There are hardly a few hours left for the 133 cardinals who are already in Rome to participate in the first vote of the conclave that will choose the new head of the Catholic Church. A historical event that raises the added value that gives society a generalist and Catholic inspiration radio such as COPE and a television like Trece, both members of the Abside communication group. Its president, José Luis Restán, said this morning in the middle of the pools and listings of possible ‘papables’ that about Pedro’s future successor «A lot of cheap literature is written » And he wanted to remember a few words that Francisco used in his pontificate: «The Pope is not an emperor or a demiurge but, rather, A poor man».
Restan has intervened in the New Communication Forumwhich has the patronage of Telefónica, insisting on the enormous challenge facing a group that reconciles the generalist aspect with the Christian without giving up being influential and competitive in a too polarized Spain. «Today I want to highlight the height of sights and the audacity of that group of bishops who in the 70s made Cope be born. Perhaps the simplest would have been to bet on a radio that would only report on religious issues, specialized, but they did not. Today, the values that inspire us son even more necessary than thenin a context in which the Christian conception is not the dominant ».
The results of the group have been, in the words of Restan, “glorious”, who has encrypted the benefits of average apse in 2024 in 9.800.000 euros Before taxes, while the business figure in COPE has promoted 134 million euros3% higher than the previous year. This success has linked his communicators team «since Carlos Herreraa Cristina López Schlichttingthrough the recent incorporation of Jorge Bustos»:« They all have strong personalities and particular accents. And we don’t want to tame them ».
The president of Abside Media has highlighted that “incisive, although imperfect vision, which serves to enrich the public debate” of a group whose majority shareholder is the Spanish Episcopal Conference (CEE). «What if the Church determines the contents of the chain? Of course, it influences because we want it to influence, ”has settled Restan, who has used the following simile:« The Church ‘illuminates’ our criteria, although it does not always have a monolithic position ». In 35 years he only remembers once that the secretary general of the CEE called him to make him a “little nuance” about how they were dealing with an issue that had to do with a subject of education for citizenship. “But no, they are not calling us every day.”
-Argüello: “What we want is for Cope to be Catholic”
In this sense, and in humorous tone Restan has expressed that Cope seeks to «open a window so that the Christian reality appears to all Spaniards. In a real, authentic way. It is not fiction, it is not the movie ‘Conclave’». In the forum, which has been presented by the philosopher Diego Garrochohas also intervened the president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference, Luis Argüello, who has affirmed that, from CEE, what they really want is that “the Cope group is Catholic.”
In this sense, the Archbishop of Valladolid has mentioned a palpable crisis of democratic societies in a world where, in his opinion, three points of support are needed: a Judicial Branch Independent, one free press and a society capable of organizing through, for example, companies. Argüello has insisted on that fork to deal with “issues of power” and the “permanent called grace to help the faces of the impoverished.”
However, the president of Abside Middle sexual abuse within the Catholic Church». «What seems unfair to us is that it is omitted that these abuses suppose a minimum percentage of the enormous evil that abuses in our societies occupy. We have to tell everything, but It seems unfair to make minced meat».
In the forum, issues of today have been discussed, such as the blackout that Spain melted black eight days ago: «It was a bitter day for everyone in which LRadio became the reference mediumwe returned to another day of the transistors ». In relation to the above, the special importance of radio in Spain has been referred to, where chains have a relevance and ability to influence public opinion much greater than in other Western countries, where radio is reduced to its vocation of public service.
To the Forum of New Communication, personalities of Spanish public life have come as the general secretary of the Popular Party, Cuca Gamarra; The president of the EEC, Luis Argüello; its general secretary and spokesperson, Francisco César García Magán; the director of Cáritas, Luis Hernández Vozmediano or the founder of the Oenegé messengers of La Paz, known as pAdre Angel. They have also attended numerous faces of the world of communication as the director of ABC, Julián Quirós or the columnist specialized in religion of this medium, José Francisco Serrano Oceja. The director of Communication of Telefónica, ANA PORTOhe has also attended the meeting and wanted to highlight that function of “tending bridges” of the COPE group in Spanish society. Being José Luis Restan Training Caminos Engineer, the simile could not be more timely.
