March 12 will mark the debut of a new television series combining the
words of Pope Benedict XVI with the Church's traditional sacred art and
music.
“Sunday with Benedict XVI,” broadcast on the Italian bishops' TV 2000
network, will draw upon six years of the Pope's homilies, Angelus
commentaries, and Gospel reflections, supplemented by portions of his
writings and the works of the Church Fathers.
The regular Saturday evening program will incorporate selections that
are based on the Mass readings for every Sunday of the liturgical year,
taken from the audio and video archives of Pope Benedict's
pontificate.
Fr. Timothy Verdon, an American-born priest and art historian based
in Florence, will set the scene for the Pope's scriptural reflections
each week.
At the beginning of each program, Fr. Verdon will showcase and
discuss three masterpieces of Christian artwork that pertain to the
themes and topics of the Pope's preaching and the weekly Mass readings.
Fr. Verdon is a consultant to the Papal Commision for the Cultural
Heritage of the Church, and has drawn inspiration from Pope Benedict's
teachings on the value of sacred art.
A world-renowned conductor of Gregorian chant, Fulvio Rampi, will
lead the “Cantori Gregoriani” choir in singing the traditional entrance
and and communion chants for each Sunday of the year.
Rampi, a professor of Gregorian chant at the Papal Institute of
Sacred Music, will also provide a commentary linking the weekly
Scripture readings with the traditional Latin hymns. The members of the
Cantori Gregoriani hope their participation will invite a renewed
interest in Gregorian chant, in keeping with the privileged position
intended for it by the Second Vatican Council.
The half-hour program will air every Saturday on TV 2000 at 5:30
p.m,, with a repeat broadcast at 10:35 p.m.
Viewers outside Italy can
stream the program via the station's website, http://www.tv2000.it.
Although the program will currently only be broadcast in Italian,
Catholic stations in other countries have expressed interest in
translating the program for broadcast in their own languages.