An Interview with Joop Koopman

by Gordon Nary

Gordon: Tell us about your family when you were growing up and the beginnings of your Catholic life?

Joop Koopman: I grew up just outside Amsterdam, the Netherlands, an only child. My parents were not churchgoers. My mom was a nominal Catholic; my dad was a nominal Protestant. The only time my mom took me to church was to get me baptized when I was age 3. if I look back, I feel like that baptism tied me to the church but that wouldn't become apparent until many years when I graduated from UCLA.

Gordon: When did you graduate and what was your major?

Joop Koopman: I graduated in 1981. Earned a bachelor's in English literature I greatly loved reading and what I really learned in school was to write which doesn't happen so much in Europe. That did good things for me when I became a journalist. My favorite course was the study of the major novels of the 20^th century. I loved discovering Marcel Proust’s Remembrance of Things Past and The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann and there was plenty of philosophy and theology in both majestic works. A universe of thought opened for me.

Gordon: How did your Catholic adventure begin?

Joop Koopman: UCLA gave new graduates access to a job board. This was pre-internet, which meant a room with typed cards stapled to the wall I found I found a listing for a company looking for a copywriter. It was called Twin Circle Publishing. If the listing had identified the company as being Catholic, I would have passed on it without a thought, But I sent in my resume I got an invitation to meet Francis Maier, the editor of the National Catholic Register. A new chapter of my life began.

Gordon: What happened?

Joop Koopman: Fran gave me an internship to help cover the Dutch Church, which was in turmoil, with a powerful faction pushing for radical change, including the ordination of married men. In the summer of 1982, I traveled to the Netherlands to interview people on both sides of the divide. We published an entire issue of the National Catholic Register devoted to the Dutch Catholic Church. These were challenging and exciting times. I would spend nearly 15 years at the paper, as a reporter, foreign editor, and, finally, as editor in chief.

It was one of the great joys of the job to go on the road and interview so many incredible men and women who devoted their life to the Church

Gordon: Highlights?

Joop Koopman: I got to interview some of the greatest minds of the church. To name a few, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Yves Congar and Henri de Lubac—men whose thought profoundly changed and enriched the Church. All three could be saints in the making.

With reporters in key hotspots across the world, the Register gave its readers a front row front row seat at the amazing spectacle that saw Saint John Paul I play a decisive role in the defeat of Communism—in tandem with world leaders like Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher. In those heady days the Church was on the front page of both the Catholic and the secular press.

A colleague, Jonathan Luxmoore and I spent six weeks in the Soviet Union, in the wake of the fall of the Berlin Wall. There was plenty of evidence of continued oppression of Christian leaders, but the trend toward freedom was unstoppable. We visited activists in Moscow, Minsk, Kiev, Vilnius, Bucharest, Budapest and Warsaw.

I spent six weeks in French-speaking Africa, covering the lives of missionaries. These were life-changing journeys. Overall, being a reporter for the National Catholic Register amounted to a second education, one focused on philosophy and theology, and on recognizing the Church’s wisdom in the domain of politics, culture, and science. “The Church is an expert in humanity,” as the famous phrase goes.

Gordon: In 1995 the National Catholic Register was sold to the Legionaries of Christ. What happened?

Joop Koopman: I was editor in chief when the paper changed hands, and I decided to make the move to the East Coast, where the Legionaries were based. My days were numbered, however. The new owner of a media outlet wants to put his or her pick at the helm. And so, it went with me. After about six months I was graciously ushered out the door.

Gordon: What happened next?

Joop Koopman: I had heard about a cable television pioneer, the late Charles Dolan, who supported Catholic television on Long Island. I had nothing to lose and sent him   pitch for significant investment to improve the quality of Catholic media, primarily print vehicles in those days. I put my letter in the mail and not for a million years thought I would hear something back.

Then one day the phone rang—I was Mr. Dolan! He asked, “how can I help you? I am not a publisher.” But he agreed to meet. About three months later, we sat together. Days before my son was born and I could not be happier.

I had brought copies of George Magazine, RFK’s take on the world of politics, with humor, sophistication and, especially, non-partisanship. That formula, I was convinced, could improve and open the Catholic conversation in this country.

Mr. Dolan, I soon learned, had already embarked on a new television venture, a Catholic CNN as he put it. That outlet—american catholic—would anchor a collection of specialized content available on-demand, call it a very early version of streaming. The George formula applied to television. Over lunch one day, Mr. Dolan offered me a job, which earned me lofty title of Senior Vice President, Editorial Director. Thus began my seven-year journey in the corporate world in pursuit of the ideal combination of Catholic content and top-notch production values. In the end, the project did not survive—but I lived a beautiful dream, especially the first year, when I was a think tank of one, meeting regularly with my wonderful billionaire chief.

I just retired after 12 years as director of communication at Aid to the Church in Need-USA (ACNUSA) is the US office of ACN International, an organization that raises some $1.3M each year to protect and heal persecuted Christians around the world in some 140 countries. Thousands of Christians die each year in Nigeria, victims of Muslim aggression. Christians in Pakistan live under the threat of rampaging mobs bent on lynching Christians falsely accused of blasphemy. There are hundreds of stories of merciless brutality. How sad then that the secular media pay no attention whatsoever. That makes the communication jobs at ACN and other agencies caring for the victims of Christian persecution so difficult.

Fortunately, there are also many stories of daring escapes and rescues, of quiet courage and determination—stories that foster hope and joy. Grace sustains the work. It has been an honor and a privilege to be a part of the ACNUSA team. I miss my friends there dearly.

Gordon: Thank you for an exceptional and informative interview.