2014-03-05 11:53:50

Book and DVD mark first anniversary of Francis' pontificate


(Vatican Radio) The Vatican Television Centre (CTV)and Italy’s best-selling weekly magazine, Famiglia Cristiana, have teamed up to produce a book and a DVD marking the first anniversary of Pope Francis’ pontificate. The DVD features images from some of the highlights of the past year, including the pope’s visits to Brazil and the Italian island of Lampedusa, but also footage from his meetings with the crowds here in St Peter’s Square. There’s also some previously unpublished material from the first moments following his election to the See of Peter. The Pope’s striking gestures and heart-warming embraces are narrated by Italian actor Roberto Herlitzka who appears in the Oscar winning film The Great Beauty.
Among those presenting the initiative at a press conference on Tuesday was the president of the Pontifical Council for Social Communication, Archbishop Claudio Celli, who spoke of the way Pope Francis has “turned a new page” in the media’s perception of the Catholic Church. Philippa Hitchen caught up Archbishop Celli to talk about about the striking communications skills of the first Latin American pope…

Listen: RealAudioMP3

“I think the great capacity of Pope Francis is to create communicative events….when you look at him, you don’t have only words and gestures – nice gestures and beautiful words – but he has the capacity to create an event where the real point of reference is not Pope Francis but the love of God for human beings, the merciful, tender love of God for human beings…

In music you have only the same number of notes but can you perceive what different melodies are written by different composers? Well Pope Francis has the capacity, with the same notes of Jesus and of the Gospels, to play a melody that is touching the hearts of human beings….this is an event and this is great…”


The Italian volume, entitled 'Pope Francis: the Church of mercy' and the DVD, 'Francis: a year of the pontificate' are for sale (€12.90) with the magazines Famiglia Cristiana and Credere







All the contents on this site are copyrighted ©.