 |
|||||||||
 |
|||||||||
|
|||||||||
March
5, 2007
VOL.
45, NO. 5Oakland,
CA
Fremont parish offers weekly ‘Godcast’
 |
|
Father Mathew Vellankal DEACON RICHARD YEE PHOTO |
Missed the
Sunday homily because you were sick or out of town? No need to worry if
you are a member of Holy Spirit Parish in Fremont, thanks to its weekly
Godcast.
Godcasting is Holy Spirit’s version of podcasting. And podcasting,
for the Internet challenged or uninitiated, is what happens when audio
recordings are transformed into a format that allow them to be listened
to on computers, websites or portable media players like iPods or other
MP3 devices.
With this option, which began at Holy Spirit about eight months ago, Fremont
parishioners can listen to the weekly homily even if illness or travel
plans kept them away from the parish church.
Why podcast?
Father Mathew Vellankal, Holy Spirit’s parochial administrator,
said he noticed that some parishes like Christ the King in Pleasant Hill
post printed versions of homilies on their websites or make audio versions
on CDs and cassettes that parishioners can obtain for further reflection
or study. But since podcasting is becoming increasingly popular, the priest
felt that offering weekly homilies on a podcast would appeal to his young
and technically savvy parishioners.
Podcasting has several advantages, with convenience being the most obvious.
“Podcasting is very similar to radio, but you can play it again
and again at your convenience,” he said. “You can download
it onto your iPod and listen to it in your car or anywhere.”
Podcasts also allow the homilies to be accessible to anyone in cyberspace
whether they live in Fremont, Florida or Finland. Father Vellankal, a
native of India who has many international connections from his years
of work in Belgium, said that his family and friends can listen to his
homilies (as well as those of the deacons who also preach) by visiting
the parish website at www.holyspiritfremont.org.
Neither Father Vellankal nor Deacon Richard Yee, the parish’s webmaster
and technical go-to person, knows how many people listen to the homilies.
However, between Jan. 1 and Feb. 19 there were over 1800 visitors to the
parish web site, Yee said.
Yee said that the process of producing each Godcast is relatively simple.
The homilies are recorded live in the church through the church sound
system onto an audio cassette tape. Yee plays back the tape into his computer
and creates a digital audio file. Then he uploads and links this file
on the web site.
Visitors to the web site can then listen to the homily on their computers
using the free software, Quick Time, or the file can be copied to an iPod.
“Time wise it takes me about 20 minutes to transfer the 10-minute
homily from tape to the web site,” Yee said.
Podcasts are one of several forms of “new media” that members
of the Catholic community are using to inspire and nurture congregations
in local parishes and beyond.
Blogs or online journals, for example, have become a popular source of
information, dialogue and faith sharing for many Catholics in cyberspace.
Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston, for example, started a weekly
blog last year, appropriately named Cardinal Sean’s Blog at www.cardinalseansblog.org,
to share his thoughts and experiences directly with members of the archdiocese.
Locally, Precious Blood Father Jeffrey Keyes, pastor at St. Edward Parish
in Newark, has been blogging for several years about the joys and challenges
he has faced as a priest. Recently his blog, Rifugio San Gaspare at http://gasparian.stblogs.org/,
contained images and reflections on his recent pilgrimage to Italy.
At Holy Spirit Parish, the Godcasts are developing a following. Once when
uploading the homily was delayed, several people approached Father Vellankal
with comments like, “‘I went to listen to the homily and it’s
not there yet,’” the pastor said. “That means that people
are interested.”
