The Audiovisuals Office (SPAV), under the Creative Sector of ST PAULS, was commissioned to be one of the official media partners of the 10th Philippine Conference on New Evangelization (PCNE X), held from January 19-21, 2024 at the Quadricentennial Pavilion of the University of Sto. Tomas, España, Manila. The estimated number of total attendees, both online and onsite, stands at around 6,000+.
Spearheaded by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Manila Office for the Promotion of the New Evangelization (RCAM-OPNE), PCNE X featured distinguished resource persons and speakers, including the Pro-Prefect for Evangelization of the Dicastery of Evangelization H.E. Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops H.E. Mario Cardinal Grech, Archbishop of Manila Jose Cardinal Advincula, CBCP President and Diocese of Kalookan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David, and CBCP Vice President and Diocese of Pasig Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara, along with other expert lay men and women, priests, and religious who were generous in sharing their wisdom and passion to the attendees. Present also was the Papal Nuncio to the Philippines Archbishop Charles Brown.
But aside from having these big personalities, what exactly did PCNE X have to offer?
In his keynote speech, Cardinal Mario Grech gave the audience an insider’s view as the Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops on how the Church truly sees and envisions synodality as he talked about “Synodality in the Mission of the Church.” The Filipino Bishops, including Cardinal Tagle, had a “heart to heart” discussion where they shared their experiences attending the first session of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops and accepted questions and insights from the audience. Joining them was Dr. Estela Padilla, a lay Filipino delegate to the Synod on Synodality.
But it was not limited to ranking members of the Church, however. True synodality is listening to everyone, allowing each the opportunity to be heard, to be listened to. Thus, on the second day, attendees were divided and ushered into different concurrent workshops, where they were able to freely share and air their sentiments and thoughts on various themes and topics. Everyone spoke, and everyone heard one another. The groups presented the fruits of their discussions to the plenary assembly on the third day.
But something striking is how inclusive this PCNE is. There was a section specific to deaf participants where an interpreter was there to communicate to them what the resource speakers were saying. That was real synodality right there! No one gets left behind, and everyone is afforded the opportunity to participate.
But true communities share not just serious moments, but light moments as well. Attendees were treated to a multi-artist concert, featuring celebrities such as Angeline Quinto, Vanya Castor, Mike Shimamoto, Eumee Capile, Sam Mangubat, Rey Malipot, Bro. Migs Ramirez, along with the cast of the film Gomburza and members of The Feast worship. It was a fitting respite from the heavy but fun-filled and high-yield discussions of the conference.
Of course, God is at the forefront and center of this conference. From the first day to the third day, masses were celebrated. Several liturgies and devotions, including the Traslacion and Sinulog, were also celebrated in a true Filipino fashion.
ST PAULS Audiovisuals produced the “recap” of Day 1, Day 2, and the overall report of PCNE X, aside from AVP materials on synodality requested by the organizers beforehand and used in the Conference itself. Fr. Keiv Aires Dimatatac SSP and Fr. Edward Dantis SSP served as over-all coordinators of the fruitful collaboration with RCAM-OPNE.
