Pope Names Sacred Heart Faculty Member to Pontifical Council

Dr. Ralph Martin, director of graduate theology programs in the new evangelization and assistant professor of theology at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, has been appointed by Pope Benedict XVI as a consultor to the Pontifical Council for the New Evangelization. He will serve for a five-year term.

Pope Benedict established the Pontifical Council for the New Evangelization in October 2010. Its mandate is to assist the Holy Father and the Roman Curia in coordinating plans to rekindle the Catholic faith in the developed western countries, particularly those in Europe and North America which are most influenced by secularization.

Dr. Martin, who has served on the faculty of Sacred Heart Major Seminary since 2002, is the fourth member of Sacred Heart's current faculty to be serving, or have previously served, on a Vatican council or commission. The others are Dr. Janet Smith, PhD, who serves on the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission; Dr. Edward Peters, PhD, who advises the Apostolic Signatura, the Church's highest administrative court; and Fr. John McDermott, SJ, who in 2009 finished a five-year term with the International Theological Commission.

Dr. Martin is an internationally-known evangelist. He is the founder and president of Renewal Ministries, which he established in 1980 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, to renew the faith of Catholics through retreats, publications, conferences, and through television and radio. He has published numerous books, articles, pamphlets and videos on living out the Christian faith in a more effective way. Dr. Martin's television program, The Choices We Face, has been airing on the Eternal Word Television Network since 1985, and is the longest running Catholic television program in the world. He holds a doctorate in sacred theology from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas in Rome.

Note to reporters: Dr. Martin is available for interviews by calling 313-883-8792 or emailing martin.ralph@shms.edu.