Latin America, Caribbean Church communicators meet, form RECLAC

By Lisa Bhajan

Through my involvement with SIGNIS ALC (Latin America and the Caribbean), I have attended several meetings where Latin America and the Caribbean have attempted to collaborate as communicators.

However, this meeting held by CELAM (Latin American and Caribbean Episcopal Council) at its Bogotá, Colombia headquarters was different in that it was attended by 45 participants representing 16 Episcopal Conferences and 10 ecclesial organisations, including some SIGNIS members from the Latin American (LA) countries.

CELAM’s General Secretary was extremely welcoming and happy to have two members of the Antilles Episcopal Conference (AEC) attending—Lauren Jamadar-Branker, the communications officer of the AEC, and I, member of the AEC Commission on Communications, a delegate of SIGNIS ALC and SIGNIS Caribbean President. They provided English interpreters for the meeting since neither of us are prolific in Spanish.

As we gathered for three days (July 29–31), we listened and engaged in a panorama of discussions and sharing in areas such as Artificial Intelligence, Crisis Management, and the impact of influencers as digital missionaries.

We were addressed by Msgr Lucio Adrián Ruiz, Secretary for the Vatican Dicastery for Communications who encouraged us to attend the Jubilee of the World of Communications in Rome in January 24–26, 2025.

We were asked to create “a fair of significant experiences” through poster displays. This gave us the opportunity to present some of the best practices in the communications work of our Caribbean region.

There were two main takeaways emerging out of the conference. Oscar Elizalde, Director of the CELAM Communications Center, called for a brainstorming session to establish an official name for this new network which would seek to integrate coordinated work between CELAM, the Episcopal Conferences and other ecclesial organisations of the continent in ​​communications.

The name RECLAC was chosen—Red Eclesial de Comunicadores de Latinoamérica y el Caribe (the Ecclesiastical Network of Communicators of Latin America and the Caribbean).

Coming out of the various questionnaires and evaluations shared during the three days, the groups identified six core areas for establishing focus projects over the next 2–3 years. This second takeaway was the formation of six working committees to realise these projects. They are:

• Communication & ongoing training
• Territorial communication
• Communication crises & incidence
• Pastoral care of communication
• Financing & support for communication

Lauren was chosen to be on the committee for Pastoral care of communication and I will be involved in Communication & ongoing training.

At the beginning of the meeting, Bishop Lizardo Estrada Herrera, Secretary General of CELAM, said he hopes that this space for meeting will bear fruit in strengthening communicative actions and making a greater presence as a more synodal Church.

As we strive to work together in the various new groups, we pray that through RECLAC, we may be able to work collaboratively and to help the Church to adapt to the new changes demanded by the digital world.

Understanding the communications structure in the Caribbean Church

For those who are not that familiar with our Catholic Church structure, our Caribbean Church falls under the AEC which is basically the assembly of bishops of the region. CELAM groups together all the various bishop conferences of LA and the Caribbean.

SIGNIS is a worldwide association whose mission is to engage with media professionals and support Catholic communicators; to help transform cultures in the light of the Gospel; promoting a culture of peace, human dignity, justice, and reconciliation.

SIGNIS is recognised by the Vatican as an International Association of the Faithful, but it remains an autonomous organisation.

SIGNIS Caribbean has been bringing together Catholic communicators in the region since 2009 and has initiated training and development in the various media areas through CAST (Communications for the Antilles Specialist Training).

In 2022, the AEC formed a Commission on Communications headed by Archbishop Gabriel Malzaire of Castries. SIGNIS Caribbean Executive were initially brought into the Commission as advisors and then in 2023, they became members of the AEC Commission on Communications.

This means that Catholic communications in the region is already on a path of synergy in its vision with collaboration between the episcopal conference and ecclesial organisations and practitioners involved in media.