Catholicism has an organized hierarchy of authority establishing a political system that is often conveyed within popular culture since the religion’s beginnings. According to our lectures, “central religious authorities” have “political and social influence in society”, and their depiction of authority within media can impact how society interacts with the religion as a whole.
Over time, the view of authority in the Church has changed and created a new representation of this leadership within media and to the public. History often reveals a manipulative and corrupt hierarchy within Catholicism, and media of the time typically concealed the negative aspects of the religion and depicted an all-good narrative of the Church authority. For example, Alessandro Filipepi’s painting Coronation of the Virgin with Angels shows stoic Church leaders interacting with the heavens, close to God and the Holy Family. As written in While Religion Meets New Media by Dr. Heidi Campbell, “authority sets the boundaries for acceptable meaning-making,” (Campbell 21). This imagery sets its own boundaries in regard to the respect of Church authority—they are apart from the human world while remaining on Earth.
Meanwhile, the Catholic Church today still attempts to display a sense of holiness in the images of leaders such as the Pope, but also hopes to interact with the public in a relatable manner. A post card portraying a smiling Pope Francis releasing a white dove creates a positive image of interaction with the Holy Spirit while his open expression and body language ties him to humanity. By placing this picture on an easily consumed piece of media, this further promotes the commercialization of religious imagery in a way that was not plausible five hundred years ago. It allows the public to keep Catholic leadership within their homes, limiting the boundaries between normality and sacredness.
Authority within the Church is highly publicized and often represented in a positive manner, whether to connect the holy leadership with God or bring them closer to their worldly community. Media is a powerful tool that the Catholic faith utilizes well in communicating the boundaries they choose to set with the world.