The CatholicTV Network, commonly known as CatholicTV, is a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

television network based in

Watertown, Massachusetts Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, part of Greater Boston. The population was 35,329 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Its neighborhoods include Bemis, Coolidge Square, East Watertown, Watertown Sq ...

. CatholicTV first launched locally in Boston in 1955, making it the oldest Catholic television network in the United States. Today, it is distributed on cable television systems,

internet television Streaming television is the digital distribution of television content, such as films and television show, television series, Streaming media, streamed over the Internet. Standing in contrast to dedicated terrestrial television delivered by Broadc ...

, and broadcast stations in sixteen U.S. states and the

U.S. Virgin Islands The United States Virgin Islands, officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and a territory of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located ...

and now worldwide. CatholicTV broadcasts programming relevant to Catholic viewers, including live religious services, talk shows, devotional programs, educational series, entertainment, and children's programs. The network regularly presents coverage of liturgies and special events at the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Geography * Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome, Italy * Vatican Hill, in Rome, namesake of Vatican City * Ager Vaticanus, an alluvial plain in Rome * Vatican, an unincorporated community in the ...

and during papal journeys. As of 2016, the president of the CatholicTV Network is Bishop Robert P. Reed.

History

The first program of the Catholic Television Center of the

Archdiocese of Boston The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Boston () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or archdiocese, of the Catholic Church in eastern Massachusetts in the United States. Its mother church is the Cathedral of the Holy Cross (Boston), Cathedral o ...

was produced on the morning of January 1, 1955, when Archbishop Richard J. Cushing celebrated a Pontifical

Low Mass Low Mass (Latin ''Missa Privata'') is a Mass celebrated by a priest without the assistance of sacred ministers (deacon and subdeacon). Before the 1969 reforms, a sub-distinction was also made between the '' sung Mass'' (), when the celebrant sti ...

in studios at 25 Granby Street near Kenmore Square in Boston. From that studio, equipped with three RCA TK31 cameras, the Center produced live and tape-recorded programs, and it purchased time from local commercial television stations to air the Sunday Mass each week. Live programs were transmitted to the broadcasting stations through a leased-line telephone connection. In 1961 the Catholic Television Center's studios became the temporary home of educational broadcaster

WGBH-TV WGBH-TV (channel 2), branded GBH or GBH 2 since 2020, is the primary PBS List of PBS member stations, member television station in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Affiliated stations and facilities WGBH-TV is the Flagship (broadcasting), ...

when that station's studios were destroyed in a fire. In 1957 the Catholic Television Center acquired a license to operate its own broadcasting station in Boston on channel 38 in the new

UHF Ultra high frequency (UHF) is the ITU designation for radio frequencies in the range between 300 megahertz (MHz) and 3 gigahertz (GHz), also known as the decimetre band as the wavelengths range from one meter to one tenth of a meter ...

range of television channels. The Center's station, WIHS-TV, went into service on October 12, 1964, with transmitting facilities on the

Prudential Tower The Prudential Tower, also known as the Prudential Building or, colloquially, the Pru,subscription required The Pru' everyone calls it: a resigned shrug of a name, as flat and uninflected as the wan moue its pronunciation requires." is an Interna ...

in Boston. It was the first full-time Catholic television station in the world employing a general entertainment format along with the daily and Sunday Mass. On July 27, 1966,

Storer Broadcasting Storer Communications, known from 1927 to 1952 as the Fort Industry Company and from 1952 to 1983 as Storer Broadcasting, was an American media company that owned television and radio stations and cable television systems. Founded by George Butle ...

acquired WIHS for $2,276,513.16 and renamed it as

WSBK-TV WSBK-TV (channel 38) is an independent television station in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It is owned by the CBS News and Stations group alongside CBS outlet WBZ-TV (channel 4). The two stations share studios on Soldiers Field R ...

. With funds from the station sale, the Catholic Television Center built an

Instructional Television Fixed Service The Educational Broadband Service (EBS) was formerly known as the Instructional Television Fixed Service (ITFS). ITFS was a Band (radio), band of twenty (20) microwave TV channels available to be licensed by the U.S. Federal Communications Commi ...

(ITFS) system for distributing programs to Catholic schools, and it continued to produce live broadcasts of the Sunday Mass under the name ''Boston Catholic Television (BCTV)''. In 1970 BCTV moved into leased studios at 55 Chapel Street in

Newton, Massachusetts Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located roughly west of Downtown Boston, and comprises a patchwork of thirteen villages. The city borders Boston to the northeast and southeast (via the neighborhoods of ...

. In April 1983 BCTV began offering programs to home viewers several hours a day through its own channel carried by cable television providers, at first in Massachusetts, then elsewhere in New England, and also as far away as

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Quebec. In addition to the Sunday Mass broadcast on conventional (over-the-air) television, weekday Masses were also presented Monday to Friday, originating from a chapel in the Archbishop's residence in

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

. In 2006 the channel adopted the brand name ''CatholicTV'' and the slogan ''America's Catholic Television Network''. By 2007 it had entered into a programming exchange agreement with the Canadian channel Salt + Light Television. The channel converted its video format to

HDTV High-definition television (HDTV) describes a television or video system which provides a substantially higher image resolution than the previous generation of technologies. The term has been used since at least 1933; in more recent times, it ref ...

on October 13, 2010. The CatholicTV Network relocated its studios and offices to

, in 2007.

Distribution

CatholicTV programming is seen on cable systems in Massachusetts, California, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It is broadcast in Fresno, California on KNXT, channel 50 and in Hawaii on KUPU, channel 15. CatholicTV is available to satellite television viewers via the digital C band satellite AMC-11. Internet users can view the channel through the web site catholictv.com, or with applications for

iOS Ios, Io or Nio (, ; ; locally Nios, Νιός) is a Greek island in the Cyclades group in the Aegean Sea. Ios is a hilly island with cliffs down to the sea on most sides. It is situated halfway between Naxos and Santorini. It is about long an ...

or Android mobile devices. Internet video is also available through the streaming media devices

Roku Roku ( ) is a brand of consumer electronics that includes streaming players, smart TVs (and their operating systems), as well as a free TV streaming service. The brand is owned by Roku, Inc., an American company. As of 2024, Roku is the U ...

, Google TV, and

Apple TV Apple TV is a digital media player and a microconsole developed and marketed by Apple. It is a small piece of networking hardware that sends received media data such as video and audio to a TV or external display. Its media services include ...

. Select programs are available for download at

iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...

. Video-on-demand service is available on Roku and Apple TV (nationally) and Verizon FiOS in most markets.

Programming

The network features a variety of Catholic educational and inspirational programming produced in the United States, Canada, Ireland and Vatican City. These include talk shows such a
"This is the Day"
devotional programs such as the Holy

Rosary The Rosary (; , in the sense of "crown of roses" or "garland of roses"), formally known as the Psalter of Jesus and Mary (Latin: Psalterium Jesu et Mariae), also known as the Dominican Rosary (as distinct from other forms of rosary such as the ...

, the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy and

Benediction A benediction (, 'well' + , 'to speak') is a short invocation for divine help, blessing and guidance, usually at the end of worship service. It can also refer to a specific Christian religious service including the exposition of the eucharisti ...

, catechetical programs, musical shows, entertainment and variety shows, and youth programs such as the quiz show WOW. The network presents Sunday Masses from the National Shrine in

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

, the Basilica at Notre Dame, the cathedral in

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

, and the network's own chapel. In addition, CatholicTV present
weekday and Saturday Masses
from the chapel. CatholicTV often broadcasts live coverage of the ordinations and installations of newly appointed diocesan bishops, and presents programming from the

Vatican Television Center Vatican Media, formerly Centro Televisivo Vaticano from 1983 to 2017, is the national broadcaster of the Holy See. It first aired in 1983 and is based in Vatican City. Overview Created in 1983 by Pope John Paul II, Vatican Media has been legal ...

, including coverage of the journeys of

Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...

. A partial listing of CatholicTV programs:

Religious services and devotional programs

*''Saturday Vigil Mass from the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception'' *
Sunday Mass Live from the Basilica of the Sacred Heart at Notre Dame
'' *'' Chaplet of the Divine Mercy'' *''Perpetual Help Novena from the Basilica and Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help '' *
The Holy Rosary
' *''The

Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Via Dolorosa, Way of Sorrows or the , are a series of fourteen images depicting Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and acc ...

'' *''The Angelus''

Spanish-language programs

*''Perpetual Help Novena'' from the Basilica and Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help *''Sunday Mass from the CatholicTV Chapel'' *''Sunday Mass'' from San Fernando Cathedral in

(bilingual) *''Cristo Para Todos'' *''Cambio de Agujas'' *''Dios Nunca Duerme'' *''Donde Dios Llora'' produced by Aid to the Church in Need

Programs for youth

*''Adventures of Donkey Ollie'' *''Adventures in Odyssey'' *''Ascension Cafe'' *'' Bugtime Adventures'' *''Dr. Wonders Workshop'' *''Fred and Susie'' *''Kid's Saints and Heroes'' *''Real Faith TV'' (teen catechism, from the Diocese of Trenton) *'' WOW: The CatholicTV Challenge''

Music

*''The Joy of Music'' (organist Diane Bish) *''Revolution'' (Christian music videos and artist interviews) *''Going My Way'' (with Father Chris Hickey and Father Paul Rouse)

Vatican Television Center programs

*''Vatican Magazine'' *''The General Papal Audience''

History and biography

*''Catholic Saints and Lay People'' (biography) *''Church History'' (Prof. Ann Orlando) *''The Little Flower'' *''100 Years of Father Peyton'' *''Roots of Faith'' (history of the Church in Louisiana)

Scripture

*''Experiencing Paul, Experiencing God'' (Prof. John Clabeaux) *''The Gospel of Matthew'' (Prof. John Clabeaux) *''Looking at the Hebrew Scriptures'' (Rabbi Samuel Chiel) *''Mark the Perilous Journey'' (Prof. Clabeaux) *''The New and Eternal Word'' (Msgr. James Moroney) *''Sacred Time'' ( Bishop Christopher Coyne) *''The Word Exposed'' ( Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle)

Other programs

*''BLINK'' (magazine show) *''Body Matters'' (medical ethics and life issues) *''The Call'' (vocations to religious life and the priesthood) *''Catholic Corner'' (from Princeton, New Jersey) *''Catholic Destinations'' (travel) *''Catholic Focus'' (current affairs) *''Catholicism with Bishop Robert Barron'' *''Catholics Matter'' (from Phoenix, Arizona) *''CatholicTV Presents'' (specials) *''The Choices We Face'' (Catholic evangelist Ralph Martin) *''ClearVoice'' (weekly magazine with John Monahan and Christine Caswell) *''A Closer Walk'' (Fr. Jeff Bayhi) *''Conversations with Cardinal Seán'' *''Day of Discovery'' (RBC Ministries) *''Defenders of the Faith'' (Steve Ray) *''Discernment of Spirits'' (Fr. Timothy Gallagher, on Ignatian spiritual teaching) *''Facing Life Head-On'' (life issues) *''Faith Café'' (Evangelization) *''Feed My Sheep'' *''Focus'' (Abp.

Philip Hannan Philip Matthew Hannan (May 20, 1913 – September 29, 2011) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church, Roman Catholic Church. He served as auxiliary bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, Archdiocese of Washington from ...

) *''From the Chair'' (conversations with Catholic bishops) *''The Future Depends on Love'' *''The Gist'' (exclusively for women) *''Going My Way'' (talk show) *''Good News with Monsignor Jim Vlaun'' *''Hope on Campus'' (campus ministry with the Brotherhood of Hope) *''House+Home'' (family life) *''Images of Jesus'' *''In & Out'' (the work of Catholic missionaries) *''Issues and Faith'' (religious news, from the Archdiocese of New Orleans) *''Listen Up'' (news and current events) *''Matters of Faith'' (from the Diocese of Buffalo) *''Mothering Full of Grace'' *''Nineveh’s Crossing'' *''One Billion Stories'' (Seth DeMoor) *''Our Daily Bread with Father Paul Seil'' *''parishFAMILY'' (parish life and ministry) *''Real to Reel'' (magazine program, from the Diocese of Springfield, Massachusetts) *''Sacred Time'' ( Bishop Christopher Coyne) *''School of Faith'' (Frank DeVito) *''7th Street Theatre'' (Drama meets Christianity) *''SpotLight'' (movie reviews) *''This is the Day'' (talk show) *''Travel and Traditions'' (Burt Wolf) *''The Way of Beauty'' (artist David Clayton) *''We’ve Got to Talk'' (Fr. Daniel O'Connell) *''Where God Weeps'' ( Aid to the Church in Need) *''Witness with Father Thomas Rosica '' *''Woman at the Heart of the Church'' *''Women in God’s Spirit (WINGS)'' *''Word For Word'' *''The Word Exposed with Cardinal

Luis Antonio Tagle Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle ( , ; born June 21, 1957) is a Filipino prelate of the Catholic Church, and has been the Dicastery for Evangelization, Pro-Prefect for the Section for First Evangelization and New Particular Churches of the Dicastery fo ...

'' *''The Word in the World with Father Michael Manning'' *''Word on Fire with Bishop Robert Barron''

Short features

The network also presents short television features on general Christian themes and

public service announcement A public service announcement (PSA) is a message in the public interest disseminated by the media without charge to raise public awareness and change behavior. Oftentimes these messages feature unsettling imagery, ideas or behaviors that are des ...

s from the

Ad Council The Advertising Council, commonly known as Ad Council, is an American nonprofit organization that produces, distributes, and promotes public service announcements or PSAs on behalf of various sponsors, including nonprofit organizations, non-gover ...

and other providers related to

Catholic social teaching Catholic social teaching (CST) is an area of Catholic doctrine which is concerned with human dignity and the common good in society. It addresses oppression, the role of the state, subsidiarity, social organization, social justice, and w ...

and issues such as family life, health, education, community, and the well-being of children.

Patron saint

Saint

Thérèse of Lisieux Thérèse of Lisieux (born Marie Françoise-Thérèse Martin; 2 January 1873 – 30 September 1897), religious name, in religion Therese of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face, was a French Discalced Carmelites, Discalced Carmelite who is widely v ...

is the

patroness Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, art patronage refers to the support that princes, popes, and other wealthy and influential people ...

of CatholicTV.

References

External links

*
Online community siteFacebook pageCatholicTV YouTube ChannelOfficial weblogCatholicTV iPhone AppThe CatholicTV Monthly Magazine
{{DEFAULTSORT:Catholictv Catholic television networks Catholic television channels Television networks in the United States Television stations in Massachusetts English-language television stations in the United States Television channels and stations established in 1955 1955 establishments in Massachusetts