A new online series celebrating Catholicism in the United States will feature the Diocese of Little Rock. “The Chair” combines images of the Cathedral of St. Andrew with interviews with Bishop Anthony B. Taylor and national historians who share stories of how the diocese was founded.
According to producer DeSales Media, “With exceptional visuals and production values, the program blends the history, architecture and art of the cathedral and diocese, with Bishop Taylor's example of being a holy man in a modern world. The bishop shares his own faith journey, his current concerns and his hopes for a bright future.”
The 22-minute episode takes as its starting point the bishop’s chair, known as the cathedra, where the word “cathedral” comes from.
DeSales Media said, “It is the symbolic heart of the diocese, representing the bishop’s authority to sanctify, preach and govern as a true successor of the apostles. From the exquisite details and symbolism of the cathedra chair and the church building, ‘The Chair’ goes on to explore the human side of the diocese.”
As the introduction of each episode explains, the series is “an exploration of what it means to be an apostle in America.”
“This video is beautifully done and rightly highlights the beauty of our Cathedral and its significance as the ‘bishop’s church,’” Bishop Taylor told Arkansas Catholic. “It was also nice to see its focus on the growth of the faith in Arkansas over our 179 years as a diocese and the contribution that each of our bishops has made to that growth over all these years.”
In 2019 and 2020, Arkansas Catholic and the Diocese of the Little Rock worked closely with DeSales Media, the non-profit Catholic technology and communications ministry in the Diocese of Brooklyn, N.Y., to provide historical photographs of past bishops and religious orders in the state. Host Msgr. Kieran E. Harrington and a video crew visited Little Rock Oct. 18-19, 2019, interviewing Bishop Taylor and recording the inside and outside of the cathedral, downtown Little Rock and during a Saturday vigil Mass celebrated by Bishop Taylor.
Msgr. Harrington, vicar for communications of the Diocese of Brooklyn and founder of DeSales Media Group, was named the national director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in 2021.
Bill Maier, CEO of DeSales Media and secretary for communications for the Diocese of Brooklyn, said, "We created ‘The Chair’ because we wanted to tell the story of the Catholic Church in America. There is so much to learn about our faith across our diverse nation and the beautiful cathedrals throughout. We are excited to share the perspectives of so many of our bishops, and we hope that the faithful around the country celebrate with us the past, present and future of the Church.”
The 85-episode series, which includes visits to cathedrals in 42 states, is available to watch for free at thechair.com. You must sign in to watch the episode, but you can see preview clips at youtube.com/cdolr.
