Call to Catholic Communicators: Speak with the Heart

The Catholic Church observes the 57th World Day of Social

Communications on 21 May 2023. ForIndia,thisdaycoincideswiththe Feast of the Ascension of Our Lord, whichaddstothesignificanceofthe observance. Just before Jesus is takenuptoheavenhecommissions hisdisciples,“togoouttothewhole worldtoproclaimthegoodnews,” which is in essence communicating the person and message of Jesus, forthevalueshestoodforanddied for!Thoughthemandateisgivento every single disciple of Jesus, Catholic Communicators have a specific responsibility of doing so, because of the very nature of their mission.

Since the very of his pontificate, Pope Francis has been highlighting the need for and importance of catholic communications to read, understand and to effectively respond to the signs of the times. He has been speaking about this to thevariouscommunicationsforahe addresses and particularly through his annual messages for the day. Besides,the HolyFatherhimselfisa very powerful and effective communicator: speaking unequivocally to the rich and the powerfuloftheworldandtakingup cudgels for the poor and the vulnerable, the excluded and the exploited. Like Jesus, Pope Francis never minces words when it comes to addressing critical issues of today,beitthewarinUkraineorthe disastrouseffectsofclimatechange.

His message for this year’s Communications Day focuses on ‘Speakingwiththeheart:thetruthin love (Eph.4:15)’.In his opening statementsheremindsusthatinhis previous annual day messages, he reflected on the verbs ‘to go and see’ and ‘to listen’, observing that these are important for communication. The 2023 theme, ‘Speaking with the heart’, naturally flows from this. He says, “Itisthe heartthatspurredustogo,tosee andtolisten,anditistheheartthat moves us towards an open and welcomingwayofcommunicating;” adding, “once we have practised listening, which demands waiting andpatience,aswellasforegoing theassertionofourpointofviewin aprejudicialway,wecanenterinto the dynamic of dialogue and sharing, which is precisely that ofcommunicatinginacordialway.”

Pope Francis emphasises that, “Communicating in a cordial mannermeansthatthosewhoread orlistentousareledtowelcome ourparticipationinthejoys,fears, hopesandsufferingofthewomen andmenofourtime.Thosewho speakinthiswaylovetheother becausetheycareandprotecttheir freedom without violating it.” Expressing deep concern of the war and other hostilities in the world today,heinsiststhatweusethegift of communicationasa ‘bridge’and not as a wall, where kindness is not only a question of ‘etiquette’ but a “genuine antidote to cruelty”. We need to foster peace and understanding.Acknowledgingthat weare“livinginadarkhourinwhich humanity fears an escalation of war,”he saysthat“todaymorethan ever, speaking with the heart is essentialtofosteracultureofpeace inplaceswherethereiswar;toopen pathsthatallowfordialogueand reconciliation in places where hatredandenmityrage” …. “Inthe dramatic context of the global conflictweareexperiencing,itis urgent to maintain a form of communicationthatisnothostile.It is necessary to overcome the tendency to ‘discredit and insult opponentsfromtheoutsetrather thantoopenarespectfuldialogue”.

Pope Francis categorically addresses hate speech which spawns’ division and even violence, as we experience in India today, “it isterrifyingtohearhoweasilywords callingforthedestructionofpeople andterritoriesarespoken.Words , unfortunately,thatoftenturninto warlikeactionsofheinousviolence. Thisiswhyallbelligerentrhetoric mustberejected,aswellasevery form of propaganda that manipulatesthetruth,disfiguringit forideologicalends.”

Inview of this he invites all those engaged in communications to Pope Francis calls us to “help create the conditionstoresolvecontroversies between peoples” , urging all to listen to the other witha pure heart and to be courageous in speaking thetruth,buttodosowithcharity— withlove.

In words which characterise his teaching, Pope Francis goes on to say,“Theseleadsthosewholistento attune themselves to the same wavelength,tothepointofbeing abletohearwithintheirheartalso theheartbeatoftheother.Thenthe miracleofencountercantakeplace, whichmakesuslookatoneanother with compassion, welcoming our mutualfrailtieswithrespectrather thanjudgingbyhearsayandsowing discordanddivision.”…“Listening without prejudice, attentively and openly, gives rise to speaking accordingtoGod’sstyle,nurtured by closeness, compassion and tenderness. We have a pressing need in the Church for communicationthatkindleshearts, thatisbalmonwoundsandthat shineslightonthejourneyofour brothersandsisters.”

Pope Francis has been consistent in his stand on catholic communications.Inamessageto the SIGNIS, World Congress which washeldinSeoul,SouthKorea,(1518 August 2022), he said, “Atthe sametime,theuseofdigitalmedia, especiallysocialmedia,hasraiseda numberofseriousethicalissuesthat call for wise and discerning judgment on the part of communicators and all those concernedwiththeauthenticityand quality of human relationships. Sometimes and in some places, mediasiteshavebecomeplacesof toxicity,hatespeechandfakenews. Inmeetingthischallenge,SIGNIS canplayanimportantrolethrough media education, networking Catholicmediaandcounteringlies and misinformation. I encourage youtopersevereintheseefforts, payingparticularattentiontothe need to assist people, especially youngpeople,todevelopasound criticalsense,learningtodistinguish truth from falsehood, right from wrong, good from evil, and to appreciate the importance of workingforjustice,socialconcord, andrespectforourcommonhome. I would also encourage you to considerthemanycommunitiesin our world that remain excluded from the digital space, making digitalinclusionapriorityofyour organizational planning. In doing so,youwillbemakingasignificant contribution to the spread of a cultureofpeacegroundedinthe truthoftheGospel.”

LaterinNovember2022,addressing the Vatican employees and participants in the Dicastery for Communication’s Plenary Assembly he provided a roadmap of what CatholicCommunicationsshouldbe today! He said that the Church needs prophetic communicators today! Communicators who are free,frank,andfearlessgroundedin the person and message of Jesus! Pope Francis spoke about three cornerstones of communication: ‘makingpeoplelesslonely’,‘giving voice to the voiceless’ and ‘educatingoneselftocommunicate truthfully. ’ He said that communications should not be mere entertainment; it should “diminishthefeelingofloneliness thatsomanymenandwomenfeel entrapped in…The first task of communicationshouldbe , he said, “istomakepeoplelesslonely”asit shouldbeacraftthatcreatesbonds that tie people or communities together…It should “foster closeness, give voice to the excluded,drawattentiontowhatwe normallydiscardandignore”sothat from these relationships and dialogue, “God’s voice resonates andisheard.”

For Pope Francis,“onlyaChurch thatisimmersedinreality,really knows what is in the heart of contemporary man; …true communication stems from listening, from encounter, from tellingthestoriesofpeople”. His prepared text emphatically stated, “Communications also mustmake possibleadiversityofviews,while always seeking to preserve unity andtruth,fightingslander,verbal violence, personalism (cult of personality) and fundamentalism that, under the guise of being faithful to the truth, only spread division and discord…. If it succumbstothesedegenerations, communication, instead of doing muchgood,endsupdoingmuch harm” He added that, “being immersedincludesgivingvoiceto thevoiceless,headded.Veryoften communicationdepartmentsmight marginalize and censor what is uncomfortableandwhatwedonot wanttosee.”Further saying, “the Church,thankstotheHolySpirit, knowsthatitishertasktobewith theleastandthosewholiveonthe marginsbecauseofcertainchoices or family failures or because of personaleventsthathaveindelibly markedtheirpast….Jesuswasnever afraidoftheleper,thepoor,the stranger,evenifthesepeoplewere markedbyamoralstigma,andhe neverturnedhisbackonthosewho were not in conformity with prevailingrulesortraditions.” thereforeneedtodoa realitycheck onthetypeofcommunicationsthat one does today, does the content deal with truth, justice and other critical issues that plague the countryandchurchtoday?Togetits act together some things must be undertaken on a war-footing and urgently;theseinclude:

If one pays close attention to what Pope Francis is saying, then then a very sizeable section of catholic communications in India has a long way to go. And very sadly so! Communications, the world over, has made a paradigm shift in the last decade or so. Today communication tools are available to one and all- neither structures nor sophisticated gadgets are essential to communicate effectively.

• a serious and professional evaluation on every form of catholic communications (print, electronic and other); of the resources invested; and of course, impactassessment.

• almost twenty years ago, in January 2004, the General Assembly of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI) which met in Thrissur, Kerala, produced a path breaking statement, ‘Calledto beaCommunicatingChurch’ inwhichtheyhighlighted “that mediahaveapropheticrole, indeed a vocation: to speak outagainstthefalsegodsand idealsofthedaymaterialism, hedonism, consumerism and narrow nationalism”. The statement called for a Pastoral Plan for Communications which was meant to be implemented in every Diocese in India! It would be an opportune moment to see how many of our Dioceses are implementing this plan (if any) with empowered CommunicationsCommissions (with lay members) to monitor them.

• during growing fascism, fundamentalism, and fanaticism and plenty of antiConstitutional and hate rhetoric against the democratic fabric of the country- what percentage of a catholic communications have stood up for truth and justice and values enshrined in the Gospel of Jesus (always with love). It would also be interesting to see how many took a stand against ‘The Kerala Story’ which is replete with lies and denigration or have come out in open support to the Women WrestlersofIndia.

There are indeed several more parameters that one should investigate; but if we start with just the above, we would have gone a long way in making catholic communications in India more responsive to the signs of the times and in conformity with the teachings of Jesus and the Church today! World CommunicationsDay will be a good day to go beyond tokenism and platitudes and to ensure actualising the tremendous responsibility placed on all, In the meantime, we pray in the words of Pope Francis, given at the conclusionofhismessage:

MaytheLordJesus,thepureWord pouredoutfromtheheartofthe Father, help us to make our communication clear, open and heartfelt.

MaytheLordJesus,theWordmade flesh,helpuslistentothebeatingof hearts, to rediscover ourselves as brothersandsisters,andtodisarm thehostilitythatdivides.

MaytheLordJesus,theWordof truthandlove,helpusspeakthe