Before my friend turned me on to Catholic radio, I didn’t know that it even existed, or that the Wichita area had a Catholic radio station. No
w I have a preset on my car radio for KAHS 1360 AM. Our local station carries EWTN programming, and even has a local show on Wednesday evenings.Twenty-eight years ago, a Poor Clare nun by the name of Mother M. Angelica turned a garage into a TV studio as an outlet to get her video series of talks on the air. This became know at the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN). EWTN is now the largest religious media network in the world. It transmits programming 24 hours a day to more than 148 million homes in 144 countries and territories on more than 4,800 cable systems, wireless cable, Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS), low power TV and individual satellite users. Since then, EWTN has established programming on shortwave radio. They also have a 133 station AM/FM network and have an agreement with Sirius Satellite Radio to carry Catholic programming.
Catholic radio is a great resource. You can learn and know about your Catholic faith. In this day and age, with so many people, groups and politicians misrepresenting what the Catholic Church teaches, it is important to learn what the Church actually teaches. Catholic radio can be your source for this information.
It will never replace your spiritual life. It will never replace your need to receive the sacraments or to say your daily prayers. You should always take advantage of what your parish offers, but sometimes with our busy lives that’s not possible. Catholic radio can help you fill those gaps. It is a great supplement to what you should receive at church. Catholic radio has strengthened my spiritual life. Since I started listening to Catholic radio, I have started praying the rosary on a daily basis, I have joined the Knights of Columbus, and I am now an RCIA sponsor.
The problem with Catholic radio is that just like public radio, it is listener supported. Many of these stations are on a shoestring budget. They depend on you the listener to pay the bills. There are no commercials. The other problem, at least with our local station is that they don’t have the strongest signal. In some parts of the metro area, in some buildings, and at night, you can’t pick them up. They do, however, have a web site where one can stream the audio and listen live on line. http://kahs1360.com/Home.php. Also many of the programs are available for podcast or download.
My challenge to you is to give Catholic radio a test drive. If you aren’t in the Wichita area, check the following link for a station near you, http://www.ewtn.com/radio/amfm.htm or go online and stream the programming. Make a donation if you can. If you can’t make a donation, at least pray for the success of Catholic radio. You might be surprised how much you will learn about the Catholic Church and how your faith will take off.
