At 85 years old today, Radio Vatican is like a wise grandmother who
continues to maintain her youthful enthusiasm.
By and large, the image and role of
grandparent and, in particular, a grandmother in Africa is still one of great
honour. Grandmothers are loved and cherished the most.
Grandma will allow you things that your
parents forbid, will spoil you and unlike your parents will not judge. She is
wise and knows secrets about your parents they would rather you didn’t. On a
serious note, though, we all recall how at the peak of the HIV and AIDS pandemic
in Africa, it was the grandparents who took upon themselves the role of raising
many traumatised orphans and what a difference they made and continue to
make!
Today, Friday 12 February marks the 85th
anniversary of Radio Vatican.
The radio is still a beloved grandmother,
especially in Africa. Fr. Federico Lombardi, the Radio’s Director General often
says that, “In spite of its age, Vatican Radio maintains a youthful enthusiasm
as it carries out its mission of communication and evangelization, created to
serve the Pope’s ministry.
”To celebrate this eighty-fifth birthday
milestone, we thought perhaps we might share with you a couple of extracts or
rather a recent sample of some of the letters, emails and even phone calls that
we get from our listeners here at the English Africa Service of Vatican
Radio.
