The Fondazione Memorie Audiovisive del Cattolicesimo (MAC; Foundation for the Audiovisual Memory of Catholicism) has launched its new Digital Library, an online platform that collects and highlights audiovisual materials related to the history of Catholicism.
“This is a gift of culture to future generations,” explained Monsignor Dario Edoardo Viganò, president of the foundation, during the event Catholicism and Audiovisual Media: The Future of the Past, held on September 26 at Palazzo Borromeo in Rome. “We want to offer scholars and the curious high-quality resources that tell the story of Christian thought’s role in the history of Italy and the papacy.” The Digital Library is not just an archive—it’s an “ecosystem of integrated memory” that preserves unique testimonies: from early footage of pilgrimages to papal radio messages, and the evolving impact of television and new media. Established in 2023 at the urging of Pope Francis, the foundation believes that reconstructing the Church’s history increasingly depends on elevating images, films, and sounds of the past.