On February 12, 1931, Pope Pius XI broadcast his first radio message to the world, on Vatican Radio.
Radio broadcasting was in its infancy and the pope asked the Italian inventor of wireless technology, Guglielmo Marconi, to build the Vatican’s own radio station. Today, Vatican Radio expands its audience and services with an Internet access in more than 40 languages.
Back in 1931, the pope wanted to reach countries where missionaries were not free to work. His voice was to be the center of the mission of Vatican Radio.
Did you know that after World War II, Vatican Radio broadcasted more than 1.5 million messages helping reunite prisoners of war with their families? During the Cold War, it broadcasted daily to communist countries, the people of which, after the fall of communism, sent over 40,000 messages of gratitude?
Read more from an article, which is the source of my post, at Catholic News Service.
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As they say in Rome, Buon compleanno! and Ad multos annos!
