What could make EWTN better?

[PHX_Paul]

**Re: What could make EWTN better?

****More Faithful and Generous Donations!

 

[mercygate]

EWTN would be better with MORE Noah Lett and LESS Pablo Straub!

 

[mercygate]

I actually meant my comment as praise for Bishop Sheen! He compensated for the very limited technology of the day through careful staging and a good match of his delivery to the available medium with all its constraints.

Watching his old shows he gets more impact with two cameras and a stage than most of the EWTN shows get with five decades of technological advancement.

Of course, the Bishop was an extraordinary man–asking everyone to match him is silly. But contrast say Father Corapi, whom I haven’t watched much. While the rest of the broadcast media have moved forward in the intervening half century, his broadcasts are actually worse in many ways compared to Bishop Sheen’s. It’s often just him at a podium for long stretches of time, with crowd shots of intent but passive listeners.

I don’t know much about Father Corapi, but he seems to be our closest current analog to Bishop Sheen in terms of energy and delivery. Somehow EWTN has given him a less apt showcase than the Bishop had, not more.

Bishop Sheen was a terrific HAM! He loved the camera, and the camera loved him. He was good looking, with those penetrating eyes, and he worked 'em to the MAX!

 

[mercygate]

Yeah i did. I’m just really big on state pride! I’m going to EWTN in three weeks!

You’ll enjoy it! When I was on The Journey Home, I got a personal, impromptu tour of the studio from Fr. Pacwa (what you see is what you get!), and had dinner with Marcus Grodi before the show. Bob and Penny Lord were on set and most gracious (what you see is what you get).

Everybody was absolutely straight-up “regular.” No pretensions. I wanted to meet Noah Lett, and it turns out he was at Mass on day two of my visit, but I didn’t recognize him until I heard his voice – on the other side of the chapel – and did not get a chance to assault him afterward.

 

[aimee]

You’ll enjoy it! When I was on The Journey Home, I got a personal, impromptu tour of the studio from Fr. Pacwa (what you see is what you get!), and had dinner with Marcus Grodi before the show. Bob and Penny Lord were on set and most gracious (what you see is what you get).

Everybody was absolutely straight-up “regular.” No pretensions. I wanted to meet Noah Lett, and it turns out he was at Mass on day two of my visit, but I didn’t recognize him until I heard his voice – on the other side of the chapel – and did not get a chance to assault him afterward.

What was Marcus Grodi like? I liked his
How Firm a Foundation …

 

[mercygate]

What was Marcus Grodi like? I liked his
How Firm a Foundation …

Marcus? What you see is what you get. Very genuine; straightforward. I was in something of a dither about appearing on the show but he made it easy. And from listening to a lot of the shows on line (I didn’t have cable at the time), I knew that he was very deft at pulling people out of the fire if they got in trouble with a call . . .

Really nice guy.

I like How Firm a Foundation also. It’s actually not a great novel but it is an arrow aimed right at a specific target and hits the mark very well.

 

[aimee]

Marcus? What you see is what you get. Very genuine; straightforward. I was in something of a dither about appearing on the show but he made it easy. And from listening to a lot of the shows on line (I didn’t have cable at the time), I knew that he was very deft at pulling people out of the fire if they got in trouble with a call . . .

Really nice guy.

I like How Firm a Foundation also. It’s actually not a great novel but it is an arrow aimed right at a specific target and hits the mark very well.

What are all the languages in the Rosary on EWTN? I recognize french, spanish…

 

[mercygate]

What are all the languages in the Rosary on EWTN? I recognize french, spanish…

Beats me. I have heard it only in English. RARELY watch any TV at ALL – even EWTN.

Nevertheless, I still say: MORE Noah. LESS Pablo.

Does anybody else find Fr. Straub’s manner unsettling? Creepy?

 

[lagin]

If it were part of basic cable. I’d rather give the extra money to EWTN than to the cable company.

 

[JustAnotherThou]

If it were part of basic cable. I’d rather give the extra money to EWTN than to the cable company.

Call you cable company. DH bugged ours for about 2 years when they finally got EWTN. When I lived in Denver I was able to get it with rabbit ear antenna

 

[kitkatty]

Being Byzantine Catholic I will say of course more about Eastern Catholicism, after all they do say they are the Global Catholic Network and this ties in with the other comments I read about the Universality of the Church. They have actually shown in the past few months, I think anyway, more about Eastern Catholics than they used to. But overall I think they do a great job.
As for Father Staub, yes he is a little different but some people react positivly to some approaches by priests and negativly to others, just like in our own parishes.

 

[kitkatty]

Just have to add I can listen to Father Mitch for hours, he`s very knowledgable.

 

[Crumpy]

Also, to the person that suggested that they move EWTN to Louisiana. It is covered in the book why they moved it where they did. I am sure you ment this in humor, just know that Mother had her reasons and guidance from God.

Please don’t keep us in suspense. Why did they put it there in Alabama?

Was is, as I seem to recall, that they wanted to go deep into the bible belt?

 

[Crumpy]

In general, I’ve come to peace with the idea that there are different things that different people like about EWTN, as this thread demonstrates. I don’t like some of the things that people said they liked most.

I don’t like their droning on and on about World Youth Day. They’ve been at it for a year. The whole big deal is that it is youth oriented, and it’s OK, for them. I watch the young people misbehaving at the Mass and I just have to look away. The Thursday night programming is all youth-oriented, and it is very shallow, for the most part, as a result. It’s good to have another activity besides watching television, and Thursday night is the night for me.

I think the EWTN Live program tonight with Fr. Pacwa and Fr. Spitzer was excellent. Yes, they discussed theology, but Pacwa made sure Spitzer explained it, and brought the ideas out better for a general audience.

They also discussed a very interesting subject. They talked about the priests who, in this instance, deny the divinity of Christ. They said it was Christ-like to keep talking to them, rather than kick them out of the Church. This is sort of on the heels of Fr. Corapi’s program last Saturday night, where he also was talking about the 50% of the priests in the US who openly reject Church teaching.

I don’t think they talk about this problem enough, because this is a big problem locally, and it’s why I don’t go to Church on sunday. (I’ve discussed this before in these forums: why should I go to a Church which is really not a Catholic church?)

 

[kitkatty]

Crumpy, I can relate with the World Youth Day stuff and I dont like the Thursday nite shows in particular except for the Web of Faith, but then Im not in the under thirty crowd. The point is to be relevent to all of us they do need an assortment so most Catholic`s of whatever age and stage can find some programs during the weekly line-up they might like to watch. I have seen some shows that are on in the wee hours of the night that I would oprobably like to see but they are on at the wrong time.

 

[LilyM]

Crumpy, I can relate with the World Youth Day stuff and I dont like the Thursday nite shows in particular except for the Web of Faith, but then Im not in the under thirty crowd. The point is to be relevent to all of us they do need an assortment so most Catholic`s of whatever age and stage can find some programs during the weekly line-up they might like to watch. I have seen some shows that are on in the wee hours of the night that I would oprobably like to see but they are on at the wrong time.

That’s why God invented TiVo!

I actually think it’s one of EWTN’s strengths that they do have a variety of ‘styles’ of show that appeal to everyone from young children to senior citizens.

As for WYD - I think the ‘spruiking’ may be the result of the fact that attendance at this year’s event will be a lot lower than previous WYDs (being that Australia is so darn far away and all …) and they’re trying to boost numbers a bit.

 

[mercygate]

They also discussed a very interesting subject. They talked about the priests who, in this instance, deny the divinity of Christ. They said it was Christ-like to keep talking to them, rather than kick them out of the Church. This is sort of on the heels of Fr. Corapi’s program last Saturday night, where he also was talking about the 50% of the priests in the US who openly reject Church teaching.

I don’t think they talk about this problem enough, because this is a big problem locally, and it’s why I don’t go to Church on sunday. (I’ve discussed this before in these forums: why should I go to a Church which is really not a Catholic church?)

You should go a) because it is a precept of the Church to go, and for you to stay away puts you into the “dissident” category not to mention b) in peril of grave sin, and c) you should go because if magisterial Catholics make themselves present, accounted for, and useful they are much more likely to make apositive impact on dissenting clergy.

 

[Sailor_Kenshin]

Crumpy, I can relate with the World Youth Day stuff and I dont like the Thursday nite shows in particular except for the Web of Faith, but then Im not in the under thirty crowd. The point is to be relevent to all of us they do need an assortment so most Catholic`s of whatever age and stage can find some programs during the weekly line-up they might like to watch. I have seen some shows that are on in the wee hours of the night that I would oprobably like to see but they are on at the wrong time.

Why is there even the concept that God’s Eternal Word has to be wrapped in toys and candy to be ‘relevant?’

Maybe it’s a failure in parenting, maybe a failure of this MTV culture.

Another poster said he watches the behavior of teens in his parish and has to look away. In mine, the teens are fairly well-behaved, if their dress is a little disrespectful, but there again you have the failure of parenting to impress on them why dressing like a lap dancer is disrespectful. Our problem in our parish is that kids of an age well able to understand the solemn meaning of Mass are sucking on candy, playing with toys, and generally being disruptive. They’re old enough to know how to behave.

I suppose we should be grateful they’re in church at all, but seven isn’t too young to understand that this is Mass, not a playground.

 

[kitkatty]

Why is there even the concept that God’s Eternal Word has to be wrapped in toys and candy to be ‘relevant?’

Maybe it’s a failure in parenting, maybe a failure of this MTV culture.

Another poster said he watches the behavior of teens in his parish and has to look away. In mine, the teens are fairly well-behaved, if their dress is a little disrespectful, but there again you have the failure of parenting to impress on them why dressing like a lap dancer is disrespectful. Our problem in our parish is that kids of an age well able to understand the solemn meaning of Mass are sucking on candy, playing with toys, and generally being disruptive. They’re old enough to know how to behave.

I suppose we should be grateful they’re in church at all, but seven isn’t too young to understand that this is Mass, not a playground.

Have to respond Sailor that I agree with your above post. We are probably getting off the EWTN track here but I think once these kids get to be 5-6 or so it`s time they learn when in Church we are there to worship, not play. I did this with my kids and I do it with the seven year old grandson I have too. Once they know you are serious about this and what is expected of them you can get proper behaviour from kids at church. Sorry to de-rail the thread but sailor brought one of my pet peeves.

 

[Sailor_Kenshin]

Maybe EWTN should have a show How To Behave During Mass.