GOD AND TV

“…but there’s another moment when I feel close to God, and that’s when I am watching TV. When I see images from the world roll by, the suffering, the tragedies, the lack of understanding between peoples, I see those images as if a natural, continuous, spontaneous, simple prayer expressing the mercy of God…who is also watching what is happening.”

Daniel’s Reflection

I have been blessed to befriend a whole order of nuns, the Daughters of St. Paul. As a long-time marketer at Procter & Gamble, I was fascinated by their charism: “To spread the word of God through all media available.” Even the cross they wear is a TV tower and an open Bible. Founded by Blessed James Alberione, the Daughters of St. Paul see the media as a vehicle to holiness.

Several of the sisters approached me at an interfaith retreat in Gloucester, Massachusetts— they were seeking input on their business review! When I went to Rome for Portraits in Faith, I was grateful to be connected to the motherhouse of the order and to interview several sisters. Sister

Letizia struck me with her devotion to reading scripture and how this most sacred of books took her to a different plane spiritually. I was pleasantly surprised when we went to make her portrait in the chapel that she opened up the Bible right to the book of Daniel, the story of my namesake. I also appreciate Sister Letizia’s profound understanding of what it means to devote “all of your life” to God. The commitment she and other religious people make must not be done casually.

I’ve come to believe that I must devote “all of life” and “all of myself” to the highest purpose possible, which is often in service to others and sometimes beyond my own understanding.