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| (Image Source: YouTube/TV Maria Foundation Philippines Inc.) |
As the Philippines celebrates 500 years of Christianity which dates back to the first Holy Mass that took place in Limasawa back in 1521, the Philippines' premiere Catholic television station TV Maria is celebrating its 15th year anniversary of spreading the Catholic Gospel of God beyond the airwaves within the archipelago and across different parts of the globe. On the first day of 2006, TV Maria started broadcasting on the now defunct Dream Satellite TV and eventually became accessible to more than 300 local and provincial cable operators nationwide.
TV Maria Foundation Philippines Inc., simply known as TV Maria, is a non-stock, non-profit organization owned, operated and managed by the Archdiocese Of Manila which gathers productions from different Catholic media organizations; thus, becoming a platform for broadcasting Catholic productions that embody and promote faith, values and morals. Recognizing the difficulty of sustaining a 24/7 programming and keeping true to its mission of leading people to the fullness of life, TV Maria began the in-house production and broadcast of faith-based materials such as Salita Ng Diyos, Salita Ng Buhay, Catholic special events and Catholic documentaries and eventually airs live Papal masses, the annual Traslacion of the Black Nazarene and Holy Week services inside the Manila Cathedral.
In 2009, TV Maria became available on SKYcable and Cignal TV followed by Satlite in 2018. During the pandemic lockdowns, TV Maria continued airing daily masses and programs that would inspire and enrich the spiritual life of its viewers amidst the fear and uncertainties brought about by the pandemic. Continuing to feed the spiritual life of Filipinos in the pandemic era, the network included additional daily masses emanating from the Manila Cathedral, Quiapo Church and the Society of St. Paul as well as the weekly interactive recollection program Faith Factor and the social service program Charity In Action in partnership with Caritas Manila - both with the purpose of giving hope and inspiration to people amidst the pandemic.
In March 2020, TV Maria was launched on digital terrestrial television in Metro Manila and nearby provinces through a partnership deal with Rajah Broadcasting Network (RJTV) which paves the way for the network to be aired via available digital TV boxes in the local market including GMA Affordabox and the recently launched Baron Digital TV Receiver. TV Maria also gained significant viewership over the Internet as it continues to expand its reach to Filipinos locally and worldwide through Facebook and YouTube which would become go-to pages for Church events with more than 300,000 followers and 70,000+ subscribers, respectively, and counting. For more information, visit its official website at www.tvmaria.pht.
