Permanent activity of missionary formation for PMS National Directions, year 2021

Pontifical Missionary Union

europa

Italy

Since it was not possible to meet in person due to the pandemic, the following three courses, which are part of the ongoing formation activity of the National Directions of the Pontifical Mission Societies, were held online in 2021 using ZOOM as videoconferencing platform.

Online course for Spanish-speaking directions (2-4 February 2021)

«La misión de la Iglesia: la caridad misionera y el fundraising» (Church’s mission: Missionary Charity and Fundraising)

Online course for French-speaking directions (1-5 March 2021)

« Mission de l’Église : Communications, Charité et Collectes de Fonds » (Church’s mission: Media Communication, Charity and Fundraising)

Online course for English-speaking directions (8-12 March 2021)

«Church’s mission: Media Communication, Charity and Fundraising»

«La misión de la Iglesia: la caridad misionera y el fundraising»

“Church’s Mission: Missionary Charity and Fundraising” was the main theme discussed during the online formation course for the Spanish-speaking National Directions of the PMS. The course was organized by PMS, Pontifical Missionary Union (PMU) and CIAM, in collaboration with the PMS National Direction in Spain. There were 97 participants, connected from 18 different countries around the world.

The course began with a speech by the President of the PMS, Archbishop Giampietro Dal Toso, who reminded the importance of the PMS identity as a prerequisite for a proper communication and a correct vision of fundraising. He then focused on the PMS nature and their mission, summarizing their charism in three points: faith, mission and universality. The Archbishop indicated prayer, offering/sacrifice and formation as the three ways of living the PMS charism.

Then followed the presentation, prepared by the PMS National Direction in Colombia offered by Fr. Javier Alexis Gil Henao, National Director and by Mrs. Viviana López, Head of communication “Contextualizar la Misión de la Iglesia: comunicación y caridad misionera” (Contextualizing Church’s Mission: Communication and Missionary Charity). The talk was divided in two parts. The first part focused on pastoral aspects and dealt with the theme of mission and missionary charity; the second one, instead, was dedicated to communication and its potential to provide us with tools to share the missionary message.

On the second day, there were two speeches dealing directly with the theme of fundraising which was the course focus, one from the theoretical point of view offered by Prof. Cristian Mendoza, Pontifical University of the Holy Cross (Rome, Italy), and another from the practical viewpoint, presented by Dr. Juan Uribe Arbeláez, President of the Instituto de Fundraising Católico (Madrid, Spain).

The professor Cristian Mendoza explained the conceptual leap from fundraising to faithraising, and indicated a new approach to fundraising, summarized in the verb “to give” rather than “to ask”.

Juan Uribe dealt with the theme “Fundraising católico: el nuevo reto para la Iglesia” (Catholic Fundraising: New Challenge for the Church) by analyzing the fundamental principles of fundraising setting them in the Catholic world, and providing concrete examples and suggestions.

"Marketing religioso y fundraising: claves para una comunicación eficaz" (Religious Marketing and Fundraising: Key Points for an Effective Communication) was the theme of the lecture of the university professor Carlos Luna Calvo, director of the RE-Inspira International Conference on Religious Marketing (Madrid, Spain) on the last day of the course.

Prof. Luna Calvo explained the possibilities offered by marketing in the field of evangelization and presented some strategies to be implemented to achieve effective communication in fundraising.

Next, Fr. José María Calderón, PMS national director in Spain, reiterated that PMS are not an NGO, but are part of the Church, outlining the peculiarities of their reality in Spain in the field of fundraising and communication. At the end, Fr. Fabrizio Meroni, the then PUM Secretary General, made some reflections on the rediscovery of the unique charism of the Pontifical Mission Societies.

« Mission de l’Église : Communications, Charité et Collectes de Fonds »

“Church’s Mission: Media Communication, Charity and Fundraising” was the main theme discussed during the online formation course for the French-speaking National Directions of the PMS. The course was organized by PMS, Pontifical Missionary Union (PMU) and CIAM, in collaboration with the PMS National Direction in French Canada. There were 67 participants, connected from 26 different countries around the world.

After the speech of the PMS President, Archbishop Giampietro Dal Toso, there was the talk of Fr. Benoit Kouassi, vice president of the Faculty of Communication at the Université Catholique d'Afrique de l'Ouest (UCAO, Abidjan, Ivory Coast), on the theme « Contextualiser la mission de l’Église: Communications et charité missionnaire » (Contextualizing Church’s Mission: Communication and Missionary Charity). The speaker explained in a practical way how to create a strategy to realize an effective communication in the missionary context of the PMS.

The Dicastery for Communication (Vatican City) began the second day which focused on the theme of « Communications au Vatican » (Communication in Vatican). Romilda Ferrauto and Jean Charles Putzolu presented the structure and communication tools of the Dicastery. They pointed out the concrete possibility of collaboration and synergy among French-speaking National Directions of the PMS and the Dicastery.

Afterwards, Daniel Torchia, member of Communication Team in the national direction of the PMS in French-speaking Canada gave a talk on « Une culture de communication - survol et éléments de base » (Communication Culture: Overview and Fundamentals). The “best practices”, which enable us to better communicate (listening, knowledge, storytelling tecniques, coeherence between action and message, introduction to the technique), were presented. An overview of the vision of the world and press on the themes of faith and mission was also offered, in order to have a clear picture of the context in which this type of communication operates.

Then, Fr. Yoland Ouellet, the National Director for French-speaking Canada, interacted with Jean-Nicolas Desjeunes, another member of Communication Team of the PMS French-speaking Canada, dealing with the theme « Le tournant communicationnel et relationnel » (The Communicative and Relational Turning Point).

Radio Maria, represented by Jean Paul Kayihaura, who outlined the values and style that animated the radio station, opened the meeting of the third day, focusing in particular on the broadcasts and services offered to the African audience.

The fundraising was the main topic of the fourth day, thanks to the lecture on « Les fondaments des dons dans l’Église » (Fundamentals of donations in the Church) offered by Prof. Cristian Mendoza, Pontifical University of the Holy Cross (Rome, Italy), who explained the conceptual leap from fundraising to faithraising

At the end, some of the best fundraising methods were presented, including the experience of Carl Hétu, National Director of CNEWA Canada (Catholic Near East Welfare Association).

«Church’s mission: Media Communication, Charity and Fundraising»

“Church’s Mission: Media Communication, Charity and Fundraising” was the main theme dis-cussed during the online formation course for the English-speaking National Directions of the PMS. The course was organized by PMS, Pontifical Missionary Union (PMU) and CIAM, in collaboration with the PMS National Direction in Australia. There were 224 participants, connected from 40 different countries around the world.

On the first day, Fr. Ambrose Pitchaimutchu, National Director of the PMS in India, gave a talk on “Contextualizing Church’s Mission: Communication and Missionary Charity”. His speech touched three main themes: the global context in which we live and the Church today and its mission, “mission and communication,” and the missionary charity lived as faith that calls to action, lived in one’s own personal experience and in communion with local Churches.

At the end of the first day, Fr. Brian Lucas, National Director of the PMS in Australia, presented the theme of digital communication in the missionary formation’s field, starting from the Australian experience. Then he reflected on the importance of identifying the audience and context.

On the second day, Prof. Cristian Mendoza of the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross (Rome, Italy), explained the conceptual leap from fundraising to faithraising.

Simone Medri, director of Communication Team in the PMS Australia, presented the digital strategies applied to fundraising, defining what a digital strategy is and providing a handbook with seven steps to follow.

On the third day, after the speech of the PMS President, Archbishop Giampietro Dal Toso, the three Secretaries General of the PMS presented their own Pontifical Society (POPF, POSI, POSPA).

Then, Sr. Bernadette Mary Reis, fsp, Dicastery for Communication (Vatican City), offered a presentation on “Effectively Communicating Our Mission,” highlighting the importance to work on a well-conceived communication plan, identifying three points of view: strategic, tactical and practical.

On the fourth day, Rev. Prof. Peter Lah from the Pontifical Gregorian University spoke about the “Fundamentals of Communication,” starting from concepts of communication and organization and finishing by explaining what a communication system means.

The course continued with the presentation of Fides by Paolo Affatato, editorial coordinator of Fides News Agency.

On the fifth day, Bernhard Mitterutzner from Radio Maria gave a talk about the values and style, which animate the radio station, while Jean Paul Kayihaura focused on Radio Maria fundraising experience presenting “Mariathon,” a solidarity race addressed mainly to the African continent. At the end, Fr. Fabrizio Meroni, the then PUM Secretary General, made some reflections on the rediscovery of the unique charism of the Pontifical Mission Societies.