Father Corapi radio program comes to Boston

QUINCY -- Boston’s only Catholic radio network launched its first programming featuring well-known speaker Father John Corapi, SOLT, on WROL 950 AM March 5. Eternal Life Radio is an all-volunteer organization that has the ultimate goal of providing Catholic programming across Massachusetts all day everyday.

The hour-long program “The Teaching of Jesus Christ with Father John Corapi” is produced by the EWTN Global Radio Network and will be broadcast on WROL Monday through Friday at noon. It will rerun weekdays at 8 p.m.

The president of Eternal Life Radio, Mary Ann Harold, said someone suggested she start a Catholic radio station in Boston while on a retreat four years ago. Having background in radio, she was surprised by the suggestion.

“God calls who He calls,” she said. “I really believe that someday in the near future we’re going to have 24/7 Catholic radio.”

The radio network is depending entirely on God’s providence to raise the $100,000 required to bring Father Corapi’s program to Boston for a year, she added. They are raising money thorough endowments or sponsorships. The first show was sponsored by Christine Toloczko in memory of her husband, Raymond, who recently passed away.

Eternal Life Radio held a kick-off lunch for the airing of Father Corapi’s show on March 5 at the Skyline Marina Bay restaurant in Quincy. Supporters of the network gathered to listen to the debut program in which Father Corapi spoke on the importance of prayer.

Throughout His ministry, Jesus taught us how to pray, Father Corapi said. He showed us how to pray to God as our Father and how to pray at decisive moments in our lives as He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane. Like Christ, we too are called to be examples of prayer, he said.

“Prayer is contagious,” he added.

After the show ended, Rev. Basil Yarde, director of ministries for Salem Radio Boston which owns WROL announced the station will not only broadcast Father Corapi’s show from noon-1 p.m. but again from 8-9 p.m. at the station’s own expense. WROL is owned by Salem Communications. Rev. Yarde is an Assembly of God pastor from Barbados.

“I sincerely believe this show is going to signal a powerful revival of the Catholic Church in Boston,” he said. “That is teaching for everybody. That’s powerful.”