Archbishop of Perth Timothy Costelloe SDB prepares for an interview with Shalom World television network. Photo: Supplied.
Transmitting the word of God through the mainstream media has been a labour of love for Shalom World TV, an international television network which started in 2014 and is now planning to start regular productions in Australia from September 2017.
Shalom World TV emerged from the Indian network, Shalom Television, which began in 2005, promoting the work of local parishes and providing other faith-specific programs for not just Catholics, but for all people, transmitted in the regional Malayalam language.
Nine years later, it was decided that this work could be expanded to other countries in English, and Shalom World TV was set up, with its headquarters in Texas, USA. Since then, production centres have opened in the United Kingdom, Vatican City, Ireland and Canada.
Programs available through Shalom World TV include interviews, talk shows, movies, concerts, and coverage of live events – often from the Vatican.
Shalom Media Director, International Operations, Tina Mary Sajiv, said that founders had faced a number of challenges in the early days, but had maintained their faith in the project.
“As a TV channel, it is very important to take the message of salvation to all nations, but we did not have many resources and did not know how to venture into various countries,” she said.
“The only solution was to kneel in prayers and lift our hearts to the Lord.
“Jesus provided necessary openings to start production studios, for example, groups of people approached requesting to bring Shalom World TV to their country.”
She added that the channels in different countries aimed to provide a platform for local evangelisation and was tailored to the needs of the local culture.
“We take special care in addressing the needs of the Church in various countries, keeping in mind the cultural nuances,” Ms Sajiv said.
“Although the program concept sometimes remain the same, special attention is taken in keeping the beauty and essence of the culture they belong to, and addressing their lives and faith in the context of the countries they are in.”
Archbishop of Brisbane Mark Coleridge was recently interviewed on Shalom World’s program ‘Heart Talk’. Photo: Supplied.
With this in mind, Shalom World TV would become a platform for Australian-based Catholic groups and parishes to promote their work when the network opened in the country, Ms Sajiv added.
“There are programs currently being recorded, as well as several programs scheduled for recording in Australia,” she said.
“These include the live broadcast of the Ignite Conference from Brisbane, the filming and broadcasting of the Men Alive Conference, and an interview on Heart Talk with Archbishop of Brisbane, Mark Coleridge.”
Documentaries such as Into the Light would also provide a platform to promote the work of evangelical ministries around Australia and the world, she said.
While initial discussions about channel distribution in Australia are underway, viewers can access Shalom World through the website: www.shalomworldtv.org
Shalom World can also be watched from anywhere across the globe, on the following connected TV devices and platforms (www.shalomworldtv.org/connected-tv): Apple TV, Roku, AndroidTV, Amazon Fire TV, Amazon Kindlefire, Chromecast, Samsung SmartTV, LG Smart TV, Hisense, Panasonic, Vizio, Xbox One and Opera TV, which is on most TIVO boxes.
The network also has a free app that is available on smartphones or tablets for both iOS and Android devices available by going to www.shalomworldtv.org/mobile-apps.
It is also available on all Microsoft Windows 10 personal computers and available soon on Apple Mac computers.