Foundation for Evangelization through the Media | FEM - Rome

Welcome to the Foundation for the Evangelization through the Media

About the FEM

Pope Benedict XVI

In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI urged members of the Catholic media to proclaim the Gospel on the "Digital Continent." To answer this call, a coalition of laypeople and Church leaders launched the Foundation for Evangelization through the Media (FEM).

Founded in 2010, the FEM is a non-profit organization that seeks to use the latest new media technologies to give greater visibility to the Christian faith in the world of communication.

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  • Proclaim the Gospel, its message and values, through all types of modern media, especially through digital media;
  • Use the latest media technologies to contribute to expanding the Church's communication;
  • Facilitate cooperation and collaboration among the various Christian communities that are already active in the media;
  • Develop with the Church a coherent global strategy to achieve these objectives.

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  • Fundraising: the FEM will not only seek out funds to finance its own projects, but it will also raise awareness in the Christian community of the need to increase the level of available resources in order to compete in the modern media landscape.
  • Projects: the FEM will select, audit, financially support and oversee concrete projects that coincide with the objectives of the FEM.

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  • The FEM was created with the support of the Catholic Church. It defines itself as a service to the Church, with an ecumenical approach.
  • The FEM has assembled an experienced leadership team, composed of volunteers and salaried laypeople, who have long been involved in serving the Church. This team is also guided by investment and fundraising professionals.

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  • The FEM is a private Italian nonprofit organization at the service of society (ONLUS), which does not distribute profit among its members and initiatives other than those defined by its social purpose.
  • Affiliated foundations and Partner foundations will be established in those countries where the FEM will have its main fundraising partners.
  • So far, a foundation has been created in the US (FEM USA), and more are in the process of being established in countries such as France and the UK.
  • A partner Foundation already exists in Switzerland (Foundation Parole et Silence), and another is in the making in Spain.

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  • The daily administration of the FEM is overseen by an Executive Board, which is, in turn, overseen by the Monitoring Committee. The decision to finance a project is made by the Project Committee, which is composed of representatives from the Board, the Church, and investment experts.
  • The leadership of the FEM is advised by an Advisory Board, composed of representatives of the Catholic Church. Its role is to ensure that the FEM and its projects remain works of the Church. It has a right to veto, for moral or spiritual reasons, any strategic decision, including expenditures and hiring/firing decisions.
  • The Sponsorship Committee is comprised of Church leaders and the FEM's principal sponsors and donors, who are regularly informed about its activities.

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  • The Pontifical Council for Social Communications (PCCS), headed by Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli, will guarantee that the projects supported by the FEM are in line with the pastoral guidelines of the Holy See.
  • The Pontifical Council for the New Evangelization (PCPNE) supports Aleteia project, FEM's pilot project.
  • The Pontifical Council "Cor Unum" supports Deus Caritas Est, which is the FEM's second project.
  • The FEM's Advisory Board is comprised of cardinals and bishops from every continent, as well as laypersons who are leaders in their communities. It also works in collaboration with several religious institutions and communities. Of particular note are the international business executives who have expressed their enthusiasm for this project by serving on the Advisory Board.

Our Projects

Aleteia

  • Aleteia offers a concrete response to Benedict XVI's request to proclaim the Gospel through new media.
  • Aleteia is the first multi-lingual and multimedia online community that offers Questions and Answers about the Catholic faith, life and society.
  • Aleteia is a private initiative that aims to help those who want to know more about what the Church really teaches.
  • It's 10-language platform will compile examples of the best productions on Catholic faith and life at the service of the Catholic media (from TV, radio, Internet, mobile phones, magazines...).
  • It has an integrated system of distribution through social media, e-mail, apps, and TV.

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  • H2O News is a worldwide, Catholic service that creates and distributes daily multimedia news in nine languages. The news focuses on the life of the Church and on social and cultural events that directly pertain to Catholics across the world. H2O News offers its multimedia services free of charge to Catholic television, web sites and radio stations so that the Pope's words and news about the Church are available to everyone interested.
  • H2O News is a digital platform that lets everyone share their videos, giving a voice to all Catholic communities worldwide. H2O News seeks to create a media network amongst the world's Catholic population.

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  • Deus Caritas Est is a multimedia platform profiling charity projects that put into practice the spirit of Christian love, as explained in the encyclical "Deus Caritas Est."
  • Each charity project is presented within a global communications campaign. At the origin, the campaign is based in Cinema production.
  • The communications campaign is sponsored by companies, institutions, and individuals. This project gives incredible notoriety to the sponsors as communicators of values and charity.

Goals in the next 3 years are:

  • Reveal the Church's work around the world to the largest possible audience;
  • Create an online community of producers who explain the work of their charity;
  • Encourage participation and bring people to participate on the ground.

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  • Deacon of Beauty is born from the observation that a sense of sacredness is lacking in society, in the Church, and in all artistic disciplines.
  • Deacon of Beauty is for Christian and non-Christian artists, and it seeks to help artists become contributors in the New Evangelization.  It will do so by helping artists create, train and collaborate.

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  • AdEthic and AdCath are Internet advertising agencies that seek to offer web sites control over the religious or ethical content of the ads that appear on their pages.
  • This service can be useful to all
    Christian sites. It could generate new revenue and could also be very useful to producers, who will have a new way of promoting their work.

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  • FEM wants to help create a bank of programs common to all Catholic producers, and access to archives of Vatican TV. This could help improve the productions of all, providing access to available files, and marketing the best programs in commercial networks.

Support Us

Donate Today!

The Church has given us a mission to spread its values through new media. In order to achieve our mission, we rely on generosity of people like you. Donate today and help share the Gospel.

Your gift will enable us to continue to develop our current projects, and allow us to plan ahead for future endeavors.

Your recurring or one-time donation in any amount will make a real difference!

Click here to start your donation now!