Jesuit Communications Foundation in Manila, in collaboration with the EAPI and JESCOMEAO, conducted an annual one-month Pastoral Communications Workshop for participants coming throughout Asia from May 14 to June 13. Mr. Augustine Loorthusamy (SIGNIS World President, JESCOMEAO Special Assistant) and Fr Jerry Martinson launched this year’s workshop which drew a record number of over 40 participants. Following a few days of orientation and pastoral communications theory, the students began mastering a variety of skills, including digital photography, Photoshop, basic Web Design, Power Point and Flash presentations, and Video Production. Participants came from China, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Vietnam and New Guinea.
Jesuit Communications Foundation in Manila videotaped the first two lectures in a JESCOMEAO/Asian Communication Network (ACN) DVD series on pastoral communications. Prof. Jose de Mesa presented his talks on Theology of Communication and Blackboard Illustration for Teaching Theology. The DVDs will be used primarily in connection with pastoral communications workshops for professors and formation personnel in Asian seminaries, but will be available for general distribution as well. The lectures will be subtitled in various Asian languages. Lectures on other subjects related to pastoral communications will follow.
JESCOMEAO members mourn the passing of Fr Ruedi Hofmann in Switzerland recently. Fr Ruedi was one of the pioneers in Asian church communications, having founded Puskat Audio-visual Studio in Yogyakarta and Casa De Produçao Audiovisual, a TV production facility in Dili, East Timor. He was a steadfast and vocal believer that media should be closely tied to the needs of the grass-roots population and should give ordinary people the opportunity to makes their needs known. He also insisted on the importance of a strong and sensitive interreligious dimension to all Catholic productions. The works he started are being carried on by the competent Jesuits and lay personnel he helped train in Indonesia and East Timor.
News from Kuangchi Program Service (KPS), Taipei
KPS recently completed a documentary on the work of Macau’s Fr Luis Ruiz. The documentary shows the indefatigable, 95 year-old Fr Ruiz joyfully interacting with leprosy victims and their children, with children suffering from HIV/AIDS, with the elderly, the abandoned, and the terminally ill-all living in communities established by Fr Ruiz and maintained through the help of his benefactors, volunteers, and ever-growing network of service personnel in Macau and China. The DVD will be distributed to Fr Ruiz’s benefactors and associates, and is available for use by all interested parties. The moving and inspiring documentary is also suitable for worldwide TV broadcast.
KPS cooperated with Taiwan’s Fagushan Buddhist organization to produce a number of TV commercials promoting social morality. Taiwan’s new Vice President Vincent Siew and internationally renowned Chinese film actor Jet Li (Hero; The One; Lethal Weapon 4) were among the many media personalities that lined up at KPS’ studios to participate in these commercials. While waiting, they shared their views on religion, spirituality and morality.