John Paul II: The Great Communicator

There is a new book coming out on Pope John Paul II as a communicator! I am excited to read this one. One of the authors (Sr. Marie Gannon, FMA) was my eighth grade teacher! The following comes from the Catholic News Service:

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope John Paul II's ability to communicate was not primarily a result of his experience as an amateur actor, but was an expression of his theology, said the authors of a new book.

In his speeches and writings, whether the audience was religious or not, the late pope continually emphasized the role of Jesus Christ as both the creator of words and as the embodiment of the Word, the authors said at a round-table discussion launching the book in February.

Sister Christine Mugridge, a member of the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity, and Salesian Sister Marie Gannon wrote "John Paul II: Development of a Theology of Communications," which was published by the Vatican publishing house.

In his almost 27-year pontificate, Pope John Paul "was known for his communicative gifts," the authors wrote.

After analyzing both the pope's work and his communication style, the authors concluded that a principal theme of Pope John Paul's pontificate was "the person of Christ, who not only reveals/communicates the salvific plan of the Father, but reveals/communicates man to himself in the light of this divine revelation."

For Christians, all of salvation history involves social communications, including the relationship of the first disciples with Christ, the authors wrote. The disciples came to know Christ as "not only the bearer of the words of life, but as the Word of life," they wrote.

Communication of the faith is necessary in order to effectively bring others to encounter Christ and to remain in communion with Christ, the authors wrote, and studying the communications of Pope John Paul demonstrates how well he understood that.

Sisters Gannon and Mugridge wrote that Pope John Paul was a model communicator whose work deserves consideration for excellence in social communications.