Ecclesia in Asia the 10th anniversary of Catholic television in Sri Lanka

With a Mass presided over in Tewatta by Card. Ranjith held the Verbum TV anniversary, born in 2015 at the initiative of a lay couple. Today it reaches 200,000 viewers.

Colombo (Asia News)- The only Catholic television of Sri Lanka, Verbum TV, celebrated its 10th anniversary with a Thanksgiving Mass. The celebration took place in the chapel of Risen Christ, at the headquarters of the station in Tewatta, from where all spiritual programs and holy masses are issued. The Mass was chaired by the Archbishop of Colombo, Card. Malcolm Ranjith, together with Fr. Roshan Silva, provincial of the Oblates of María Immaculate, and Fr. Sriyananda Fernando, administrator of the Basilica of Our Lady of Lanka in Tewatta. The Thanksgiving Mass attended all the staff, together with the founders -Mr. and Mrs. Milan and Malika de Silva -family and benefactors.

«We thank God for verbum TV, the greatest gift that Sri Lanka has received to embody the message of God. Let’s bless it to make it even stronger. We fulfill our responsibility as Catholics to lead to the entire world towards God through this station, ”said Card. Malcolm Ranjith. The Archbishop expressed the thanks of the Episcopal Conference of Sri Lanka (CBCSL) for this mission carried out by Milan de Silva as layman: «Ten years ago, I came to see me one day and expressed its dream,” he said. He told me that, as much as he won in wealth, he wanted to serve the Lord using his profits. I want to start a television channel that our Catholic Church of Sri Lanka needs a lot today. Day after day, the television channel had to direct yourself. But they have fully trusted the providence of God. So we take this opportunity to thank ».

“We must work,” Ranjith continued, “to continue embodying God’s message through Modern Verbum and modern media. We fulfill our responsibility to lead to the entire world towards God and make this world, full of sin and selfishness, a cleaner place ».

At the end of the Liturgy, the founder of Anura, Milan de Silva, expressed his sincere gratitude to all those who have supported his company with economic help, work, time and prayers during the last 10 years, in the midst of various obstacles. “If we look at the media in Sri Lanka before 2015, Catholics had very few opportunities,” he added, “once every two months on national television. But when we started verbum TV, we show that there are a group of Catholic viewers in Sri Lanka and thus other Sri Lanka channels also began to present Christian programs. » De Silva said that of the nearly 1.3 million Catholics in Sri Lanka, about 200,000 Ven Verbum TV.

«During the Covid period, Verbum TV has been a valuable support. Catholics must be grateful and help her move on. It is a great blessing for the Srilankeses, ”said Asia News a Catholic marriage, Ruban and Jasintha, from the Diocese of Chilaw. A non -Catholic resident from the Jaela area also declared: ‘Every morning, while I prepare to go to work, I watch television and get an idea of ​​the day: it helps me to spend it with joy.’