VATICAN CITY, 23 MAY 2008 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received participants in a congress promoted by the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, who have been meeting to reflect upon the identity and mission of communications faculties in Catholic universities.
"It is self-evident that at the heart of any serious reflection on the nature and purpose of human communications there must be an engagement with questions of truth. ... The art of communication is by its nature linked to an ethical value, to the virtues that are the foundation of morality. In the light of that definition, I encourage you, as educators, to nourish and reward that passion for truth and goodness that is always strong in the young".
Benedict XVI exhorted his listeners "to promote truth in information, bringing our peers to reflect upon events, with the aim of being educators of human beings and builders of a better world. It is also necessary to promote justice and solidarity, and at all times to respect the value and dignity of individuals, who have the right not to be injured in matters concerning their private life".
"It would be a tragedy for the future of humanity if the new instruments of communication, which allow us to share knowledge and information more rapidly and efficiently, were not to be accessible to people who are already socially and economically marginalised"; or if such instruments were "used to increase the distance that separates those people from the new networks being developed at the service of social life, information and learning".
"It would also be a serious matter", said the Holy Father "if the globalising tendency in the world of communications were to weaken or eliminate traditional customs and local cultures, especially those that have managed to strengthen family and social values, love, solidarity and respect for life". In this context, he expressed his appreciation to religious communities which, "despite the high financial cost and the vast human resources required, have opened Catholic universities in developing countries".
Recalling how, during the course of the congress, attention had turned to the matter of the identity of Catholic universities and schools, the Pope pointed out that "such identity is not simply a question of the number of Catholic students; it is above all a question of conviction, of truly believing that only in the mystery of the Word made flesh does the mystery of man become clear".
"As experts in the theory and practice of communication, and as educators who are training a new generation of communicators, yours is a privileged role, not only in your students' lives, but also in the mission of your local Churches ... to make the Good News of God's love known to everyone".
AC/COMMUNICATION FACULTIES/... VIS 20080523 (470)
"It is self-evident that at the heart of any serious reflection on the nature and purpose of human communications there must be an engagement with questions of truth. ... The art of communication is by its nature linked to an ethical value, to the virtues that are the foundation of morality. In the light of that definition, I encourage you, as educators, to nourish and reward that passion for truth and goodness that is always strong in the young".
Benedict XVI exhorted his listeners "to promote truth in information, bringing our peers to reflect upon events, with the aim of being educators of human beings and builders of a better world. It is also necessary to promote justice and solidarity, and at all times to respect the value and dignity of individuals, who have the right not to be injured in matters concerning their private life".
"It would be a tragedy for the future of humanity if the new instruments of communication, which allow us to share knowledge and information more rapidly and efficiently, were not to be accessible to people who are already socially and economically marginalised"; or if such instruments were "used to increase the distance that separates those people from the new networks being developed at the service of social life, information and learning".
"It would also be a serious matter", said the Holy Father "if the globalising tendency in the world of communications were to weaken or eliminate traditional customs and local cultures, especially those that have managed to strengthen family and social values, love, solidarity and respect for life". In this context, he expressed his appreciation to religious communities which, "despite the high financial cost and the vast human resources required, have opened Catholic universities in developing countries".
Recalling how, during the course of the congress, attention had turned to the matter of the identity of Catholic universities and schools, the Pope pointed out that "such identity is not simply a question of the number of Catholic students; it is above all a question of conviction, of truly believing that only in the mystery of the Word made flesh does the mystery of man become clear".
"As experts in the theory and practice of communication, and as educators who are training a new generation of communicators, yours is a privileged role, not only in your students' lives, but also in the mission of your local Churches ... to make the Good News of God's love known to everyone".
AC/COMMUNICATION FACULTIES/... VIS 20080523 (470)
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