Journal du dimanche, Paris, 14 avril 2005)
Julien Cormier M.Afr
Editor of the Petit Echo
Rome
General Chapter 1986, audience with from left, first row, Jan Lenssen,
Michel Gagnon (+), Robert Gay, Étienne Renaud, Joseph Robert
and Vincent Martin (+)
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General Chapter 2004 with Gérard Chabanon, Richard Baawobr,
Jim Greene and some other capitulants.
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