John Paul II: The Great Communicator

Sister Rose Pacatte, FSP
April 5, 2005

On Sunday, April 3, 2005 Tim Russert interviewed Archbishop John P. Foley, President of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, on NBC’s Meet the Press. During their conversation the Archbishop said “I remember … something the Pope said to Cardinal Keeler of Baltimore when he asked the Holy Father if it was okay if a television camera could be there for a presentation he was making to the Pope. The Pope said, ‘If it doesn’t happen on television, it doesn’t happen.’

“The Pope realized the importance of television. In fact, a year ago I had lunch with the Pope and he said, ‘Archbishop, your department is 40 years old this year [the anniversary of the Vatican II document, Inter Mirifica on Social Communications]. Would you like a letter from me stressing the importance of communications?’ I said, ‘Certainly, Your Holiness’, and he prepared an Apostolic Letter, a major document that was released in the weeks between his two hospitalizations this year ( January 24, 2005). This was the last major document of the Pope – a document on communications that dealt with “The Rapid Development” of the technologies, the techniques of communicating.

“The Pope said that people are living in an environment of communication and we have to become accustomed to that; to be careful of the dangers of course, but also learn to use these media of communications and live with them in order to enrich and unify individuals around the world. So a beautiful final testament of this Holy Father is his belief in communications.”

Teaching on Communication

From the very beginning of his long pontificate, Pope John Paul II (1920 – 2005) wrote continually about communications through the media, between persons, and through the arts, from the theater to the cinema. In fact, by the year 2000 he had given eight speeches on the cinema alone. In the Jubilee year 2000 he set aside a day to commemorate journalists (June 4) and another to honor the world of entertainment (December 17). I was present at the day for journalists. The Pope gave his speech and a few people got to greet him personally. I don’t recall what he said, but as he was walking off the stage, he lifted up his cane and shook it at us and the whole audience went wild. Then he did it again; the people loved it. Los Angelinos Jack Shea, past president of the Directors Guild of America, and his Emmy-award winning screenwriter wife, Patt, represented Hollywood at the event for entertainers.

From 1979 through 2005, John Paul II issued annual messages for World Communications Day dealing with such diverse topics as Social Communications and the Problems of the Elderly (1982), The Christian Message in a Computer Culture (1990) and The Communications Media at the Service of Authentic Peace in 2003. Almost every major document and encyclical he issued integrated a reflection or teaching on communications and media with the main theme he addresses.

For the new millennium

This is especially notable in his Apostolic Letter Novo Millennio Inuente issued at the close of the Jubilee Year in 2000. The document is rooted in a theology of communication that takes life from the Holy Trinity and continues through history in the community of believers. Almost every paragraph of this document refers to communication as theology, spirituality, or dialogue between persons and nations, and an on-going conversation between faith and culture.

Faith, culture and the search for meaning

Among John Paul II’s writings, my personal favorite is his description of the world of communications in his 1990 encyclical letter, The Mission of the Redeemer(n. 37.c). His words inspired me to go a step further in the communications apostolate of my religious community of the Daughters of St. Paul and pursue a degree in education in media studies and media literacy. His clarity of thought about culture and faith touches on how people search for and make meaning from the media and how we in the faith community can become critical viewers and mindful, responsible producers of media:

“There is a deeper reality involved here: since the very evangelization of modern culture depends to a great extent on the influence of the media, it is not enough to use the media simply to spread the Christian message and the Church’s authentic teaching. It is also necessary to integrate this message into the new culture created by modern communications.”

The Pope as communicator

Pope John Paul II began his faith journey as a poet, playwright, actor, and author. Two of his plays were made into films (The Jeweler’s Shop in 1988 with Burt Lancaster and Our God’s Brother in 1997 directed by Krzysztof Zanussi). Communicating through artistic experiences led him to develop a profoundly integrated philosophy and Christian vision of the human person. He communicated these ideas consistently in his life, his written and spoken words, the gestures, and actions captured by so many photographs and television broadcasts.

John Paul II will be remembered as a pastor, a teacher, a father, a leader. He showed us how to pray and how to be Christ acting in the world. This was never truer than when he was with youth and children. His face reflected good humor and joy, his words and gestures proclaimed that Christ is our hope. For the Pope the essence of communication is always authentic love, thus connected with young people on emotional and spiritual levels that got their attention in ways other celebrities can only imagine.

As has been noted by the television commentators and experts covering the death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his way of communicating brought great clarity to the teachings of Jesus. From the beginning of his papacy he communicated the dignity of the human person by linking human freedom and responsibility with the principles of Catholic social teaching. With Vatican Council II he acknowledged that the media are gifts of God to be used for the good of humanity.

In his final, official written communication with the world on January 24, 2005, John Paul II called the communications media “marvelous”. May his legacy of authentic communication continue to inspire us in whatever ministry we are called to fulfill during our earthly sojourn.