1. The theme which I have chosen for World
Communications Day 2001 echoes the words of Jesus himself. It could
not be otherwise, for it is Christ alone whom we preach. We
remember his words to his first disciples: 'What I tell you in the
dark, utter in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim
upon the housetops' (Matthew 10:27). In the secret of our heart, we
have listened to the truth of Jesus; now we must proclaim that
truth from the housetops.
In today's world, housetops are
almost always marked by a forest of transmitters and antennae
sending and receiving messages of every kind to and from the four
corners of the earth. It is vitally important to ensure that among
these many messages the word of God is heard. To proclaim the faith
from the housetops today means to speak Jesus' word in and through
the dynamic world of communications.
2. In all cultures and at all times -
certainly in the midst of today's global transformations - people
ask the same basic questions about the meaning of life: Who am I?
Where have I come from and where am I going? Why is there evil?
What is there after this life? (cf. Fides et Ratio, n. 1). And in
every age the Church offers the one ultimately satisfying answer to
the deepest questions of the human heart - Jesus Christ himself,
'who fully reveals man to himself and brings to light his high
calling' (Gaudium et spes, n. 22). Therefore, the voice of
Christians can never fall silent, for the Lord has entrusted to us
the word of salvation for which every human heart longs. The gospel
offers the pearl of great price for which all are searching (cf.
Matthew 13:45-46).
It follows that the Church
cannot fail to be ever more deeply involved in the burgeoning world
of communications. The global communications network is extending
and growing more complex by the day, and the media are having an
increasingly visible effect on culture and its transmission. Where
once the media reported events, now events are often shaped to meet
the requirements of the media. Thus, the relationship between
reality and the media has grown more intricate, and this is a
deeply ambivalent phenomenon. On the one hand, it can blur the
distinction between truth and illusion; but on the other, it can
open up unprecedented opportunities for making the truth more
widely accessible to many more people. The task of the Church is to
ensuring that it is the latter which actually
happens.
3.
The world of the media can sometimes seem indifferent and even
hostile to Christian faith and morality. This is partly because
media culture is so deeply imbued with a typically postmodern sense
that the only absolute truth is that there are no absolute truths
or that, if there were, they would be inaccessible to human reason
and therefore irreIevant In such a view, what matters is not the
truth but 'the story'; if something is newsworthy or entertaining,
the temptation to set aside considerations of truth becomes almost irresistible. As a result, the world of the
media can sometimes seem no more friendly an environment for
evangelisation than the pagan world of the Apostles' day. But just
as the early witnesses to the good news did not retreat when faced
with opposition, neither should Christ's followers do so today. The
cry of Saint Paul echoes among us still.. 'Woe to me if I do not
preach the gospel' (1 Corinthians 9:16).
Yet, as much as the world of the
media may at times seem at odds with the Christian message, it also
offers unique opportunities for proclaiming the saving truth of
Christ to the whole human family. Consider, for instance, satellite
telecasts of religious ceremonies which often reach a global
audience, or the positive capacities of the internet to carry
religious information and teaching beyond all barriers and
frontiers. Such a wide audience would have been beyond the wildest
imaginings of those who preached the gospel before us. What is
therefore needed in our time is an active and imaginative
engagement of the media by the Church. Catholics should not be
afraid to throw open the doors of social communications to Christ,
so that his good news may be heard from the housetops of the
world!
4. It is vital too that at the
beginning of this new millennium we keep in mind the mission ad
gentes ['to the nations'] which Christ has entrusted to the Church.
An estimated two thirds of the world's six billion people do not in
any real sense know Jesus Christ; and many of them live in
countries with ancient Christian roots, where entire groups of the
baptised have lost a living sense of the faith, or no longer.
consider themselves members of the Church and live lives far
removed from the Lord and his gospel (cf. Redemptoris missio, n.
33). Certainly, an effective response to this situation involves
much more than the media; but in striving to meet the challenge
Christians cannot possibly ignore the world of social
communications. Indeed, media of every kind can play an essential
role in direct evangelisation and in bringing to people the truths
and values which support and enhance human dignity. The Church's
presence in the media is in fact an important aspect of the
inculturation of the gospel demanded by the new evangelisation to
which the Holy Spirit is summoning the Church throughout the
world.
As the whole Church seeks to
heed the Spirit's call, Christian communicators have 'a prophetic
task, a vocation: to speak out against the false gods and idols of
the day -materialism, hedonism, consumerism, narrow nationalism'
(Ethics in Communications, n. 31). Above all, they have the duty
and privilege to declare the truth - the glorious truth about human
life and human destiny revealed in the Word made flesh. May
Catholics involved in the world of social communications preach the
truth of Jesus ever more boldly and joyfully from the housetops, so
that all men and women may hear about the love which is the heart
of God's self-communication in Jesus Christ, the same yesterday,
and today, and for ever (cf. Hebrews 13:8).
From the Vatican, 24 January 2001, the memorial of
Saint Francis de Sales.
Joannes Paulus II
The Catholic
Church has marked World Communications Day as the Sunday after
Ascension every year since 1967. It is a day on which Catholics are
asked to pray for Christians in the media, that they may use their
work wisely to promote the gospel.
Every year the
Pope writes a message for World Communications Day, and this year's
message - with the theme, 'Preach from the housetops' - is set out
above.
Catholics are
also asked to reflect on how they could use the media to publicise
Christian values, as well as to contribute financially to the
Church's activities in this field. In England and Wales, this takes
the form of a collection to finance the work of the Catholic
Communications Centre and the Catholic Media
Office.
The Catholic
Communications Centre' provides training and support for Catholics
who wish to use the media or improve their communication skills,
and the Catholic Media Office is the press office of the Bishops'
Conference, liaising directly with the media and also publishing
official documents. Their contact details are printed
below.
The
Communications Day collection also supports the bishops'
Communications Committee, which meets four times a year and advises
the bishops on communications policies and
strategies.
Catholic Media Office 39 Eccleston Square, London
SWIV 1BX www.cbcew.org.uk/