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Bishop Barbarito reflects on the Florida Catholic’s place in your faith, your life, your communityPosted: 10.29.09 In celebration of the Florida Catholic’s 70th year of covering your faith, your life and your community and in anticipation of the newspaper’s annual Florida Catholic Sunday campaign weekend Nov. 7-8, Bishop Gerald M. Barbarito answered a few questions about why you should subscribe to your diocesan newspaper. As publisher of the Florida Catholic of Palm Beach, what do you believe the publication gives to local Catholic readers that they can’t get from other sources? I am very strongly in favor of the Catholic newspaper. I always have been in the different dioceses I have been in, and I am very committed to it here in Florida. A Catholic paper gives us, as the Church, a voice, which is our voice. It gives the people the ability to go to a source where they can feel assured that what they are getting is accurate, not only in terms of events and things that are happening in the Church or affecting the Church, but also in terms of what the teaching of the Church is. … The Catholic newspaper brings information right into the home, in a readable fashion, in a way that a lot of people are used to. It is a very important vehicle for communicating what is going on in the Church, what is going on in the diocese as well as Church teachings. It is also a very important vehicle of evangelization. Why are the Florida Catholic and other Catholic media important in today’s world? Let me use an analogy. If someone is going to tell you something about the sports world, you need someone who really knows sports. You need someone that knows what is going on – someone who knows the game – knows all the possibilities of the game. The same is true about the Church. There is so much complexity to events and even issues that are involved in the Church. It is very important to have someone giving that information who has a full understanding of it. YOUR FAITHWhat are your thoughts about the bishop’s column in the Florida Catholic and how it helps in your role as a teacher of the faith to your flock in the Diocese of Palm Beach? I think the bishop’s column is an important part of the newspaper because people can look to that column. What the bishop tries to do with a column is to try to teach, and especially teach in regards to what is pertinent to our diocese at a certain time. People know they have a way to look at the voice of what the bishop is saying by looking at that column. This year, I made those columns with a deeper reflection on the different aspects of the Eucharist. YOUR LIFEWhy is it important for the faithful of the Diocese of Palm Beach to read a Catholic perspective on the news, such as health care and immigration reform, and issues including pro-life, family and vocations? Those issues have so many components and complexities to them. First of all, the person reading a Catholic newspaper, or a Catholic source of Catholic information, is going to get a good sense of what the Church’s teaching is in that particular area, because that is what the paper is meant to do. … For a person to be able to receive a newspaper or a periodical, and to have these things presented to them with a Catholic perspective, is a great service to them and a great service for the Church, and it is something they do have a right to. How do you hope the faithful will use what they read in the Florida Catholic in their lives? They use it by becoming better informed about events in the Church. They use it by becoming better informed about issues that affect society to which the Church’s teachings are addressed, and hopefully, it will be a source for them because of better understanding of the issues to discuss them with other people in a fuller context. Ultimately the purpose of anything that we do is to deepen our faith and our relationship with God. The whole context of the Catholic newspaper is to help someone in terms of deepening their own faith life and their own prayer life in terms of their relationship with God. YOUR COMMUNITYHow does the Florida Catholic contribute to building a sense of community among Catholics throughout the large and diverse diocese of Palm Beach? The Florida Catholic is unique for us because, first and foremost, it is reporting on what is happening in the diocese. For example, this year I got a lot of coverage in terms of the anniversary events going on – in terms of parish things going on – things that are particular to us. The Florida Catholic is also unique because it gives us what is happening in (other) dioceses in Florida. And then, in the widest context, it gives us a picture of what is happening in terms of the Universal Church. If the pope comes out with a new encyclical, it is reported on immediately within the context of the Florida Catholic. People can get information out of a (secular) newspaper, but it is not going to be as accurate and as concise in terms of what is in the encyclical as a Catholic newspaper is going to give them. You are going to get a wider presentation of the encyclical and an accurate presentation and you are going to get a faith perspective on the encyclical. The Catholic’s reporting of the pope’s encyclical is not only to say this is what the pope said. It is not only to say these are the political issues that may be involved, but it is especially meant to say this is what the pope wants to say in terms of encouraging people in their faith life. That is only going to come from a Catholic perspective. So because of that and because it is communal, the Catholic paper is meant to be read by many people who are part of a community as any newspaper is. It builds community; it builds the family. The Florida Catholic has been covering the Catholic community in this part of Florida since 1939, even before the diocese was established. What does it mean for readers to have a diocesan publication with such deep roots in the area? It is important because it has a history to it, and the history goes back before our diocese began. The understanding of history and where we come from always adds to what the situation is before us. You are not just talking out of a present context. You are talking out of a much wider perspective. Every newspaper or just about every endeavor likes to emphasize: We have a long history; we did not arrive on the block yesterday. For subscription information, attend Mass at your parish the weekend of Nov. 7-8, call 1-888-275-9953 toll free or subscribe online HERE.
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