The Promises and Perils of Radio as a Medium of Faith in a Q’eqchi’-Maya Catholic Community

Bibliographic Data

ID8250645
AuthorsEric Hoenes Del Pinal (0000-0001-5548-9884, BC Studies, corresponding author)
Year2019
Volume3
Issue2
Publication date2019-09-24
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Global Catholicism (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2475-6423 • E-ISSN: 2475-6423
PublisherCollege of the Holy Cross (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.32436/2475-6423.1055
OpenAlexW2977104285
LanguageEN
References cited14

Because their parish is large, dispersed, and overwhelmingly rural, FM radio is one of the few reliable means through which the Q’eqchi’-Maya Catholics of San Felipe in Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, can communicate with each other en masse. Yet, because it is a one-way medium, it is also impossible to gauge how its intended audience is responding, or if is even there to receive broadcasted messages. Drawing on ethnographic material collected in 2005 (on the use of radio broadcasting to call together ritual participants) and 2016 (on an ultimately failed attempt to launch a radio station to serve rural parishioners), this paper examines how parish lay leaders attempt to negotiate this dilemma as they work to create a unique sense of Q’eqchi’-Maya Catholic community

Archaeology · Broadcasting (networking · Computer security · Dilemma · Epistemology · Ethnography · Faith · Maya · Media studies · Negotiation · Social science · Sociology · Theology · Anthropology · Computer Science · History · Island Studies and Pacific Affairs · Philosophy

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