 WASHINGTON, DC—For the first time ever, thanks to anonymous donors, Catholics serving at 77 United States Military installations across the U.S., Europe, and Asia will have a year’s worth of unlimited access to the Augustine Institute’s “FORMED” website, bringing a wide selection of audio and video productions about the Catholic faith to their fingertips. The current parish rate for a one-year subscription is $1,750. The donors recently contributed more than $130,000 to purchase a subscription for each installation.
According to its website, FORMED is a revolutionary digital platform that offers a wealth of informative and entertaining Catholic audio talks, eBooks, feature films, documentaries, and video-based study programs from trusted providers like Catholic Answers, Sophia Press, Knights of Columbus, Ignatius Press, St. Paul Center, and others. The website hosts presentations on hundreds of topics ranging from “Marriage: Unique for a Reason,” “Human Sexuality,” and “How to Apply Our Faith to Our Families” to “Ocean of Mercy: Three Lives—One Vision—No Limit,” “Seven Deadly Sins, Seven Deadly Virtues,” and “15 Things to Do in the Midst of Suffering.” In a letter of thanksgiving to the generous donors, His Excellency, the Most Reverend Timothy P. Broglio, J.C.D., Archbishop for the Military Services, USA, wrote that the subscriptions will be particularly useful for Catholics committed to the Military’s transient way of life, where individuals and families are constantly shuffled between duty stations and deployments: “Resourcing the faithful in this non-territorial archdiocese is a challenge. The frequency of transitions adds to the dynamic complexity of guiding the Church to grow in faith. FORMED is a welcome gift that will bring the faith to the fingertips of those who serve far from home. The Augustine Institute continues to make a positive difference in the lives of many. I am grateful for the opportunity to share that good work, through this initiative, with those in my pastoral care.” Dr. Mark Moitoza, Archbishop Broglio’s Vice Chancellor of Evangelization, said military Catholics will likely find the FORMED content as alluring and captivating as it is informative and inspirational: “FORMED is effectively reaching out to parishes and dioceses with a digital platform that offers movies, study-programs, audio, e Books, prayerful reflections and more. For a busy population on the move, FORMED enables easy access to reliable and engaging Catholic content among active duty personnel and their families. These digital resources inspire human connections resulting in dialogue, prayer, and sharing that are making evangelization a natural part of daily life.” Dr. Moitoza said each installation was assigned an access code that allows individuals and families to log in to FORMED. Access is available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Several recorded webinars related to using FORMED are hosted on the website of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, at https://www.milarch.org/formed/ to support registration and promotion of the newly available resource for Catholics and Catholic families in the Military. Update: The donated subscription initiative from May 2017 to May 2018 has concluded. Installations interested in learning more about a subscription to Formed may visit the Formed.org website for details. |
