August 11, 2017 // Diocese

‘Go … and preach the Gospel’ … If necessary, use a device

Stephanie Patka Mahoney

Author

Today’s Catholic is updating, improving and expanding these communication tools so that we can reach more people of our diocese, especially our young people who are so engaged in the new media. Both print and digital versions of Today’s Catholic are necessary today to reach our people. — Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades

Everyone has a role in the new evangelization, because we all have been given different charisms and gifts to share with the world. In the Office of Communications here at the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, the role that we play in the new evangelization is simple: to lead with beauty and to tell the Catholic story.

If Today’s Catholic is telling the story, we have to consider how people will actually listen to it. Looking at the world around us, it is impossible to ignore how modern technology impacts the ability to listen to the Catholic story.

There will always be those who prefer to see that story in print, in a newspaper they can hold while they sip their morning coffee. For others, the story comes in bite- (or byte-) sized pieces, next to pictures of friends in a social media feed. Some may prefer to have notifications of updates appear through an app on their smartphone or tablet; still others would rather search through headlines on a website for the articles that interest them the most.

The way our culture consumes news is evolving. We are evolving with it.

The evolution of Today’s Catholic is a change in our business model to address the financial priorities of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, as well as to reach a much larger audience. In our current model, over 43,000 newspapers are being printed and mailed every week, for free. Moving forward, we are not eliminating the print version of Today’s Catholic, but rather providing the print newspaper for a yearly subscription price of $20. All Today’s Catholic digital products will remain free and fully accessible to anyone, in or out of our diocese. As a side note, if you know of anyone for whom the $20 subscription is a financial hardship, we are happy to work with them to provide a subscription at no charge.

Regardless of how a person wants to seek out local Catholic content, the news will be there for them in the style that they prefer, without compromising the truth, joy and beauty of the Gospel contained in each story.

While cost was a factor that entered into the decision to change the business model, Today’s Catholic remains an important outreach and evangelization tool. Since January of 1926, when then-Bishop John F. Noll started writing articles that he inserted in copies of Our Sunday Visitor, those living in the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend were able to find, in written word, a Catholic voice that provided guidance, inspiration and an invitation to draw close to God in communion with his body, the church.

Over the years, Today’s Catholic changed its form in order to remain relevant to those readers and to expand its reach to those who were not reading the paper, as well as those who may have fallen away from the church. The name changed from Our Sunday Visitor to The Harmonizer in 1972, and finally Today’s Catholic in 1986. A website began in 1998, and in 2015 Today’s Catholic began to share articles through social media. Yet, the mission of the newspaper to evangelize through telling the Catholic story remained the same.

While we are introducing new ways to receive the information found in Today’s Catholic, and some things may look very different, Today’s Catholic remains the voice of Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades and the best local Catholic resource to stay up-to-date on news from the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend.

We invite you to join us in this exciting time in the history of the diocese, when we have the capacity to reach more people than was ever possible before. Subscribe to the print edition or the digital version, or both. Download the app and join the conversation on social media. We can’t wait to meet you, wherever you decide to hang out with Today’s Catholic.

PRINT EDITION

The newspaper that the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend has printed and mailed locally since 1926 will not change. Subscriptions to it are available for $20 per year. You will find a subscription envelope enclosed in this week’s print edition of Today’s Catholic. Bulk subscriptions are available to any parish, business, organization, ministry or individual who may wish to distribute multiple copies of Today’s Catholic. For bulk subscriptions, simply email [email protected].  Complimentary copies will cease on Oct. 1, 2017.

DIGITAL EDITION/ePAPER

The digital edition, or “ePaper,” as we like to call it, is available free to anyone across the globe. Each week you will receive an email with top headlines, upcoming events and featured columnists. For those who like the layout of the print paper but still want to go digital, an interactive edition of the newspaper will be accessible through each weekly email as well. Subscription forms for the digital edition can be found at www.todayscatholic.org/subscribe.

WEBSITE

Our completely redesigned website at
www.todayscatholic.org enables visitors to access more articles, photos and columns than ever before. We will post articles that highlight our Catholic faith, lived in the world. Make sure to also check out the comprehensive events calendar of Catholic happenings all across the diocese.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Today’s Catholic now has a Facebook page that will post daily articles and updates. If you want to stay connected with the rest of the diocese, we have that covered too. The Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend also operates social media pages including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades even has his own Facebook page!

APP

Available on Google Play and the Apple Store, the Today’s Catholic app provides easy access to all the content found on the website and more. You can set up notifications for local and global stories, notifications on Bishop Rhoades’ schedule and information regarding events you won’t want to miss. The app will also allow you to find parish Mass times, access daily prayers and read each day’s readings. It’s a great way to grow spiritually while staying current with the latest Catholic news.