Lured into Social Media

COMPANION

SANGATI

Konkan Salesian Bulletin Province of Panjim (INP)

July - Sept 2017 | Volume - 10 | Issue 03

Lured into Social Media Building A Strong Personal Identity

#Digitalfootprints In Leaps and Bounds

Kids Living & Learning with Media

Editorial Editor Joaquim Lobo, sdb Editorial Team Francis Xavier, sdb Jason Pinto, sdb Layout & Cover Design Joaquim Lobo, sdb Consultants Fr Felix Fernandes, sdb (Provincial) Fr Avil Rodrigues, sdb (Vice Provincial) Fr Jose Sequeira, sdb (Economer) Distribution Lazar Vaz Printed at James Arts Crafts, Sivakasi Published by Boskon Communications Don Bosco Provincial House Odxel, Goa University P.O. Goa 403206 Ph : 0832 2451449

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Mark Zuckerberg challenges himself with resolutions every year, to read a book every fifteen days, meet at least one new person daily, learn more about culture, history and the impact of technology and globalization on people. He thinks about the facebook all the time (that is his work) but has not much time to spend on it daily.

Bill Gates did not give his children smartphones until they completed 14 years; when they got it, he limited their exposure to the addictive glow of digital screens.

Even Steve Jobs’ children were not given the newly released ipad in 2010. He said, “they haven’t used it.

We limit how much technology our kids use at home.”

Jonathan Ive who designed the ipad restricts the time of its use for his children.

The honchos of the Silicon Valley send their children to Waldorf Schools (about 160 in America) that encourages children to focus on physical activity and creative tasks in the real world rather than a virtual one. When all the schools in India take pride if they had computer lessons from the pre-primary level, the children of the staff of Google, Apple, Yahoo and Hewlett-Packard think it otherwise. The computer education there begins from class VIII. It is proved without doubt that the excessive or early use of mobile or computer screens are harmful for health.

Technology makes things easy. When things are easy and cheap all can use them. The social media apps are simple and fascinating to use. Their desiners have succeeded in luring and engaging us into them. It is upto us now to set the limit of their use. Before we use them, we must educate ourselves about media and how to critically evaluate it’s content.

Joaquim Lobo, sdb This is a Salesian Panjim Province Bulletin, and is directed towards the Salesian works in the regions of Sindhudurg, Goa and Karnataka.

For private circulation only.

COVER STORY Fr Harris Pakkam, SDB

Lured into Social Media?

Give a glance to all that is around you. A new world of freedom, fun and excitement, powerfully ushering with Social media. The majority of people are glued to the realm of digital space and are lured into it. The liberty of broadcasting what one feels to anyone, anytime, anywhere has heaved a huge sigh of freedom, thrill and satisfaction. Why are the majority driven into the virtual world most of the time? What impact does it have on them?

The Power of Social Media Social Media is undoubtedly an indomitable presence today, a phenomenon which has evolved so fiercefully in the last decade.

Recently, the Co-founder and Chairman of Facebook Mark Zuckerberg announced, that Facebook has 2 billion monthly users, solidifying the company’s position as the largest, most influential social network in the world. Interesting to note that on 24 August 2015, on that single day alone, 1 billion people out of the 7 billion on this planet, connected to Facebook. FB’s new revised mission “Bring the world closer together”, is a move that reflects its growing emphasis on building online communities. This latest trend of connecting people emphasizes only on virtual communication, leaving the traditional

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bonding and real communication on the decline.

Globally out of the three billion people who are regular Internet users, two billion have active social media accounts. As on March 2017, statistics shows that China was ranked first with over 731 million internet users, while India stands second with 462.12 million internet users, and United States stands third with 287 million internet users. Social media platforms have connected the entire world through smartphones, tablets and PCs in a way never connected before.

Social Media in Today’s Society One cannot live without social media today, and undoubtedly social media is the favourite past time of the young people and they enjoy surfing through various channels like FB, Twitter, Whatsapp and many more applications emerging every day. The new generation of chat apps, offers primarily the one-to-one sharing as opposed to Twitter and Facebook’s one-tomany, and they have become an intimate part of people’s lives. Instant messaging on Whatsapp and Facebook has become an integral part of the daily life of a good number of people. Sans internet, one would feel like a fish out of water.

Facebook is becoming the fulcrum under

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which one’s daily life revolves. For instance for millions of people, it determines their choices, friends, past times, gives reminders of birthdays, events, news, updates and obviously FB manages one’s life, plans the daily course of action and the choices to be made. For a good number social media is like a coffee table, where you come at frequent intervals to share, comment and relax and get back, while for some others it is a whole day activity.

What type of Communication?

All these modern means of social networking, which originated from the scope of easy communication with friends and family, near and far, has now become a communication and a non-communication. The communication horizon and social interaction of the young people of today is determined by the intensity of their rapport with Social Media. This tremendous influence has resulted in a new phenomenon, and we are encountering a new generation of young people, who feel happy to relate with the display of their smart phones, and are contented with a parallel virtual reality, than a face-to-face encounter with the real person. It is a contradiction, as they enter into the lives of hundreds of young people, most of whom they may not have even seen in real life. Chatting is more interesting for young people than conversing face to face, and that is the trend. It is another great delusion that young people and even older ones, come together to eat and drink in a

social gathering, and many are busy updating themselves, or engaged in some activity with their cell phones, and interestingly some have more than one mobile phones.

Indian Youth in Social Media 75% of India’s digital landscape is the youth, within the age group of 14 to 30. Of this group 60% of those connected spend atleast 2-3 hours loitering on Social Networking sites, 93% of them use Facebook, 87% use YouTube and 79% use Whatsapp*. There should be a slight distinction made of the urban and rural Indian youth, as their contexts are different.

While the Urban Indian youth use the web for a variety of services such as communication (texting and chatting), social networking, entertainment etc, the rural youth use most of their time online for entertainment.

The Plight of Our Youth The majority of youth feel more accepted on social media than they do in real life. They feel important and popular when they receive a lot of “likes” on the photos posted of themselves on social media. Infact the Internet driven world has given a new identity to every young person, and they feel that their profile is like a temple, which has to be safeguarded with pride, and one has to keep others interested and crazy. For them, any funny event, incident or happening when photographed and reported and then later on commented, becomes a channel of their communication, and here the levels of privacy vary to a great extent. The FOMO

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syndrome, fear of missing out on the virtual world compels them to be always active when somebody looks for them, and the effect seems similar to that of a drug addict. A good number of young people fall asleep on the bed with the mobile phone in their hand. Most of them today, have a disturbed sleep, are frequently interrupted and do not give due value to their sleep. It is indeed a terrible plight, to see our young struggling when they lack internet connectivity, and many suffer from this new sickness, a FOMO syndrome.

Social Media in Daily Life A quick scan of how an average young person mostly goes through his daily life. The first activity in the morning after one wakes up, would be instinctly to check the status of their cell phone and update on how their peers live their daily life. Besides there are many others who get up a couple of times, during their sleep to check their mobile and keep track of the online activity.

They feel they may miss out important tasks online, and a good majority are caught in this game. The world of social media has a magnetic effect on the young people and in all sorts of activities they are glued to it. For the young people capturing daily emotions and communicating them to their virtual network is an indispensable act, which adds purpose and meaning to their existence.

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Social Media and Family Social Media has also created a big abyss between the younger generation and that of the older ones. The previous generations did not have this privilege of staying connected, as the present new divergent generations have. The elders are not able to understand the present communication of the younger ones and there is always a gap. Many of the parents are ignorant and helpless of what their children do online. They give lot of advice on how to talk, behave outside on the roads, relate with friends etc. and ironically they feel secure and safe when they see their children locked in their rooms and engaged with their computer in online activity. Social Media many at times keeps the children so engaged, that they even tend to stop communicating with their parents.

Social Media – A distraction trap?

The English journalist Frances Booth speaks of this situation as an epidemic of this new millennium, which takes one to hyper connection and to alienation. While there is so much of communication around, there is so much of disconnection too, from the reality one lives. The same author, in her book “The Distraction Trap – How to focus in a digital world?, affirms that virtual world keeps a person constantly distracted and keeps him out of focus. She says that a person breaks atleast four times in an hour and in many cases after such distraction they are not able to return to that work 100%. There is the constant urge to

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check the cell phones regularly, atleast once in 15 minutes or even more times, to find out what is happening around and keep oneself up-to-date. A number of accidents that occur everyday on the road, can also be attributed to constant engagement on the cell phones.

Gratification from Social Media This has given rise to a new way of relationships today, which makes one excited and offers an emotional gratification. It is different from the physical relationships with people and friends, but yet provides a gratifying emotional experience. Chiefly, there are four types of gratification that people gain from the Internet, namely, the belonging to a virtual community (feeling connected to a group), monetary compensation (money they earn through various web-based activities), diversion (distraction from their routine lives), and personal status (the feeling of individual standing, the identity they receive).

The gratification that they experience is very personal, and becomes addictive. For example, the expectance of fame and importance of being liked is a great pleasure and satisfaction for the young people. On Social Media each one wants to create a personal brand, and maintain it and market it constantly.

Internet Addiction & It’s Effects Internet addiction is commonly characterized as excessive use of the Internet that interferes with daily functioning and that leads to distress or harm. There is this dark side of the use of social media, which leads to a certain depression resulting in anxiety, other psychiatric disorders, and a range of unhealthy behaviors. This internet addiction goes deeper than just psychological dependence, and one’s interaction with technology produces the same neurochemical reaction - a burst of dopamine -

which one gets after consuming alcohol, drug, sex, and gambling addictions. The Social Media experience, such as the arrival of messages, the longing, satisfaction, all these give the same dopamine stimulation and deprivation, and it continues with the same dosage after every other experience.

Neglect of duties and responsibilities, and hiding themselves in the computer is the favourite past time and refuge of the students, and very often it is in these emotions and feelings that the young people live. They are very reluctant to share their online experiences with their parents, and often it leads to bad results in their academic performance, and leads them to superficial relationships.

Controlling the internet usage or forbidding their online surfing, is not going to prove all successful. Parents and elders have to go the young people and bridge this gap... they need to communicate by asking and understanding and educate them on this.

Challenges to Encounter However, the social network’s influence also comes riddled with a host of ethical challenges.

Making a decision to keep oneself off from the social galaxy is a big challenge. The challenge is too beyond the digital world, and face-to-face encounters in the real world, must be fostered than merely in the virtual world.

Internet mania has crept into the minds of the youth, but being available always online is dangerous to one’s health. One should also know how to manage one’s time and also remain detached from the cell phone and enjoy that time of peace and solitude. Planning one’s time, and scheduling the use of these means of Social Media, defines the control one has of Social Media.

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Social Media entails a relationship, which has both positive and negative consequences. Often external relationships are an outcome of online experiences. Some engage in “catfishing”, trying to befriend people with a fake or stolen identity, and in such cases real relationships begin to suffer. Virtual relationships affect real life and very often determine certain behavioural responses and psychological consequences. The digital world, which is very attractive and luring, keeps stimulating constantly the young people.

The socio-cultural changes have paved way for the young people to become a product of Social Media. The choice is entirely in one’s hands. Social Media, like a ferocious tiger is roaring around, and the challenge is to encounter it, without being devoured by it.

This tiger cannot be chained, and one has to be formed wisely, prudently, and intelligently to encounter it. Social Media should not become a toxic mirror for young people, and they need to be formed to become social media literate, and create a habitable social media world.

Looking Ahead Positively & Judiciously A new approach is needed. Dr Richard Woolfson, child psychologist and Knowthenet spokesman, said “The internet offers wonderful experiences for growing and inquisitive young minds”. Young people need support and education to develop the skills needed to understand the risks and opportunities of social networking sites, and a friendly approach is needed to accompany them.

More than prevention, elders, parents and educators need to maintain an open dialogue and encourage children to share both good and bad online experiences, talk openly and straightforwardly about the risks they may encounter online without scaring them and make sure they keep up with the latest social media updates and work along with them rather than control them.

Social Media in India As per the 2016 social media statistics, India has world’s largest number of Facebook Users with over 195 million users, ahead of United States by over 4 million subscribers. There are 155 Million Monthly Active Users (MAUs) in India, of which 147 Millions MAUs access Facebook via Mobile Phones and 73 Million users are active daily on Mobiles, and the majority of the Facebook users from India are aged 18-24, which is the largest and fastest growing population segment.

Imagine that in India, Facebook is the only social network to cross 150 Million Users. Of the 462 Million internet users in India, 200 Million are active social media users. Twitter, the microblogging site has 23.2 million Monthly Active Users in India, LinkedIn has over 30 Million Users in India, while Instagram has 16 Million users in India. YouTube, the videosharing site has more than 60 million unique users in India.

India is top country to use Whatsapp Application followed

by Brazil, Italy, Turkey and Spain, and 52% of Indian instant messaging users are on Whatsapp.

Social media has enormous potential and influence and it can also do immense good, depending on how one uses this medium and engages young people, soliciting their contribution and participation. It can also be looked as a valuable tool of empowerment and social change. It has become indeed a vehicle for social and democratic campaign in many countries.

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*Courtesy: Social Media Facts & Stats from India -2016

Fr Harris is currently the Coordinator of the Photography Services of the Holy See at Vatican, Rome. For 18 years he has organized media educational workshops, film festivals & produced creative projects in the city of Chennai.

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ROCK SOLID Fr Glenford Lowe SDB

Building

a Strong Personal Identity Susan Boyle suddenly shot into fame at the ‘Britain’s Got Talent Show’ in April 2009. A few seconds into the first show and she drew a standing ovation. Life was never to be the same again! By the end of the competition, this middle-aged devout Church volunteer was now a household name. Her TV song, ‘I dreamed a Dream’ had a record 106 million views on the YouTube. Her ‘soaring voice’ couldn’t stop the judges, even Simon Cowell, from paving her way to the next round. The finals saw her lose to the Dance Troupe Diversity! She struggled with ‘nervous exhaustion’ and it was her manager Andy Stephens who acted like a ‘psychological vaccine’ to negate the pressures of sudden fame!

The youngest of nine children, her story begins with a difficult child birth. Oxygen deprivation at birth led her to be labelled ‘with learning disability’. School days were a nightmare. She was bullied by her classmates and found refuge in singing alone.

Her childhood was a story of failure. She dropped

out of school with minimum qualifications.

She never married and, at times, still suffers from anxiety attacks and outbursts of temper.

Today, she rises above the storms of her past. She has sung before Pope Benedict XVI, performed across the globe, received honorary doctorates and made money by the millions on all her record-breaking music albums. In an interview to the Daily Newspaper, she said, “It’s hard to believe that the regular story and pattern of failure has now been broken. I can now live the dream I always dreamed!”

Forming Strong Personalities: One of the challenges young

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major f o r

people today is defining their personal identity.

Our Salesian Youth Ministry: Frame of Reference draws our attention to a very important aspect in our accompanying of the young. As Salesians, we are invited to give pride of place in the Educational and Cultural dimensions of our pastoral activity on helping young people ‘build a strong personality’. Caught in a fragmented world, marked by relativism and lack of principle, our young people are trapped in making immediate decisions and living shallow lives.

The question ‘Who am I?’ is far from answered! Am I just a ‘superior animal’, a ‘cosmic accident’? In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, we read: ‘What a piece of work is man. How noble in faculty! How infinite in reason, in form and moving how express and admirable; in apprehension, how like a God; in action, how like an angel! The beauty of the world, the paragon of animals!’ And yet, the way we see ourselves in often through the eyes of scorn, negativity and uselessness. We are mere weaklings.

The preparatory document for the ‘Synod on Youth 2018’ also focuses on the very same aspect while speaking on ‘New Generations’.

Today’s generation of young people live in a world which is different from that of their parents and educators. Economic and social changes have affected the gamut of obligations and opportunities. Young people’s aspirations, needs, feelings and manner of relating to others have changed as well. Furthermore, from a certain point of view, young people, because of globalization, tend to be more homogeneous in all parts of the world. Nevertheless, they remain in their local surroundings and their unique cultural and institutional settings,

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which have repercussions in the process of socializing and forming a personal identity.

My ‘Personal Identity’ is formed by a combination of multiple factors: my biology and heritability, my geography and culture, my psychology, my gender, my beliefs, my education, my profession, my roles in society, my relationships, my openness to levels of experiences and consciousness, neuroticism, etc.

In the light of these factors that affect our personality, our Salesian Frame of Reference invites us to zero in on just four important dimensions that could help our young people to form strong personalities: 1. Form a MORAL CONSCIENCE and a capacity for ethical discernments so they can make responsible and properly motivated judgements.

2. Grow in AUTONOMY so they can tackle life in a coherent and responsible way.

3. Acquire a RICH LEGACY OF VALUES/ VIRTUES shaped by the Gospel.

4. Present credible LIFE MODELS who take Jesus the Good Shepherd and Don Bosco as their primary reference.

Enabling our youth to form a strong personality is a noble ministry. There are many out there, like Susan Boyle caught in a world of failure, self-pity and doubt. There is in each one a ‘miracle waiting to happen’. Breakthroughs in life happen when we take control and form strong personalities within!

Fr Glenford is a Salesian priest, passionate about the young and their future.

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BE THE LIGHT Fr Nelson Lobo, OFM Cap

The World of Social Media

and it’s impact on Christians

Boy: “Daddy, how was I born?”

Dad: “Well, son, I guess one day you will find out anyway! You’re Mom and I first got together in a chat room on Yahoo. Then I set up a date via e-mail with her and we met at a cyber-café. We sneaked into a secluded room and googled each other. There your mother agreed to a download from my hard drive. As soon as I was ready to upload, we discovered that neither of us had used a firewall and since it was too late to hit the delete button, nine months later a little Pop-Up appeared that said: “You got Male!” The world is gripped with the social media technology. The number of Internet users in India is expected to reach 450-465 million, in 2017. That is only 26% of Indian population. In spite of low percentage of internet users compared to other countries (China 50%, USA 74%) the talk around is about uploading and downloading, online and offline, offers and recharges, MB and GB, I-pad and I-pod, Whatsapp and Facebook. So much so someone said in the future the symbols of English alphabets will also change. Instead of A for apple fruit it’s going to be A for apple computer, instead of B for ball it’s going to be B for Blackberry, instead of C for cat it’s going to be C for cell phone etc. It seems a Priest realizing that lot of unfaithfulness happens online decided to paraphrase the questions

during the vows taking rite. So he asked the bridal couple: “Will you be faithful to each other online and offline”?

From Stone Age to Modern age it has taken centuries of time. From Modern age to Cyber age/ internet age it has taken only about 25 years. This information explosion age is relatively new. Humanity did not have enough time to sit back and evaluate what this internet age is doing to our brains, our hearts, our personhood, our families, our societies. Life is fast. Speed is the mantra. No time to cry over spilt milk. But feedback is a must. Some fundamental questions need to be looked in especially for Christians because it is a matter of not only avoiding sin but also saving our souls. “The Devil is prowling like a roaring lion.

He uses innumerable tricks to deceive us” warned St. Peter (1Pt 5:8). St. Paul said “Everything is permissible for us, but not everything is helpful” (1 Cor 6:12).

Questions to ponder are: am I addicted to internet? If so what is my life? How has the Smartphone changed my life? What happens to me when I am addicted to constant pictures and videos? As a Christian how should I behave online? What does God expect of me while I am

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online? “How can I love God with all my heart, soul, mind and strength while using Facebook, Twitter or Whatsapp?” Is my use of the internet and social media leading me into sin? Have I made social media my God? Am I wasting my time on social media? Do I value my online friends more than real-life relationships? Do I use Facebook to augment my self-esteem? Am I looking to be popular by constantly posting on Facebook? Am I becoming discontented in life when there is no net connection? Do I feel sad when others get more likes on Facebook than me? Do I take part in unwholesome comments online? Do I use Facebook and Whatsapp to spoil someone’s reputation? (Prov 10:19–21; 17:27) The Bible invites us to be light of the world, (Jn 8:12) do I present myself as light of the world through what I post, tweet, text and email?

David Owens commenting on cyber talk quotes the study of Dr. Douglas Groothuis. Dr. Groothuis a Professor of Philosophy at Denver

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Seminary has been tracking the impact of the Internet on the spiritual life since 1997. He published his findings in his book “The Soul in Cyberspace”. Dr. Groothuis is of the opinion that “We are becoming what we behold.” In other words to worship an idol is to become like the idol; to worship Christ is to become like Christ. The Bible says “But their idols are silver and gold, made by the hands of men…Those who make them will be like them and so will all who trust in them” (Ps 115:4-8). Rom 12:2 says: “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind”.

Indian mentality worships idols. What we behold with all our heart and mind and time, we worship. This with time shapes our personality. Internet pornography and sensuality have negative effects on a married couple’s sexual life. Men want to experiment various methods of pleasure with their wives after watching the porn videos. As a result the woman is treated like an object of pleasure and

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the sacredness of one flesh is sacrificed at the altar of pleasure. Online infidelity is rampant.

Therefore as Christians we need to protect ourselves from all sorts of online temptations.

Our Bible warns us about sexual purity, “Dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God”. (2 Cor. 7:1).

The second observation made by Dr. Groothuis is regarding our relationships. Our digital interactions with one another, which are often brief and superficial, begin to pattern all our relationships. He says, “The way we interact online becomes the norm for how we interact offline”. Facebook, Twitter and Whatsapp communications are short and rapid. And that is not a way to converse with others. We begin to lose human touch. We gradually become impatient. We don’t like to listen for long. We tend to prefer to call or message rather than to visit. We tend to give appointments to others on phone rather than in person. This is a dangerous trend. Even though being humans we may end up behaving like robots.

The third way the social media is changing us is: “We are ignoring our finiteness” writes David Owens again quoting the study of Dr. Groothuis. Fundamentally, we are finite individuals – meaning we are limited in what we can know. Yet social media offers us everything new: news, videos, music, pictures, and updates. Smart phones help us to remain connected all the time. We don’t want to miss anything online. We don’t want to feel left out or outdated. We have fear of being left out.

Steadily we lose a sense of our limitations, and we begin lusting after the forbidden fruit of limitless knowledge, to be like God. We need to embrace our humanness and finiteness. We

cannot live in a fool’s paradise. No technology will ever be able to make us supermen. We will die one day. So as we live our human Christian life let’s follow Paul’s instructions: “Be very careful, then, how you live--not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil”. (Eph. 5:15-16) The fourth way the social media is changing us is: “We are multitasking what should be unitasked.” That’s why Dr. Groothuis prohibits his students from using phones and laptops in his classes. “We attempt to multitask everything, trying to think in two directions at the same time, trying to be in two places at the same time, trying to live in physical space and virtual space simultaneously” says David Owens. This is very much true. When we chat on Whatsapp or Facebook, we chat with more than one person at a time. In the bargain we forget the full chatting conversation with that person. When we go to restaurants it is sad to see so many people having their heads down busy with their smart phones. You give importance to someone who is thousands of miles away but your very neighbor is forgotten. When we are online we know history of Hollywood and Bollywood but not about our parish, especially in the cities we even do not know the name of the parish priest.

The fifth way the social media is changing us is we miss the truth and we miss the joy. St. John writes; “Having many things to write unto you, I would not write with paper and ink; but I trust to come unto you and speak face to face, that our joy may be full” (2 John 12). Being with the person physically definitely gives more joy than talking or chatting with the same person on phone. A Smartphone no matter how smart cannot replace the human presence. Visiting

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and speaking with your aged parents is much more fulfilling than calling them regularly on the phone. Spending time with your children is much more satisfying than calling them from the office. Meaningful relationships give joy. Technology no matter how exciting will fade one day for it cannot feel like the humans.

Dr. Groothuis says: “As Neil Postman suggested, communications technology, like email, is ghostto-ghost more than person-to-person. There is something of us in an email, but there’s more to our personhood that doesn’t get sent”.

to fresh and exciting news and videos do get bored in the church. Some are found even using mobiles during mass. Our Bible says “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them” (Mt 18:20). Can we say that the Lord is present on Facebook and Whatsapp? We don’t get together on social media in His name, we don’t get together on social media to worship Him. So the Lord is missing. The Church, the body of Christ needs to meet together to weep with those who weep and laugh with those who laugh (Rom 12:15).

It seems 7% of communication is based on the written or verbal word and 93% is based on nonverbal body language. In other words we understand the truth better by the tone of the voice, by the look into the eyes and by our body language. To prove the point David Owens cites an incident. In October 2015 a lady named Sharon Seline exchanged text messages with her daughter who was in college. They “chatted” back and forth, mom asking how things were going on and daughter answering with positive statements followed by emoticons showing smiles, big smiles and hearts. Later that night, her daughter attempted suicide. The following days it came to light that she’d been holed up in her dorm room, crying and showing signs of depression – a completely different reality from the one that she conveyed in texts, tweets and Facebook posts.

Conclusion: “Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31). When you are online whether watching videos or sending texts, whether browsing or downloading do everything for the greater glory of God. The writer is a Franciscan Capuchin priest of Goa Province based at Shanti Niwas Cuncolim, Goa. He has authored six books and gives motivational talks and retreats.

Last but not the least, addiction to social media makes us lose interest in the Church services and church activities.

Forget about daily mass they even resist participating in the Sunday mass. Those addicted to social media, internet speed,

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MY SOCIAL MEDIA LIFE Bro. Aliester D’Souza SDB

#DigitalFootprints In Leaps and Bounds!

“Smart phones and social media expand our universe. We can connect with others or collect information easier and faster than ever.” Daniel Goleman “We are drowning in information while starving for wisdom.” E.O. Wilson If it was the goodness of God to infuse the social nature into humanity, it has also been the greatness of humanity t o infuse the same into media.

Our social nature keeps us close to our family, friends and associates by dialogue, expression and confrontation, and perhaps media in its most social aspect shrinks the confines of spatial realities like cities, countries and continents, and makes the world seem no bigger than a village. We have defeated space and time as we have united ourselves through interest, passion and desire. Ah! Yet another major revolution since the first turn of the wheel!

All through the years, the eras of communication saw society centred on the ones who possessed and

conveyed knowledge. When the culture was primordial and transmission of heritage was oral, clan elders were at the centre of communication. As writing took over, those in possession of scrolls, tablets or other written matter – mainly religious and political leaders – were centre stage as they were the facilitators of wisdom. With the invention of the printing press, intellectuals could spread their ideas to a wider audience and so this was t h e age of philosophers, writers, scientists, inventors, dramatists and so on. With the advent of the television and other related mass media, entertainers – actors, musicians and sports persons – took the dais. Thus far the audience have been just silent spectators even as the mediators of information underwent radical changes at the turn of each era. This is the key to understanding why social media has become the lounge and lobby where young and old congregate.

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Social media provides the individual the opportunity to

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carve a niche in the midst of the hustle and bustle around which no other form of media has so readily, lavishly and inexpensively provided. We are thus empowered to display who we are and what we do – to trumpet ourselves – and consequently gain acknowledgement. All the more, it is in this form of media that the individual is the centre of the world. You tweet what you think, post what you feel, share what you like and develop your virtual persona as you want to. In doing so you design your virtual home and invite others to come and have a feel of the wonder of you. Social media has given us the podium to showcase our talent, express our thoughts and manifest ourselves.

We are confused in the appreciation of social media.

Perhaps it was an option some years ago about our involvement into it but today, while it still remains an option, it is no longer desirable to stay away from social media. In my opinion, not getting involved because of the very many apparent “vices” is not smartness but a failure to walk with the changing time and adapt to the present situation. This would distance ourselves from the trends of the majority of humanity.

Rather, it would be much rewarding and much fulfilling if we are governed by right “ethics” in the use of social media. As Erik Qualman puts it: “We don’t have a choice on whether we do social media, the question is how well we do it.”

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What I would like to share are three guidelines that have evolved out of my little experience on social media.

Firstly, our virtual persona reflects our character. “Every time we post a photo or upgrade our status, we leave our digital footprint,” says Amy Jo Martin. How we behave online is a clear indication of our thoughts, inclinations and upbringing. Therefore, we ought to take care of what we share, comment and like on social media. Let us not resort or respond to trolling. We need to be a gentle person online respecting one and all for what they believe in. It is unfortunate to see that inter-national, inter-communal and inter-religious hatred is promoted and many of us fall prey to such discord. We could instead challenge ourselves to portray goodness. Let us show the world its beauty through our creativity rather than divide society on the basis of imprudent, negative and derogatory ideologies.

Secondly, we should use social media as a means of educating and being educated. There is so much knowledge given so easy access like never before. We can so easily search for and find information without going through the arduousness of manually perusing through literary material. Being educated also entails that we be critical about the content we read. We ought to stand as leaders and not be led like sheep. We don’t have to go about

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distributing ‘likes’ and superficial one-wordcomments at first glance but more often check if the content is really worth liking. Friendship should not be the determining factor for social media appreciation. Furthermore, social media turns into a circus when jokes, humour and entertainment cross limits. Can we share knowledge, information or talent which would be productive and enhancing society?

Finally, we ought to spend more time in the real world and lesser in the virtual. Let it not be a refuge against the aches and cares of the world. We gain our recognition as social beings not by the number of followers and friends online but in our ability to look in line with reality manifested at home, at work or at school. Let us examine if the virtual world is real in its expression of reality. Aren’t we at times, if not most of the time, superficial about our feelings? How hard do we try to ape others in the content we post regardless of its factual and situational relevance? Aren’t we concealing our true selves behind pretentious pouts, senile smiles and photoshopped pictures?

Social media, like ideologies, gets credibility only when it is grounded upon reality.

“Like all technology, social media is neutral but is best put to work in the service of building a better world,” says Simon Mainwaring.

And this is exactly what I choose to believe. I appreciate the goodness of social media and I believe that it brings the world closer and makes life happier. Only when we are driven by the desire to be liked or wowed, we become narcissistic. And that is when we cease being social. If the only concern of my social media content is I, me and myself, then the mirror is the right place for me. I am on social media not to boast of myself but to appreciate my uniqueness and the diversity of humanity.

Let me end with a little prayer…

Dear Lord, help me not use social media, a virtual reality, to estimate my self-worth which is grounded in your image, perfectly real. …and an anonymous comment: Your worth is not measured in likes, comments, notes or followers; but the ability to love, keep comments to yourself, take note and lead.

Aliester is a Salesian Brother of Mumbai province doing his particular formation in Philippines.

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TIPS FOR ELDERS Dr Nandita de Souza

Social Me

Understanding the Bonds between Youth & Social Media

Just like a tree needs soil to thrive, many youth will emphatically claim that social media serves the same purpose in their growth.

There is no doubt that social media is a rich field - this can be of explosive landmines or blooming flowers!

The popularity of social media has grown in leaps and bounds, driving technology and business trends, as new forms keep getting added (for example, Snapchat, Tumblr and Kik).

Parents and teachers often feel desperate as it appears that social media is a rocket careening out of control. And to those of us who were introduced to this field close to middle age, understanding the technology behind it, is rocket science.

The adolescent brain is easily influenced by social media and functional MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) studies have shown that the reward centre in the brain lights up

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when a young person sees a large number of ‘likes’ they receive on their Facebook posts.

This can explain why teenagers love being online. Unfortunately, the prefrontal cortex of the brain, where the executive functions like impulse control, problem solving and reasoning reside, fully develops only around 25 years. Therefore young people can be unduly influenced by online content, make poor decisions and act in silly, unreasonable and even dangerous ways. The recent spate of suicides attributed to the Blue Whale Game, an online challenge that requires people to complete a series of 50 increasingly horrific tasks, ending in suicide, is an example of how social media can have tragic consequences.

However not all is gloom and doom. The good effects of social media should not be ignored and can be summarised into three ‘I’s 1) Information - The internet has changed the world of learning and social media is a great source of information on every topic under the sun (including the sun itself!). At least something about anything is available at the click of a mouse. Online communities and Facebook groups grow this information and provide a social learning platform, which is much richer and does not require one to leave their home. One can always argue that engagement with social media improves

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our reading and writing skills (barring ‘sms spelling’!)

2) Interaction - Most youth love social media and are happy to interact through this channel. For parents and teachers, it is a great opportunity to form a connection with our children or students. Chatting on social media is definitely easier than talking face to face, where the ground for arguments, emotional reactions and sullen silence is fertile. For parents who bemoan the fact that their teenager or adult child never talks to them, becoming friends on Facebook is an option!

3) Influence - Social media is a ready route for activism, political involvement, career advancement and personal growth. Online petitions can ignite an interest in social causes like caring for the environment or fighting for better roads. It could be the start of a more active role in community matters. Your teenager eats inordinate amounts of junk food and spends all her time sprawled in front of the TV? Send her links to websites or infographics that give information about a nutritious diet and healthy lifestyle. We have better chances of influencing our children positively through sharing information online, rather than by raising our voices and tempers.

truth is that social media can create a false sense of security. Getting along with others is one of the most important tasks of adulthood, especially when we have to fend for ourselves.

Our social networks are protective. However frequent face to face interactions, spending time together, negotiating conflict, being able to make compromises and accepting differences are necessary to build our social skills. It cannot happen if our only friendships are online.

2) Intimidation - Cyberbullying is a real and present danger of social media, which has resulted in devastating consequences. Since the internet allows one to post material that is easily accessible to literally the whole world, much more damage can be done to reputations and self esteem through this route. Children who have poor real life social skills and lack an ‘offline’ support group of friends are more likely to be seriously affected by cyber bullying.

Sexual abuse by online predators is a threat and unsuspecting children can get lured and trapped into this most unfortunate crime.

3) Inappropriate content - This is possibly one of the greatest fears of parents, who often are

This article would be incomplete without highlighting some of the harmful effects of social media and how we can minimise them. Here too we can group these ill-effects into three “I”s 1) Isolation - It is easy to believe that because we have 1000 friends on Facebook, our social life is vibrant. The 18 SANGATI

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not tech savvy and wonder what their children are doing in front of their computers. Violence and sexual content are freely available online.

Sexting - sending sexual messages or images via the phone and internet - is gaining popularity among the youth, as accessibility to the internet and smart phones increases among young children who have not yet developed critical thinking skills nor been provided with proper safety education in the use of these devices.

Since the internet and social media are here to stay, is protecting our children a lost cause?

Certainly not! There is much that can be done.

1) Education - information is power and safety education is imperative before children go online or create a Facebook page. Parents and teachers have to be educated about the technology first and then discuss, discuss, discuss the issues with their children rather than just use fear tactics. Parents must find ways to monitor their teenagers online presence and not just keep a watch on who their friends are, but also what they are posting and viewing.

and calmness even when mistakes are made.

4) Promote digital citizenship - We cannot ban the internet and social media in order to keep children safe and there is no readily available rulebook that covers every potentially dangerous online situation. However, in all our schools and homes, adults should help children and youth understand the terrain of social media, use it with care and conscience, maximise its benefits and learn how to selfprotect.

By making the effort to learn about social media, taking an active interest in our children’s online lives and participating in it in a positive manner, we can create a safety ‘internet’ under every child!

Dr Nandita is a Developmental and Behavioural Pediatrician.

She is the director of Sethu Child Development Centre, Panjim, Goa.

2) Legal implications - Children must know the laws around the use of the internet, sexting and child protection, so that in the desire to ‘just have some fun’, they do not end up breaking the law.

3) Protection of children - Should a child experience any of the harmful effects of social media, they need guidance, unconditional support and counselling. Children are still children and even after being given the information, may not use it to make wise decisions to keep themselves safe. Therefore they should be treated with respect, compassion

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NOMOPHOBIA Diana Charles

Your Brain on For the uninitiated, Social networking sites or SNS for short are basically Facebook, Whatsapp, Snapchat, Instagram and other such similar sites. In the last ten years, SNS has become a widely spread sensation that has literally taken the world by storm and that is no gross exaggeration.

Nomophobia is a term that was coined in the 2010. The term is an abbreviation for “nomobile-phone phobia”. It was part of a study of a research organization, to look at anxieties suffered by mobile phone users. The study found that nearly 53 percent of mobile phone users in Britain tend to be anxious when they “lose their mobile phone, run out of battery or credit, or have no network coverage.” That number keeps rising sharply and it cuts across race, colour and creed all across the world.

• Two in three people confessed that they

sleep with or next to their smart phones. With college students, it’s even higher.

• Teenagers when asked what their most prized possession was, said it was their phones.

• More than 70% said they never switch off their phone.

• More than 75% said it was the first thing they checked in the morning when they woke up.

Most people use their phones to access SNS these days as compared to using it for phone calls. Not only are the numbers of users growing at a very fast rate, the amount of time that people spend on these sites is also increasing day by day. Teenagers walk around with their phones in their hands, checking it at every little beep as if their very life depended on it.

Keeping in touch is no longer about face to face, but instead screen to screen, highlighted by the fact that more than 1.5 billion people are on Facebook and more than 1 billion have confessed to using it everyday.

Social media has become such a commonplace part of modern existence that few of us have even stopped to think of the reasons behind why

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we’re so drawn to it, what it’s really doing to our brains and the impact/consequences of our growing fixation.

In a recent study, researchers at a brain mapping centre used an MRI scanner to image the brains of 32 teenagers as they used a social media app that resembled Instagram.

The team found certain areas of the brain lit up when the user responded to the ‘likes’ on their posts. This is the same group of regions in the brain which gets activated when we see pictures of a person we love or when we win at something.

Each time we receive a notification or a “like” on social media, the pleasure areas of the brain,lights up to give us a sense of gratification which goes a long way to explain why social media is so appealing and why it can become all-consuming. The danger, explains Michael, is that people are opting for this online gratification at the expense of the real world. How often have we seen people sitting in a restaurant together with everyone on their phones or family members all on their own phones, smiling at i t or feverishly forwarding the latest joke or rant.

Even contact between two people, the most intimate thing in the world, takes a back seat because people get their dopamine fix from ‘friends’ liking’ them, rather than cuddling the person sitting right next to them.

Social media is affecting our brain, particularly its plasticity, which is the way the brain grows and changes after experiencing different things. Whenever we learn something new or experience something, it’s encoded in our brain by infinitesimal changes in the strength of connections between the neurons.

Social media has been found to bring on some negative emotions as well from users. Studies on social networking have found that one in three people surveyed felt worse – either lonely, angry or discouraged after spending time on Facebook or Instagram, often due to feeling inadequate when comparing their lives to those of their friends. Teenagers especially feel they have to show themselves in the best possible light. Many do not realise that their own peers are going through the exactly the same angst of trying to keep up with the Joneses and this whole cycle of deceit does not get them anywhere.

There was this joke going around- Switch the WIFI off in your home and wait next to it, if you want to call a family meeting quickly. But, is it really a joke when it is the reality of today?

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Social media according to a S t a n f o r d study is also affecting our ability to multitask. They call it the 17 screen syndrome. Students are finding it difficult (continued on pg 23)

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ACCEPTING ONESELF Neil Fernandes SDB

Real Me v/s

Online Me

“Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the fairest of us all?”

In the fairy tale, ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarves,’ the wicked queen poses this question to the magical mirror. The mirror’s reply awakened the monster in her and caused her to be furious and determined to get rid of Snow White. Who wouldn’t get so furious? We all want to be praised for our beauty. We, too, turn to our mirrors on the wall – Facebook, Watsapp, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, etc. But then, we see other youngsters who look more pretty and charming and we get furious. We hide this emotion behind the trendy comments, “Oh! What a pretty dress!” or “What an awesome bike!”

But, we want to get back and prove that we too are awesome, so we end up doing something marvelous.

We create a ‘Twin.’

Social media has offered us many things – a platform to share our thoughts and experiences, an opportunity to communicate with our loved ones, a reminder of our friends’

birthdays, countless memes and the list goes on. On the flipside, it has also given us the uncanny ability to become another person online. This is the ‘twin’ that we create.

Our habits define us. But how true is this for our online habits? Are we the same online and offline? In real life I may be a sour loser, but online, I’m a star, a celebrity, a winner of hearts. It is almost impossible to maintain a façade in reality. But, social media helps us to overcome this obstacle by gifting us the possibility of creating our ‘Twin,’ a counterfeit profile of ourselves, which we broadcast to other people.

The characteristics of our ‘Twin’ are easier to falsify and the bluff is less demanding to sustain.

Living with our online identities, we are free to redefine and express ourselves as we wish. These identities can be used for a multitude of purposes. But, the most commonly used purpose is to escape the constrictions of one’s

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real-life identity. Most internet users insist that their online identity reflects, more accurately, their “true selves” than their real-life identity, even if the online identity is with completely diverse personality characteristics. Another purpose may be to get satisfaction and selfconfidence from the admiration one receives with regard to good appearance or high quality of life, which one is not able to own in real life.

“The online identity is recursive, exciting, unpredictable, self-created and ongoing. The ‘reallife’ identity is discarded and a disappointment.”

–Crawford.

The above quote supports the trend that, rather than reinforcing one’s existing identity with an online presence, people are replacing aspects of the former by creating a separate identity online. Such a trend can create havoc in one’s life with the online identity becoming

(continued from pg 21)

to submit assignments worthy of reading. They have their Facebook, Snapchat, Messenger open and maybe even a video game going.

While they’re instant messaging, watching TV and reading a newsfeed on their tab, they are trying to do their work too. If you throw too much at your brain, it is only natural that it rebels and shuts down. There is a limit to the amount of multitasking that any brain can do.

So what should we do to model a balanced approach?

• Fix certain times of the day where you turn your cell phone off and experience either a Me time or face to face conversations with friends and family.

• For every hour that you spend in front of any

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completely disjointed. This creates another problem – if an individual spends a lot of time ‘living’ within his\her online identity, he\she can become obsessed and may end up believing that the online identity is, in fact, real. The person’s character, identity and relationships are all based on fantasy. “If you have not what you like, you must like what you have.”

Finally, it all comes to accepting yourself as you are. We need to know, as Thomas Merton used to say, “Our True Selves.” We are all made unique and therefore we must not be ashamed of our uniqueness and live our dreams with an online identity, but instead be proud of our uniqueness and turn our real lives into our dreams in our own unique way.

Neil is a Salesian studying at Divyadaan, a Salesian Philosophy Institute in Nashik.

kind of screen, spend the same time investing in a human relationship- face to face, ie.

Once in a month go on a technology fast… give up your phone and laptop for the whole day.

Go for a walk, commune with Nature. See how wonderful it makes you feel.

• Do not keep your phone by your bedside.

Turn it off at least two hours before you go to bed so that you get a good night’s rest.

• Spend a few minutes each morning giving thanks, meditating, praying or just looking out at the sunrise before you get your morning fix of your SNS sites.

Your brain will soon reward you in many ways for looking after it.

Diana is an ex-principal and a freelance journalist.

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EXCITING TIMES Tony da Silva SJ

Social Media

The 21st Century Playground of the Young The creation of the digital world of Information Technology (IT) in the closing decades of the 20th century, spawned yet another digital offspring in the 21st century, called the “Social Media” revolution. The sudden appearance of the palm-sized mobile phone powered by the miniaturized computer chip gave users a powerful hand-held tool for communication.

Users, young and old are dazzled by the magical digital possibilities of reaching out to others or being reached by others. Thus, social media took off like wildfire and became instantly the new electronic playground of the 21st century. In fact, the phrase “social media” first came into use only as recently as 2004!

The uniqueness of social media in contrast to traditional media (radio, TV and newspapers) is that it is a twoway process, it is an interactive m e d i a ; traditional media is more limited and is a one-way communication medium.

Hence, the immense popularity of social media. The interactive quality of social media makes communication a lively social event, where the giver as well as the receiver of messages can react spontaneously and instantaneously. Such social communication has multiple benefits, like building virtual communities, strengthening interpersonal and group relationships, raising awareness of social issues etc.

What is Social Media?

Social media is a form of online electronic communication using a variety of platforms or social networking sites (Facebook, Whatsapp, Twitter, Myspace, LinkedIn etc.).

FI VE BENEFI TS OF SOCI AL MEDI A 1. Strengthens friendship and trust Thanks to the speedy nature of social media communication, friendships can be built more rapidly and with diverse groups. The

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“instant” receive and reply facility puts people within easy striking distance for starting and strengthening relationships. The increase in mutually satisfying messages, improves the climate of trust and feelings of well-being; this in turn releases positive energies and emotions for personal growth and online friendships.

2. Encourages Creativity Thanks to a general sense of openness and lack of censorship, users experience greater spontaneity and freedom in communication.

They can package their messages creatively and often with a minimum of formality, unlike traditional letters. Furthermore, the emphasis is not on style or even on the fine points of grammar, but rather on the message and its value to the relationship. Also, social media need not be restricted to verbal content alone, but is easily extended to audio and visual images as well. Such content is often highly creative and enriches social relationships.

3. Teaches Team-work Since social media is characterized by connectivity and speed, it becomes the superhighway for connecting people of diverse cultures, locations, educational backgrounds, genders, nationalities etc. Suddenly teamwork can become a reality. People with similar interests, hobbies, expertise etc. can become talking partners as well as action-oriented facilitators and

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enablers. The technology of social media has the unique ability to attract the like-minded as well as the unlike-minded to collaborate on meaningful and mutually beneficial projects.

4. Boosts self-confidence Since team work is ultimately driven by individual performance, the self-confidence of individuals becomes a key ingredient for the success of team work. Social media tends to increase self-confidence because individuals develop the ability to sell their ideas and projects to competitive players. Good listening and successful negotiation skills also give a great boost to the self-confidence of social media users.

5. Explores new relationships Since social media facilitates interaction between known and unknown users, often new relationships evolve. Users get to know one another “virtually” through frequent exchanges of social messages. Such new friends may be just a click away and readily accessible. These new relationships may also lead to exploring new ideas and new modes of thinking. These in turn broaden one’s outlook on life and may lead to a greater tolerance of diverse people and cultures. In a way social media open up a whole new world of potential friendships which may not have been possible except in the physical world.

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FI VE CH ALLENGES OF SOCI AL MEDI A 1. Decreases face-to-face communication Excessive dependence on social media for friends and communication can make people feel awkward and ill at ease in face-to-face encounters. They find it difficult to verbalize thoughts or emotions without the aid of the habitual keyboard. Furthermore, not seeing the other lowers inhibitions and excuses more easily harsh or even mean messaging.

2. Lacks emotional connectivity Since communication in the social media is through technology and machines, users run the danger of not being able to connect with the emotions of the messengers involved in social media. Words or strings of sentences devoid of emotion fail to convey the feelings and true meaning of the authors.

3. Licenses bullying and verbal violence Since in social media one’s identity need not be fully revealed, users become more vulnerable to cyber bullying and verbal violence. The anonymity available to social media users can be easily misused to pursue an agenda of revenge or verbal abuse. Intimidation of those holding differing views or supporting causes

or ideologies different from one’s own is not uncommon in social media.

4. Distracts from home-work A frequent complaint of parents and teachers are that children tend to get carried away with social media attractions to the detriment of their school work and other regular assignments. Given the digital dazzle on social media screens it is an uphill battle for many youth to disengage from phones and other digital toys in order to pursue loftier or more urgent tasks at hand. Also, concentration on such tasks tends to wane rapidly and their completion neglected. Thus a certain laziness and lack of focus is likely to become a byproduct of excessive social media involvement.

5. Tends to make family distant Social media behaviours such as texting, reading messages, watching videos etc. tend to pull users away from family activities such as watching movies together, sharing a common meal or visiting with friends or relations.

Conclusion While there is no denying that social media and social networking are the future modes of human communication, technology alone cannot and should not be permitted to drive the way humans communicate; human values of care, compassion, love and respect have also to shape human progress in the 21st century. Parents and older adults are encouraged to explore and discover the excitement of social media together with their children and younger people.

The writer is a Jesuit priest and works at Xavier Centre, Porvorim, Goa.

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TOMORROW’S SCHOOLS Nirmala Rebello

Kids Living

and

Someone once jokingly categorized Computer/ Media savvy persons of this decade as ‘Natives’, ‘Immigrants’ and ‘Idiots’!! I leave you, the readers, to interpret the latter two categories, while I concentrate on the ‘Natives’ – the ‘Smart’ young ones, who seem to be born with a ‘Mouse’ in their hands, even if they do not have a silver spoon their mouths!

My husband and I were waiting at Vasco station for our train to Bangalore, along with a young couple and their two year old daughter, whom they were trying to feed an unappetizing mixture, which was evidently her lunch. The little girl spat out more than she swallowed and the parents were getting quite upset. Just when I thought of trying to help by distracting the child, the parents produced a ‘Smart’ phone and handed it over to her.

What happened next was very interesting and a bit disturbing: the little girl proceeded to operate the phone quite expertly and even produced

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Learning with Media a song that she knew exactly how to access!

The lunch then went down the hatch without any further protest. Many of you will find this story or variations of it, familiar…

‘Media’ today is a word used almost like a mantra, covering a wide spectrum of tools and techniques for mass communication, under the umbrella of ‘Social Media.’ Apart from the good old print media, radio and television, which are still very relevant, we have New Media, which includes digital and online communication, which have become pervasive in the lives of our youth. Social networking sites, online games, video-sharing sites, gadgets such as iPods, iPads and an amazing variety of mobile phones are now fixtures of youth culture.

They have so permeated young lives that it is hard to believe that less than a decade ago these technologies had barely registered in the daily routine of children and teens.

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Near-instant communication has come to be synonymous with the millenials and its outcomes are often very useful, sometimes mischievous and at times just plain evil! In an age where kids are living with media and its inherent pleasures and perils, for Parents and Teachers and indeed for society as a whole, each day brings with it new marvels, new challenges and new dangers.

There is no doubt that learning with media has changed the traditional perception of Educational transactions. Young people’s participation in the networked world suggests new ways of thinking about the role of education. What would it mean to really exploit the potential of the learning opportunities available through online resources and networks? Rather than assuming that education is primarily about preparing for jobs and careers, what would it mean to think of it as a process, guiding the youth’s participation in public life more generally?

The digital world is creating new opportunities for youth to grapple with social norms, explore interests, develop technical skills, and experiment with new forms of self-expression. To stay relevant in the 21st century, educational institutions need to keep pace with the rapid changes introduced by digital media. Young people’s participation in this networked world suggests new ways of thinking about the role of education. ‘Smart’ classrooms, a wealth of instructional material available on the net, ‘Apps’ for a variety of operations and

information on call, which has added a new word to the modern Dictionary in the form of ‘Google’, make it imperative for educationists at every level to integrate the tools and techniques of Information Communication Technology ICT – into daily educational transactions.

To all Parents, Teachers, Mentors and Community workers I would say with conviction: ‘If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrow’ – John Dewey. We are not just Teachers; we are managers of the world’s greatest resource: Children. While we have our reservations about the influence of Media on our youngsters, we must live with the reality that its impact will only increase as time goes by. If we want to be relevant and effective, we need to combine Information Technology with Inspiring Teamwork and make the Media work for us. Today, more than at any other time in the past, we must recognize the importance of Benjamin Franklin’s advice: “Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.”

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Nirmala is an ex-principal, presently a staff of Don Bosco Konkan Development Society.

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POPULARITY CRAZE Ethan Fortes

The Third Wave Social Media In 1980, Alvin Toffler published The Third Wave. He believed that there were three waves that changed the way the world thought: The age of agricultural society, the Industrial age and the age of Information society. The first wave occurred when the hunter-gatherer cultures settled to begin the agricultural society. The second wave began in Western Europe with the Industrial Revolution and then spread across the world. The Third Wave is the post-industrial society which Toffler calls the Information Age. The Third Wave began with the invention of

the Internet and spread across the world like wild fire. The most prominent feature in the

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Third Wave is social media. The invention of the Internet has brought about a whole new culture with post-cards becoming chat heads, letters becoming emails and the development of our vocabulary. Earlier, our source of information was the beloved newspaper. But, that too has changed! Our new source of information is Social Media. Our minds have become so inactive that we believe whatever we see without verifying the source.

With the introduction of social media, our attitude has changed. Each one of us wants to be in the spotlight and so our goal is to be a celebrity. This leads to ‘Social Wars’ where each one of us competes with the other for popularity. This leads us to believe that ‘I can do any and everything while others have to look to me as a role model’.

Because of this, we soon get addicted to social media so much so that we wait to see how we can outclass another. It develops a self-centred attitude and leads us to be proud rather than humble. We start worrying about things that will benefit us rather than seeing how it will inspire others.

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Our popularity in social media is determined by the ‘likes’ we get. So, we try our best to seek appreciation from others through the number of ‘likes’ we get on Facebook. Due to this, we don’t seek to inspire people but rather receive praise from them. Why do we determine our lives based on the number of ‘likes’ we get?

We are our best judge and so we don’t need to hunger for ‘likes’ or hunt for appreciation. But rather we must be an inspiration to others with our simple way of life.

We become popular also with the number of followers we have. Look at all the famous celebrities! Every one of them have lacs of followers. Do we follow them to know how they live their lives? We have a life of our own

to live. Let the celebrities live their own lives.

By following them, we only make them our role models. But how do we know that they live a life that is inspiring. What they project in social media is their reel life not their real life.

It is better to follow ‘The Perfect Being’ rather than people who live dual lives.

In conclusion, it is best to say that social media is both a boon and a curse to our generation.

Prudence in usage can make it a boon whereas addiction makes it a curse. Let us start working our minds before believing everything we see.

And lastly, let us realize that each one of us is unique. Instead of competing with one another, live lives that can inspire others.

Ethan is a novice at the Salesian Training Institute in Nashik.

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SANGATI Bulletin

Name: Date: Address: City: State: Pincode: Contact No:Landline Mobile: Email: Editor - Sangati Bulletin Boskon Communications Don Bosco Provincial House Odxel, Goa University P.O. Goa 403206 Ph:0832 2451449 Email: sangatidonbosco@gmail.com

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Cheque favouring Goa Salesian Society DONATE/SUBSCRIBE Online Visit for details www.donboscopanjim.com

July - Sept 2017

FACING THE SCREEN Charlene Farrell

(Anti)

Social Networking

Everywhere we look, we see bent heads, glued to a luminous glow. Every time we sleep, we can’t help but search around in the dark till we find the source of that tiny flashing glow that signals a message or alert of some kind.

The world of social networking has taken over our lives, so much so, that we tend to check our devices more often during a day than anything else we would ever engage in. The term social networking is defined as ‘The use of dedicated website and applications to interact with other users, or to find people with similar interests to one’s own’. A very reasonable definition for a great invention.

We as humans took this gift and turned it into something else completely. Not so long ago, Leo Szilard, the legally recognised inventor of the atomic bomb, also chanced upon the opportunity to change the world in ways

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one would only imagine. How did we use the great discovery? We used it to DESTROY… One might wonder about the connection between the Atomic bomb and social media.

The answer lies in the fact that it isn’t always the invention or the inventor, but how as humans we use these great creations. ‘Social Networking’ has a number of great uses. We can find p e o p l e we had lost touch with and rekindle old relationships, w e can get in contact with likeminded people and learn a thing or two about the world around us, we can network strategically and put our businesses on the map, free advertising, gearing people up to fight for a great social cause, connecting people the world over and uniting this big beautiful planet; being only a few of the many boons.

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There is however, a flipside.

Let’s begin with the fact that social

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networking has in fact made us a very antisocial generation. We see people out in groups constantly reaching for their phones, every other minute we hear the ping notifying us of some urgent and most of the time not so urgent message. We see couples whose romantic dates, do not entail lingering glances into each other’s eyes but lingering glances directed to their phones strategically placed on the table. I went down for a walk a few days ago, another very rare occurrence, considering that I too am a partaker in the so called social networking craze, and was amazed to see children who were apparently down playing. All had their mobile phones out and were actually chatting with each other. Maintaining eye contact has now become increasingly difficult and when we do speak we feel extremely odd looking into eyes rather than an attractive screen.

poke and send a birthday greeting to; when we do meet them in person, we hardly utter a word. Sometimes even a hello is difficult.

Many of us rave about having thousands of friends on Facebook. What we don’t pay attention to is the fact that we seldom speak to those same friends in person. People whose lives and statuses we comment on and like all d a y , people we

Let’s make a change and network face to face rather than face to screen.

Another less talked about negative is ‘Depression’. As social network users, we tend to follow and like posts and pictures our friends put up. With this practice we sometimes also feel slight pangs of jealousy and envy when we see our friends enjoying a wonderful holiday in some beautiful place or enjoying a fun filled weekend while we are sitting home with nothing to do besides watching television.

What we do not realise is, people share their fun times but deal with their problems away from the public eye. We only see the perfection in their lives and look with disdain at our own.

To combat feeling low, we can engage ourselves in the wonders of human contact!

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Charlene is a counsellor and a teacher; she writes for ‘the Goan’.

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SCREEN MODE Joanne D’Souza

LIFE on the SCREEN Ask yourself ‘when you wake up what is the first thing you do? Check your phone? Now ask yourself again: ‘Before going to sleep what is the last thing to do? Again check your phone?

You have undoubtedly answered yes and yes.

Have you ever waited to eat a meal because you needed the perfect Snapchat or Instagram post? In the rare case that you haven’t, there’s a very high chance that you know someone who does put their life on hold for the perfect post.

With the development of a new smart phone every month it is no secret that the power of social media has grown dramatically in a short span of time. Our phones have attached themselves like a third limb to our bodies as our never-ending craving for more Facebook “likes”, Twitter “retweets” and Instagram selfies increases how dangerous is our addiction to these sites really becoming?

Remember the good old days when all you needed to get past was prayer time? It seems like nowadays people rely on social media to feel validated about their lives.

Perhaps frighteningly, social media is allowing our self image to become directly linked to our self worth and self esteem.

When people think of social media, it is known to be a revolutionary innovation that allows us to post photos, tell people how we feel or catch up with friends. No doubt the advent of the age of social media has helped us stay connected with friends and family across the world which would have otherwise not been possible.

There are two reasons why social media is responsible for our behaving less genuinely than we do in person. The first reason is to give an appearance that our lives are nothing less than perfect. We are afraid of being judged for the realities of our lives. The second reason is the more you involve yourself with social media, the more you might grasp the fact that you have less tolerance for people.

The problem social media platforms have given us is that we hide behind screens, allowing others to judge us for the lives we want them to think we have, the lives we portray online.

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When people begin to “like” and “comment” on our photos, can we trust they truly like what we’re giving them, or they want us to do the favour back. I’ve had friends discuss how they hate the presence of a certain person in their lives, but when I’ve logged on to some apps, I can see they have like and commented on this person’s photos. Then I get a screenshot of that same photo, with a text saying how much they want to destroy the good times this person is having in their photo. Thus there is duplicity in our behaviour.

If we don’t want people to be honest with us about the way we live, why do we allow them to gain insight to our personal information and everyday endeavours?

Maybe it’s because we want to prove something. We want to show our friends that even though our lives probably aren’t as interesting in real life, maybe we can create something cool online, instead.

Social media is a world. We live through our screens, and many of us feel the need to pretend to do and have whatever we want and wish for. It’s the only place we can escape the realities we portray to our friends and family. Most of us are guilty of this, but we shouldn’t be.

We don’t want our friends to think we’re lonely, so we post photos and statuses that show how much fun we can have. We don’t want anyone to know we eat a lot, so we post photos of artsy salads.

Social media skews our perception of reality.

Being face-to-face with someone is suddenly a change from viewing him or her through a screen. It’s different, and we’re faced with the shock of good old-fashioned communication.

Plus, we don’t go around “liking” each other’s thoughts out loud, but we seem to think its okay to press a button and praise a friend’s status about the anticipation of her unborn baby or an engagement. Do we really care?

If you filter out who you know is fake, kudos to you. To a lot of social media users, it’s easier to be accommodating and sweet through an app.

Most of us don’t have perfect lives.

So why say otherwise online? Maybe because that’s the fun of it too.

The world was easier when we didn’t have to prove anything to anyone. We certainly shouldn’t nowadays, anyway. Social media should be a way to share with your friends how you live, without fear of judgment.

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Social media is addictive and can damage our lives, careers and even relations. The constant comparison with others puts a lot of undue pressure on us and gives unrealistic life expectations and can lead to anxiety and depression. Let us reflect on our lives and think if we are allowing social media usage to dominate and manipulate our lives.

Joanne is a Physiotherapist and an ADMA member.

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STRAIGHT FROM THE HEART Sr Melissa D’Souza FMA

The Most popular As I looked at this topic, I looked at my own Facebook account and thought that it is so good and interesting a subject to write about. If we just open Facebook we get so much of information, but then I thought that getting people’s views on Facebook would be even more interesting.

“Facebook is a means of chatting. I can see posts of my friends and family members who are away from me.

Also most of the kids nowadays use Facebook, so I too want to be like them.” Rahul Sharma (a 9 year old using his mother’s account) “Facebook is a platform where I can make friends. I can like and comment nice things about other people’s posts. I must get maximum likes and comments so that I gain popularity among my friend circle.” Sunita Shah (a 14 year old) “My perspective as a student of class 12 is that children deserve a healthier social networking experience. I think Facebook is an extremely useful social tool for older teens and adults who have cognitive ability and life experience to use the social network responsibly.

I know most children would never seek out the adult content and culture on Facebook, but the fact is, it comes to them. Sadly, Facebook allows these things to go on even though they know children are using their site. There is a need of strong content filtering algorithm. The site is beneficial to personal users who want to stay in touch with friends and business professionals looking for ways to promote their company.” Ramanand Thakur (a 17 year old) “According to me Facebook is an extremely useful

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social platform for people to connect all over the world...

It allows the younger generation to create an identity for themselves...the less social children who don’t have many friends can open up their personal views and express themselves to the world without feeling too vulnerable or exposed. But there is a darker side to Facebook too. Many people are getting so addicted to it that they have stopped socializing with people in their real lives. They’ve created a virtual world for themselves online and have started to judge their self-worth by the number of followers and likes they get, which is absolutely detrimental to our society.”

Tabitha Rosa (a 19 year old) “Facebook helps build connections with people from around the globe but it also leads to addictions which could be harmful. It could be one of the most efficient ways to get the attention of the youth and be used as a tool to spread the Word of God.” Dalyn Fernandes (a 21 year old) “Thanks to Facebook, we can now connect with each other effectively, remember birthdays and share pictures. FB is one of the many social media platforms and if used excessively can defeat the purpose of connecting with others to symptoms of an addiction which can harm us and ultimately destroy us. FB is awesome if used sparingly and thoughtfully.” Leon Rodrigues - (a 22 year old) “Facebook helped me connect once again with many of my old school friends and classmates. Through Facebook, I’ve made friends with people from various parts of the world. Facebook is a wonderful medium for self expression.” Joan Lobo (a 45 year old)

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“Facebook has millions of users and is good for anyone using the same wisely. It is a wonderful way to connect with people whom you have not met for a long time and also to share news or photos. But Facebook is not always trustworthy as some false information or rumours can be spread thus making people upset. In my opinion, if used wisely, Facebook can be is a good means of communication.” Oswald D’Cunha (a 58 year old) “Just as a coin has two sides Facebook is a boon as well as bane. It’s beneficial in a way as we can stay in touch with our beloved ones who often stay miles apart. As a result of this we may tend to give more importance to virtual friends. It helps us to stay updated with the latest news. Too much of Facebook is dangerous. Thus it’s up to us whether we prove it to be a boon or a bane.” Sweta Alvares (a 72 year old) Surprisingly I also received a comment like this one: “Facebook is a pure waste of time. Nothing good comes out of it. You make only virtual friends whom you actually in reality don’t even care if they exist.

The mind gets caught up with Facebook activities and curtails your capacity to concentrate on developing yourself professionally.” Desmond D’Souza (a 38 year old) What do you gain from the above? Surely one t h i ng is very clear. Like any other gadget or software, Facebook h a s its own advantages a n d disadvantages.

It depends on each user on how he/she uses it. Facebook needs to be used with discretion and maturity.

I

remember watching a video where a young girl goes to an island with a few friends and posts each day’s destination on Facebook. At the end of the third day, she misses the group and remains alone, only to come in contact with a distant enemy who had been following her and used this opportunity to take revenge.

Though Facebook permits children above the age of 13 to open an account, the Delhi High Court in 2013 asked the Union government to explain how it was allowing children below 18 years to open accounts in social networking sites such as Facebook. Facebook has a powerful impact on society and it somehow attracts your attention and grabs your time.

In August 2016, the co-founder of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg met Pope Francis in the Vatican and they spoke of how to use communication technologies to alleviate poverty, encourage the culture of encounter and bring a message of hope, especially to the most disadvantaged.

Though Pope Francis has publicly admitted in interviews to not owning a cell phone or using the computer, it seems that Pope Francis sees the value of the digital age, specifically in terms of the benefits new technologies can bring to evangelization and promoting human dignity.

Let’s continue to enjoy the benefits of this social networking site, but be prudent about the posts, the comments, the videos that we upload. May they be a source of joy to those who view them.

May they uphold values and spread positive vibes. As our holy pastor Pope Francis encourages us, let us use Facebook for evangelisation, for the care of the environment and to promote justice and peace.

Sr Melissa is a Salesian nun belonging to the Mumbai province, working at Caranzalem, Goa.

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LOGOUT Banzelão Teixeira SDB

SOCIAL MEDIA – THE LATEST ADDICTION Overcoming Digital Distraction and Addiction “Rohan is addicted to his smartphone!” complains his mother. From the moment he was gifted a smart phone on his last birthday, Rohan’s life has changed.

Facebook, Twitter, whatsapp and online games occupy most of his free hours. On returning from school he is fully engrossed in social networking – checking facebook posts and messages, updating his status and chatting. Almost every minute he has the urge to attend to his smart phone. His parents are concerned about his grades in school, which have drastically fallen. However, Rohan feels that life without social media is too dry and boring.

Sheetal admits that she is a social media addict.

The first thing she does on waking up is to check updates from friends, and it also happens to be the last activity of the day, often ending up late in the night. She’s online the whole day – every now and then browsing.

She agrees that she hardly relates with her parents and siblings at home. She knows that social media addiction is not helping her, but she cannot resist.

the gravity of the problem. Analysts say that social media has created a sort of hunger in us – we are hungry for news, to keep track over the personal lives of others, to be the first to like or comment, to feel involved in the lives of others, to be liked and wanted, to share about ourselves, what we feel, where and with whom we have been. We are so busy connecting with people in distant places across the globe that we have no time for those nearest to us, in our homes. Recently my attention was drawn to a group of teens at a pizza joint. All, without exception, were fully engrossed with their smart phones. I guess these youngsters had gathered to spend time with each other, but the purpose of the meeting was defeated with each

Addiction to social media can affect any of us, irrespective of age, culture and occupation. While it is good to be connected to friends and dear ones on social media, most of us run the risk of being enslaved by it. Easy internet access has added to

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one lost in his/her own ‘smart phone world.’

How does one know if he/she is a social media addict or digitally distracted? Dr. Michael Bengston provides us with a simple questionnaire to assess our digital distraction: Yes No √ x Do you feel an irresistible urge to use social media?

Has your social networking had a negative impact on your relationships or your performance at work?

Does it get in the way of your studies and other activities?

Have you tried to cut down and failed?

Have your parents or significant others complained about your internet addiction?

after lunch and supper every day and that’s it.

3. Reduce the number of social networks you use to a few important ones. You don’t have to be a part of every other network, or an user of every latest social media.

4. Each time you are tempted to post something – even something very inspiring – postpone it for the moment. Write it down on paper, and at your next scheduled use of the social media post it. This way you will also realize that many things are irrelevant.

5. Spend quality time with friends and family – and when you are with them avoid the use of social media.

6. Set proper deadlines for your study or work.

Make a timetable for your study. For every two hours of study take a break – but not an internet break.

If your response to the above questions has been in the affirmative, it’s a clear sign that you are digitally distracted. How does one handle this craze or distraction and be more productive in one’s study or work?

Overcoming Social Media Addiction: 1. Admit you have a problem: most of us are in denial mode about our addiction, even though we spend hours on social media.

2. Schedule your internet use: disciplining yourself is the only way to overcome addiction.

You don’t have to be online all the time, attending to every notification or message.

Stop making the social media your “first thing in the morning.” Instead have set times for internet use and social networking. Perhaps

Strong will-power and the decision to switch off is the only way to overcome social media addiction. Do you have that will?

Banzelão is the Principal of Divyadaan, a Salesian Philosophy Institute in Nashik.

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BE SMART !

Nandini Cardoso

Safety and Social

Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Blogs, etc. the number of social media sites is increasing in leaps and bounds. Social networking is the killer app of the Internet for everyone – not just the texting digital savvy teenager or college student. Such sites are a part of our important smart phone apps and are a vital tool to connect with current and new friends and to search for jobs, or to improve one’s career prospects. Social networking is the new way of socializing in a digital era.

With millions using social media for various purposes, we have to be aware of the dangers that lurk within these sites so that we can take responsibility for our own personal safety.

The four dangers of using social networking websites are • Over sharing information. When creating

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Media

a profile page, most websites will ask for personal information such as home addresses, birthdays, and phone numbers.

Giving this information can be very dangerous and will be made public to anyone who visits a user’s profile page, especially if privacy settings are not set correctly. Even if account settings are set to private, users are still at risk of their accounts being hacked. If someone hacks into an account he or she will be able to view and use the information. Sharing simple things like your favorite color can tip off a hacker to try to see if you used that as a password on your account. The biggest threat of over sharing information is identity theft. Identity theft is not uncommon in the world of online social networking. Online computer criminals look to steal identities in obvious and not so obvious ways. An obvious way would be someone asking for your social security number. A not so obvious way is luring a user to click on a link that will allow the criminal to download all of the user’s personal information. The anonymity provided online makes it easier for

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computer criminals to go undetected.

• He’s not who you think he is. Social networking sites make it very easy to pretend to be someone else. Even if an individual may be friends with someone on the site, anyone can take control of a user’s account if he or she can obtain the user’s password. As a result, someone who is a “Friend” can ask for money or gain personal information that can be used to hack into other accounts. For example, you may get a message from a relative asking you for your banking information because he or she would like to wire you some money for your birthday. You may think you’re talking to your relative, but in fact the information is being requested by someone who has hacked into your relative’s account.

• Location-based services. Location-based services can be one of the most dangerous features provided by social networking sites.

It exposes the profile user’s location and whereabouts. The service also has a feature that allows users to tag who they are with at any given time. While it can be fun to share your location with friends and family, it can also increase your vulnerability, potentially opening you up to being robbed, sexually assaulted, or worse. Predators can use this tool to track your movements and determine when you are alone or when you are not at home.

• Posting photos: One of the features of online social networking that many teens enjoy is the photo-sharing feature. This feature allows you to post photos 24 hours a day. Whether it is from your computer or mobile device, posting photos can be done in seconds. The Internet makes it easy to obtain photos and use the images in any way a person may choose.

Posting inappropriate photos that may be deemed as fun, cute, or sexy, can end up where one least expects it. Photo tampering is a big threat when it comes to posting photos online.

The use of photo editing tools allows people to manipulate online images in any way they choose, whether it’s used for good or bad purposes. While posting pictures and sharing them with friends can be fun, it can also be risky.

There are many different reasons why social media can be a dangerous playground. While the horror stories all focus on kids being lured or abducted, there are far more threats that are less severe. No matter your age or sex, it is important to follow some important rules for social media safety.

Please know these guidelines exist to protect you! It’s not about telling you what you can and can’t do… it’s about offering guidelines to protect you from being ripped off, bullied, disrespected, scammed, or worse while you’re just trying to have a good time online.

Check Your Privacy Settings In most cases, the default privacy settings will give your posts the most public exposure which can be very dangerous.

Why It’s Important If you’ve never checked or updated your privacy settings, then people you don’t even know can see your posts. Even if you think you are being careful about what you post, it’s common for teens to post sensitive information without even realizing it. It could be something as simple as an identifying background in one of your pictures… but online predators find easy prey in public profiles.

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In a nutshell, keep your social profile strictly private… the best settings are where only friends can see what you post because you never really know who your friends are friends with online, so the “Friends of Friends” setting can leave you exposed and vulnerable.

Be Cautious of Friend Requests. Sure, it’s great to connect with new people through social media… but isn’t there something suspicious when a complete stranger sends you a friend request?

Play it safe and only accept friend requests from friends in the real world.

Apart from the obvious (more severe) threats… friend requests from strangers more commonly turn out to be spam bots (meaning you’ll be spamming your friends). Fake profiles are also created for cyber bullying. So when a new friend request comes in, and you think you know the person, be sure to check their profile first and see if anything looks fishy.

Think Before You Post!

Limit personal contact information in your profile and posts.

Never give away your phone number or address. Keep p r i v a t e information private.

If you want to share this information with a friend,

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do it directly by phone or text.

Why It’s Important ?

Young people tend to have a reckless, impulsive approach to social media. That’s why it’s important to think first before you post what you are thinking or feeling. Even though you can delete something (a post, picture, comment, etc.) you can never permanently erase something that has been published on the internet. That’s also a good reason why you should face your problems instead of posting it on Facebook.

More Tips for Online Safety: • Avoid using location services like Foursquare and disable location services on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc. when posting photos.

It’s cool, sure… but it’s not necessary and the risk is greater than the reward.

• Avoid posting that you are going on vacation, or posting pictures while on vacation… until you are back home. Be aware of the ramifications of using your cell phone at school and discuss responsible behavior within school guidelines.

• If you do meet somebody new online, never agree to meet them off line. If somebody you met online sends or requests provocative pictures, tell an adult. You have to approach online friends (who you don’t know in the real world) as a potential predator… because even if it feels like you know them; you really don’t know who they are.

to make a

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Nandini is a school counsellor.

She loves working with young people and strives difference in their lives.

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CYBER WISDOM Leander Paes

Social MEDIA

AND

How irritating and frustrating it was to be bullied by someone when we were small and all the more agonizing to go through it all over again in the virtual world. The virtual world is the one place where you presume no one really knows you. Your presumptions are so wrong.

You are being watched and followed at every step. With just a few clicks, you will know that Google has tabs as to where you’ve been and where you are. How easy would it be for someone to get your information and become your childhood bully again.

That’s the scenario in the present era. With the increase in the innovations of social media, increasing number of virtual threats are seen. In May 2017, a boy and his family were threatened with nude pictures of them by a stranger on a social site. How was this man able to execute such a thing? He didn’t need to search their photos. The boy gave it to him! It has become so easy for people to become criminals.

This even goes to say how ignorant people have become about the virtual world. Many lack the necessary wisdom to use the internet.

Few years back, a new

BULLYING phenomenon called the ‘Blue Whale’ challenge began. The curators of this challenge preys on the child’s weakness seen online, gets details from them and challeges them to complete a set of tasks of which they must send a picture back. The initial task is simple but they get harder and obnoxious as one proceeds. The worst is the final challenge to kill yourself in a particular manner. The curators have a way to threaten if they don’t comply - so once you are in, you cannot opt out. As fictitious as it seems, it is true that many of our youngsters have fallen for it.

It is not that the ‘hacker’ has to hack into your account and gain information like the earlier times. It’s all so simple for them. We’ve made it simple for them! They simply build up a hoax relation, ask for all that they require and the next thing you know, that you find your face in an embarrassing and dirty photo (cyber morphing).

What about emails. They seem logically safe, well, let’s put a scenario in front where you’ve won a million dollars in some lucky draw.

All you have to do is to send your saving account details to the sender and

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you’ll get the money. It sounds so interestingly fake and yet many fall for this scam. People are educated but fail to make use of their hard earned wisdom. So many individuals have lost their money. They seem so helpless that even a police complaint seems out of question.

What can people do when faced by such situations? The most common reply for any person would be to delete such emails. You’ve done nothing to earn a lucky draw or win some cash prizes. All such things are spams and should be treated like spams. Don’t entertain such emails. What if your trusted friend or colleague sends you, then what? Ask

him the source of this email and your doubts will be cleared. Avoid posting personal photos on social media and avoid accepting friend requests from strangers. Just to increase your friend list, don’t add any Tom, Dick and Harry.

And most of all, learn a little about the virtual world, its positives and negatives, and apply some common sense when you send messages because every action you perform on the internet is recorded and can be used against you.

Be Safe, Be Prudent and Be Cyber Wise!

Leander is a novice at the Salesian Training Institute, Nashik.

Congratulations Fr Ralin De Souza, sdb Fr Ralin has topped the WABC Level 02 Basketball Coaching Course in Bangalore held in early June. He is now the only Goan Basketball Coach to be listed on the FIBA-WABC website among 111 coaches of India who are qualified after the intensive coaching program undertaken by FIBA and WABC in India. Among the two WABC Level 02 clinics conducted in India for the first time (in Noida and Bangaluru), Fr. Ralin stands third at the National level. He is registered on www.fiba.com/wabc with an international registration licence number – 2017505566.

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ONLINE OFFLINE Jason Pinto SDB

Social Media and

CHANGING RELATIONSHIPS Once a young girl expressed to her father, “Dad I’m in love with a foreigner and I want to marry him”. “But where did you meet him?” asked the rather surprised Dad. “Well we met ona social networking WEBSITE and then we became friends on FACEBOOK and he proposed me on SKYPE and then we dated for a month on WHATSAPP”, she went on. “Well then...” the father said, “in that case get married on TWITTER and ask for kids on FLIPCART and receive them by GMAIL and in case you don’t like, sell them on OLX.”

on the net.

On the other hand positively speaking, modern social media has helped us to connect with our classmates, to keep in touch with our colleagues and the like. It helps us to communicate to a wider audience incase we want to express our views, generate public opinion through social blogs, tweets, etc.

Yet we realize it has adversely effected the way in which we relate with each other.

Relationships today are both online and offline. It is possible today to have thousand and one friends on Facebook and yet in reality live as a loner. In quite a few cases marriages have crumbled due to the various means of modern social media.

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In such a situation how can we still maintain good relationships? Here are a few points I thought could help us maintain a healthy balance between the use of social media and our relationships.

1. Learn to differentiate between True relations and Virtual relations True relations are lasting, time-tested and challenging as

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well. Virtual relations are temporary, can be “blocked”, “unfriended”, “deleted”. At times people are upset because they did not get enough likes and thumbs-up, not knowing that it does not really mean anything for the other person who is casually going through his or her wall. Apart from those friends on our friend list, we need to cultivate friends who are physically present in our life and on whom we can depend. We need to differentiate between the two and make more space for true relations.

2. All that is personal need not be made public Posting pics after a private gathering and making it known to the whole world is a fad these days, many of whom may not even be interested in you. Our personal life is meant to be lived in close collaboration and sharing with people whom we feel close and intimate.

At times an innocent gesture can be wrongly

interpreted and land us or others into trouble.

Therefore it is necessary to keep the privacy of our group to ourselves and enjoy real friendship.

3. Set aside sometime to interact with nature Nature has a lot to teach us. We human beings are at the heart of creation, both as stewards, called to protect Mother Nature as well as students, called to learn from Mother Nature.

Nature never abandons us. It protects and sustains us. The beauty in nature sometimes encapsulated in photographs makes us bask at the marvel of the Almighty Creator. Being in the arms of nature can thus become both a prayer as well as a mission to be connected with the universe, different from virtual connectivity of our websites.

All things have their own positive and negative side, and social media is no exception to this. Modern Social Media is a product of our human quest for knowledge as also to communicate, to relate.

But what is important is that we are in control of our own “creation” rather than become slaves of it.

Otherwise in this age of wireless communications our relationships will be meaningless. Let’s enjoy and celebrate our inventions while we continue cherishing our relationships.

Fr Jason is a Salesian priest working at Don Bosco Mission, Ghataprabha in Belgaum.

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VIRTUAL HOME? Brian Lewis

What’s up World, Family!

Mother: Rahul, come for dinner. (No Response)(She repeats this time louder) Rahul: (Removing his earphones) What is it mom?

Mother: Rahul, it’s time for food. Come down.

Rahul: Mom, I’ll eat later. There is this interesting conversation going on in the group.

Mother: But beta, the food will get cold and also now-a-days, you never sit with us for food.

Rahul: (In an irritated tone) I said na Mom, I’ll have food later. (Puts back his earphones) This is a typical chat between many parents and their teenage children today. Now-a-days youth are so engrossed on their smart phones, worried how to keep up with the latest trends, and so keen to know ‘What’s up in the world’ that most of the time they don’t know ‘What’s up at home’. In the bargain, we don’t have time to spend with our family members. Gone

are the days when children and parents would be seen in the park, when teenagers would go to their parents to ask advice and when families would go for picnics.

Today everyone is so glued to their digital accessories that the precious family time has just disappeared.

Children still do play! Not outdoor games but virtual games like subway surfers, Counter strike, NFS and the giant of all games ‘GTA’; for solutions they go to online sites and ask friends for advice. (I mean come on, he/ she is your age, what will they know about life? All they can do is feel for you, That’s it!) And the problem is not only with the young. What do I mean? This scenario is what usually happens in our times.

Natasha: (After a break up) Mom, Can I talk to you?

Mother: Not now, I’m a little busy beta. Maybe some other time.

Well, this case may seem deviating from the

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topic but it actually has a lot to do with it. As you know, the teens always take their friends’ advice first and only when they are deep in trouble, they go to their parents or may be not until they find out. As I mentioned earlier, the youth of today go online and ask hundred and one people for advice not knowing that their parents know the best. Natasha too goes to her mom for petty things to irritate her (in a fooling sense). And so, her mother does not taken her seriously when she actually needed help, and hence, did not bother and continued with her chores.

Well, honestly, parents too are slowly learning and adapting to this ‘tech savvy world’, they sometimes get so caught up with facebook, watsapp and other social apps that they bypass precious moments with their children and spouses which cannot be replaced with any amount of money or treasure in the world!

Obviously, children learn from their parents and hence, when they grow up, they are likely to do the same to their children and it’s an unending cycle. Little do they know that slowly ‘the family spirit’ is diminishing and the ‘parent-child relationship’ is losing its value.

The craze for selfies has grown to such heights that youth have even included their parents in it. They add a few lines of message and done, a beautiful greeting for parents’ day. This is just for likes probably. Gone are the days when children made cards for their parents, today children make collages for the whole world to see it except for the ones it’s made for. We say we are adapting to the times but are also losing our true bonds.

media has not only affected the family spirit and its bonds but also the prayer life of the family. Gone are the days when in the evenings, parents and children would recite the rosary or at night, sit and pray together.

In today’s scenario, dad is either working or relaxing with his laptop, mom is busy with her chores and occasional serials. The young are deep into music, chatting, playing games or gossiping!

The prayer life of families has hit rock bottom.

You’ll see only a handful of families actually praying together. People are so lost in their electronic devices that they don’t even pray together. God has just become a photo or statue on the altar (which is cleaned rarely). Whatever happened to ‘a family that prays together stays together’.

To conclude, I would just like to say that we are supposed to have control over social media and not vice versa. Let us use social media for what it is: A Place to Communicate, Relax and Enjoy. But let’s also limit its use. Let it not reach above our family, friends and God. And so before finding out ‘What’s up’ in the world, let’s first find out ‘What’s up’ in our families!

Brian is a novice at the Salesian Training Institute in Nashik.

Giving it a more religious dimension, social

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FAMILY TIES Valentine D’Souza

Impact of Social Media on Families

Ever since the days of the Ark, when Noah let out a pigeon from a window to find out if the flood waters had receded to the early days of bulletin boards which carried the latest news, mankind has displayed an insatiable curiosity to know what is going on outside his door!

I remember whilst growing up in Mumbai, there was always a scramble for the morning papers. Dad would look for the front page, we children, would be content with the children’s corner and Mummy would search for the advertisements. Radio and television changed life a bit especially the T.V. It was often referred to as the “Idiot box” because people sat before it staring fixedly and alternately laughing or crying hysterically. But then, one could not converse with a T.V. Yet it

fascinated a whole generation. Some popular serials like” Kaun Banega Crorepati “and “Ra maya na” kept families rooted before the T.V. sets and visitors were never welcome during prime time. The Radio and television gave rise to a “fan base” and Radio and T.V. stars . But one had to be content with reading about them and watching their movies and serials. There was no dialogue or interaction. One had to wait for a live show to happen.

The age of the Internet changed all this. It spawned an interactive platform, a “Web based application” that we now term “Social Media”.

It allows for two or multi sided communication using a computer application within the

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confines of your own home. It enables a whole lot of friends, nay, even strangers, to see you, converse with you without the fear of someone watching over your shoulder. What is wrong with that? Well, think again!

Social media, by that, we mean Facebook , Whatsapp, Skype, Twitter, Instagram has revolutionized our lives like never before.

Today when families are spread across continents, social media has helped them to stay connected, share their lives and experiences through an exchange of photos and even give them a grand tour of house and garden! Social media is a boon in emergencies. One can reach out to whole lot of friends and relatives at the click of a button and you find reassurance in knowing that you are not alone.

Social media has enabled some nostalgic and memorable moments too. I remember my mother in law speaking to her son in Canada over Skype. She was in the last stages of cancer.

She could see him on the screen with his family and he could see her too. They spoke for a long time. It was the last time she would do so for she passed away a few days later.

Mobile technology has spawned a whole lot of services which are enabled using Äpps” on your mobile or notepad and you are connected to the whole world “on the go”.

This can be disconcerting when at a party or at a “get together”. The mobile does not keep you “together“ at all! I experienced this when my friend of 20 years came over with his family. We sat together at a beach resort for an evening of togetherness or so we thought!

The children were in a world of their own with their mobiles chatting with their peers.

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We oldies tried to pick up the lost threads of conversation about times gone by. The wives were exchanging Whatsapp titbits and each of us was immersed in our own little niches.

We wound up the evening none the wiser about our children and family but up to date on matters concerning office, for we worked together once upon a time. This also happens at birthday parties where the hostess tries in vain to get the attention of the guests who are worlds away.

Children can get addicted to mobiles. I found this out when I was left with my 4 year old grandson for the evening. He nonchalantly picked up my mobile and flipped the screen with a swipe of his finger. I was impressed.

Yet he showed a profound aversion to putting pencil to paper to write the alphabets. His take is “why write when you can point and flip”?

And this ability to point and flip can open pages on the internet with disastrous consequences for young impressionable minds.

The internet has let the whole world into the family living room. We must learn, to discern, to discriminate and to determine who shall remain and who shall be shown the door.

Valentine is the president of the ADMA in the Salesian Province of Panjim.

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SPREAD THE LIGHT Joel D’Souza SDB

“Go and proclaim…”

The challenge accepted by a cloistered Nun Jesus commanded his disciples to “go to the whole world and proclaim the Good News” (Mk 16:15). These words of Jesus are apt even today, when the means and ways of communicating the Good news has undergone a tremendous change. In the early church, the life and teachings of Jesus were shared by word of mouth. The apostles and disciples who were witnesses to the deeds and teachings of Jesus shared his stories and teachings orally to their listeners. Only later these stories and teachings came to be written.

Over the years tec h nolog ica l advancement especially in the field of social communication, gave rise to new ways of spreading God’s word.

Websites, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Whatsapp, etc. are good tools to spread the life and message of Jesus. But, prior to all this, there began a revolution in the

use of television to spread the Gospel, and it had a humble beginning in a simple garage at the Our Lady of the Angels Monastery in Alabama, USA. In this garage was born the Eternal Word Television Network, popularly known as EWTN. From the original four hours of broadcasting a day to 24 hours a day; from pre-taped programmes to live programmes in the U.S. and around the world; from one network in English to 11 networks broadcasting in multiple languages; from radio services transmitted domestically and internationally to the largest Catholic website in the U.S., as well as EWTN Religious Catalogue; from 60,000 homes to more than 268 million homes in 145 countries and territories; from a series of small pamphlets to electronic and print news services,

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including “The National Catholic Register” newspaper, and two global wire services; and a publishing arm – the Network continues to grow.

When Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) was launched on August 15, 1981, many felt there would be little demand for a Catholic network. In fact, when Mother M. Angelica, a cloistered nun, fulfilled a promise to our Lord in the early 1960s by founding Our Lady of Angels Monastery in Irondale, Alabama, she had no idea she would one day found the largest religious media network in the world.

The future Mother Angelica, foundress of EWTN, was born on April 20, 1923 in southeast Canton, Ohio to Mae Gianfrancesco Rizzo and John Rizzo. The couple named their daughter Rita Antoinette Rizzo.

Before joining the Religious order, Rita experienced two miracles which changed her life. These miracles made her realize that God loved her personally – and she began to love Him back. Her love became such that on August 15, 1944, she entered a Cleveland convent and became Sister Mary Angelica of the Annunciation, a Franciscan Nun of the Most Blessed Sacrament. The order would later change its name to the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration.

Once on her visit to a Baptist-run television station atop a Chicago skyscraper in March 1978 her attention was drawn towards a new medium: television. It was then that she famously declared: “Lord I gotta have one of these.”

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Armed with only a high school education, $200, and 12 cloistered nuns with no television experience, Mother Angelica proceeded to turn the monastery garage into a television studio.

EWTN received its FCC license on Jan. 27, 1981, making it the first Catholic satellite television station in the United States. A few months later, on August 15, 1981, EWTN began broadcasting four hours a day to sixty thousand homes.

This holy nun left for her heavenly reward on March 27, 2016.

Who could have imagined that a cloistered nun would found a global television network? Who could have predicted that a network funded entirely by donations from people instead of advertisers would become the largest religious media network in the world? Yet that is the story behind the EWTN Global Catholic Network.

If a cloistered nun could achieve so much, then why do we lag behind? With technology at our fingertips we can play our part in spreading God’s word. A good morning wish sent through Whatapp accompanied by a scriptural quote could be a good way to get started. The Sayings of Jesus on our Facebook wall would help us to reach out to our Facebook friends. A tweet of the daily readings or a daily Biblical quote from our Twitter handle would go a long way in making Jesus known to our followers.

Thanks to social communication there are many varied and more ways to make Jesus and His Words and deeds known to the whole world. Just as Mother Angelica accepted the challenge of ‘Go and Proclaim’ we too can brace ourselves to do the same.

Joel is a vocation animator and in-charge of the aspirants at Don Bosco, Panjim.

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HEALTHY READING Vivian Andrews SDB

Don Bosco A Life of Communication Communication is call to share, to unite, to bring together, to unite with a purpose.

Communication or social communication today is often equated with films, the internet, social media etc. which are but means of mass communication. More than this, communication is a way of being and acting.

Jesus by his life and example has shown us a particular way of communicating, which entails identifying oneself with the receiver and speaking from within the receiver’s context. Here is what Communio et Progressio has to say about the communication style of Jesus, “Through His ‘incarnation’ He utterly identified Himself with those who were to receive his communication and he gave message not only in words but in the whole manner of His life. He spoke from within. He preached the Divine message without fear or compromise. He adjusted to His people’s way of talking and to their patterns of thought and spoke out of the predicament of their time.”

While reading the above, one cannot help but bring the image of Don Bosco to mind.

His entire manner of living communicated a message of love to young. He thought, spoke and acted in such a way that was appealing

to the young. He became one like them, he preached in a way that they could relate to, connect, comprehend and act.

The Efficacy of Speech – a communicative gift In his Memoirs of the Oratory, Don Bosco narrates, “During my first Mass, I asked for the gift of efficacy of speech, and I think I got it!”. A few words of counsel, advice, reprimand and encouragement from Don Bosco transformed the lives of many youngsters, some of whom were thought to be incorrigible. His talks, sermons, words in the ear and even casual interactions were powerful, so much so that youngsters felt a deeper power speak to them and may have well exclaimed like the disciples of old, “were not our hearts burning as he spoke...” With this divine gift Don Bosco communicated the theme of God’s love and conversion and led many to a life of grace.

The Salesian Oratory – a communication of love

Called to communicate the love of God to young people, Don Bosco through the means of the Oratory, let the young know they are loved by his presence and in ways that were tangible.

His animated and anointed presence together with his system of education communicated nothing but God, love and virtue. Umberto Eco,

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an expert in communication studies, attributes Don Bosco with having brought about “a great revolution” in the communications field, and for having realised through the system of the oratory “a new way of being together.”

While he gave all of his time and energy to the youngsters of the oratory, he was also interested in youngsters who also could not frequent the oratory or who were on holidays and wanted to be present among them in the form of good literature.

Buona Stampa - a communicative enterprise According to historian Francesco Maglieri, Don Bosco’s motivation for writing and publishing was impelled by the social, political

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and cultural situation of those years. The spread of liberalism, the growth of the anticlerical press and the spread of Protestant (Waldensian) propaganda contributed to a sense of concern for ordinary Catholics who felt overwhelmed by books, periodicals and magazines containing ideas hostile to the Catholic faith. He felt the need to produce and disseminate what was then termed buona stampa i.e. healthy reading. So much was he concerned about the intellectual, moral and spiritual well being of his boys, that through his publications he wanted to be with them in school, at recreation, at home and everywhere and in all the ways possible. An old Don Bosco writes in the 1885, about his purpose in

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publishing good literature for youth , “ ...it was meant to enable me to be at their elbow in school in order to save them from so many errors and unruly emotions which could prove fatal to them in both time and eternity. I have also longed to be close to them in recreation, as once I used to be and so I have planned to start a series of entertaining books which will hopefully see the light of day before too long.”

As regards his style of writing he was not a theorist, but his method was simple and popular. This is not because he hadn’t the gift of literary eloquence but because he wanted his message understood by the young and by common folk. He states, “I am writing for ordinary people and therefore avoid any affection of style, any obscure or useless discussion. My aim will be to reduce both the material and the style to that simplicity which is demanded if I am to be precise in presenting an account that is theologically sound and also in keeping with traditional Italian idiom.”

Between 1844 and 1848, Don Bosco published a series of booklets, aimed at the young, the working class and the clergy; containing stories, useful information, apologetics, church history etc. Here is a list of them originally published in Italian – A Historical Outline on the Life of the Cleric Comollo – 1844 The Devotee of the Guardian Angel – 1845 The Crown of the Seven Sorrows of Mary – 1845 Church History for Use in Schools – 1845 The Six Sundays and the Novena to St. Aloysius Gonzaga – 1846 Exercise of Devotion to the Mercy of God – 1847 The Companion of Youth – 1847

The Christian Guide to Virtue according to the Spirit of St. Vincent de Paul – 1848 In 1849, he attempted with little success, the launch of a periodical for young people, The Friend of the Young. It was a politico-religious

paper published thrice a week to counteract free newspapers distributed by liberals and protestants. Don Bosco with limited resources could not manage it for long and soon its accounts were in red. After only 67 issues, Don Bosco was forced to close publication.

The Catholic Readings “...the aim of the Catholic Readings was to instruct the whole of the population. It was also a means of gaining entry into homes and of making known the spirit that informs our schools as well as of attracting boys to the practice of virtue, especially through the lives of Savio, Besucco and the like.” – Don Bosco The Catholic Readings, constituted the most centrally important enterprise undertaken

by Don Bosco in the field of periodical publications. Due to the failure of The Friend of Youth, Don Bosco realised the need to publish a pocket sized periodical instead of a paper, one which was concerned with things of a more lasting nature and one which would not lose its freshness. He made an effort to be clear and comprehensible often by a dialogue form between individuals. The language used was lively to bring out the different aspects of the topic under discussion. Don Bosco emphatically states that “the periodical was exclusively devoted to subjects connected with the Catholic religion”. It included sacred and secular history, lives of saints, light reading, amusing and edifying stories, practical information and so on. He also expressed his concerns about social realities, job opportunities, the relationship between the rich and the poor, and the practical obligations of one’s faith.

The Companion of Youth (1847) “The purpose of the companion of youth was to draw boys to the Church, instil into them a spirit of

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piety and persuade them to approach the sacraments frequently” – Don Bosco It was a full time edu-pastoral work with more than a hundred editions in print and aimed at offering young people a cheerful and happy way of living a Christian life. It was a proposal for a spiritual life and youthful holiness, a total and joyful giving to the Lord, moved by a deep love for Him in ordinary everyday life..

The Salesian Bulletin First published in 1877, it was a bond which united the Salesian Cooperators closely together and linked them with the centre wherever they were in the world.

According to Don Bosco, one of its many aims was also to “keep alive in the boys who had returned to their own homes their love of St. Francis de Sales and of his sayings, so that they would in turn, help to save other boys.”

D o n Bosco and his early Salesians played an exceptional role in the history of Catholic Italy during the

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19th century. According to Salesian historians, history has neglected the rich and significant contribution of Don Bosco in the field of communications. According to them, his varied initiatives have had a profound influence not only upon the religious but also the social and civil history of Italy. Recognising the role of Don Bosco and his Salesians in the field of communications, especially the print media, Pope Pius XI in the year 1937 entrusted the Vatican press to the Salesians who have faithfully served there ever since.

We have often heard it said about two kinds of speakers, “Those who have to say something, and those who have something to say”.

At the heart of all communication is not the means or the gadgets used, or expertise in sound and graphic animation or the sort, but at the end of the day what matters is the depth of the message. The entire life of Don Bosco was a message to the young especially those in need, that God loves them. Today while we may strive to be in the vanguard of progress in the field of social communications, let us more by our very lives communicate to the world the love of God in the footsteps of Jesus, the saints and Don Bosco.

Vivian is a perpetually professed Salesian studying in Rome.

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INTERVIEW Joaquim Lobo

Peter Gonsalves, SDB is the dean of the faculty of Social Communication Sciences of Pontifical Salesian University in Rome.

He is the consultor to the new Secretariat for Communication at the Vatican. His exceptional talent and creativity is seen in his music and books. He is the composer of the very famous hymn ‘God Still Loves the World’. Sangati is fortunate to have his views in these pages.

1. How did your work in the area of media and communication begin?

In 1991, while working with parishioners in far flung villages of Ahmednagar, I was struck by their ability to sing beautiful Christian bhajans in Marathi.

I thought it would be worthwhile recording them on audio-cassettes so that they could replay them and increase their faith and sense of belonging to the parish. The audio-cassettes were recorded in make-shift studios in our chapel in Bhingar and sold to the people for a minimum cost of Rs. 10.

In 1992, Fr. Loddy Pires, the provincial asked me to shift to Pune and help Fr. Maurice Figueiredo, the Director of the Catechetical Centre there. We hit upon the idea of reaching out to Marathi-speaking Christians through an audio-cassette ministry and ‘Tej-prasarini’ was born. The name was suggested by a well-known teacher, musician, dramatist and poet of Pune, Mr. Jayant Kumar Tribhuvan. He had Christian songs that had not yet been recorded, and he was prepared to offer them to us as our first professional project. In this way the cassettes, Tejprasarini and Yesuche Yuvak were recorded in our studio at Kurla, Mumbai, which had been expertly set up by Bro. Frederick D’Souza about a year before.

2. You had also recorded your own songs in audio cassettes, didn’t you?

Yes, that was in Bangalore as a student of theology.

The first was ‘God Still Loves the World’ in 1984,

which was followed by ‘Beautiful’ in 1987. They were attempts to personalise my theological reflection through music.

3. How did your work from Ahmednagar and Pune shift to Mumbai?

Well, in 1993, Fr. Loddy was asked by the communication department of our headquarters in Rome to appoint a news correspondent for Southern India. They wanted to begin news-sharing across the Salesian world through something called ‘e-mail’. I was appointed for the job. I had to attend a short training programme in Rome and, on returning, set up the computer-modem technology at Provincial House, Matunga, Mumbai. I also decided, with Fr Loddy’s permission, to continue the Tej audio-cassette ministry alongside my task as news correspondent. At the Provincial Chapter in 1995, I put forth the suggestion that Tej-prasarini – my personal initiative – beturned into the publishing house of the province. It was voted out – presumably on the misconception that I was asking for ‘another building’. On assuring the assembly that I did not need a building but just a space in the old provincial house, 56/57 voted ‘yes’. I abstained.

The rest is history.

4. Should the Church use media and how?

The Catholic Church has no option! Its very identity is to be the ‘medium‘ of Christ’s presence in the world. Indeed, every human being has not option except to communicate through media – the

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primary medium being the human body. Marshall McLuhan, who is known as the prophet of the communication age called media ‘extensions of man’. Being a staunch Catholic, he provided much food for thought on how the Church needed to educate people to media-use. Pope Paul VI, in his encyclical Evangelii Nuntiandi, could not have said it more forcefully: “the Church would feel ashamed before her Lord if she did not use the modern means of communication.”

5. Could you state some examples of good use of media?

Today, thanks to the internet and social media, technologically advanced communication can reach people anywhere in the globe in split seconds. All one needs is Wi-Fi and a smart phone.

The challenge, however, is ‘what to say’ and ‘how best to say it’. Not everyone is good at this.

However, I do know people who are ‘heralds of the Good News’ precisely through the pictures, words and opinions they share on social media.

A simple ‘like’ to encourage someone, or words and pictures of sympathy or solidarity are little gestures of love and fellowship. Some are daring enough to take a stand against injustice by posting societal wrongs that need to be corrected. Although ‘virtual’, these messages can get them into ‘real’ trouble in their countries.

Yet they dare to reveal the truth even when the truth is not popular or politically correct. Much like Jesus.

As far as Church institutions are concerned, the Vatican website (w w w . v a t i c a n . v a ) and its internal linking with Twitter and YouTube, etc. is a good example of convergent media

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policy. In Italy, Catholic youth, had come up with a website for liturgy, where priests can upload and share their original Sunday reflections, where individual counselling is available, and originally constructed images and posters for parish animation are freely downloadable (www.qumran2. net). The Salesian Youth Movement of Triveneto is also an excellent example of Salesian resources (www.donboscoland.it).

6. How to deal with Fake News?

‘Fake News’ existed long before Mr. Trump used the words to accuse his opponents after his presidential election. News has been fabricated ever since news sharing became a highly popular industry in a polarised society. For instance, during the French Revolution, newspapers were used by various factions to hit out at each other. When the radio was invented, its first major use was by dictators as propaganda for their own point of view and not to inform people about the hard facts on the ground.

As competition between newspapers grew in the early 19th century, a certain P. T. Barnum went so far as to create fake-events in order to have tantalizing news to sell faster and wider.

How much of today’s advertising feeds on fake information to gullible consumers?

We ought to be careful of Fake News which, unfortunately, rides social media. We can be alert and critical of what we see and hear.

In this regard, there is an absolute need for ‘Media Education’. By this I mean “critical appreciation of media and media content for responsible citizenship”. Tej-prasarini was once a well-known hub to which school and college principals turned for training teachers and students in Media Education. In the span of its first 7 years about 40 seminars were held all over India. Unfortunately, not many Church personnel took it seriously.

Today, Media Education is much

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more challenging because of the easy accessibility of the media that contain a multiplicity of divergent messages, some of which even babies can get addicted to!

7. You are the 1st non-European to head the Faculty of Communications at the Salesian University in Rome. What courses do you offer there?

We have two main courses: Social communications and Pastoral communications. The first is meant for professionals in media and communications, the second is more adapted to the needs of priests and religious who work in church-run organizations.

We offer the Bachelor’s, Master’s and Doctoral degrees. The curriculum is divided equally between theory and practice. The subjects cover a range of areas in the vast field of communication, such as: public speaking, theatre, music, photography, journalism, web-designing, radio and video production. We also cover issues of communication from a philosophy, psychology, economic and legal perspective, as well as themes that deal with institutional communication, international communication, peace communication, educommunication and convergence media.

8. Could you tell us something about your recent appointment at the Vatican?

Before Pope Francis, the Vatican had two Secretariats that were directly accountable to the popes: the State Secretariat and the Finance Secretariat.

Reading the signs of the times, Pope Francis, has created the Communication Secretariat. Each of these Secretariats have an Advisory Body. On April 12th this year, I suddenly received the appointment to be one of the members of a group of 13 consulters for the Communication Secretariat from different parts of the world.

9. So you work with Pope Francis? How often do you meet?

No. We work with Msgr. Dario Viganò who is the Secretary. We work from wherever we are, using the new media of course. So far, we have had two meetings: one by video conferencing and the other by sharing opinions via email. Yes, I do look forward to meeting the whole board in person, and

especially Pope Francis. But for now, I’ll have to wait.

10. Could you tell us a little more about the Communication Secretariat?

Before the decision of Pope Francis, there existed the Pontifical Council for Social Communications that was presided over by Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli. He co-ordinated the various departments of communication which were autonomous and independent of each other. These consisted of the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano (run by the Salesians), the Radio Vatican (run by the Jesuits), the Holy See Press Office, the Vatican Photographic Service etc. However, on 27th June 2015, Pope Francis established the Secretariat for Communication and entrusted it with the task of overall restructuring, reorganization and consolidation of the departments of communications in order to, as he says, “respond ever better to the needs of the mission of the Church”. This move to converge all the previous bodies would entail a clearer and more focused communication policy in terms of the content communicated, the methods used and the effects desired. I believe, it is something that each Church organization across the world can learn from.

11. We are a minority in India, how do we propagate Christian values today.

We may be a minority in India, but the values that Christ has to offer are good for the country. The fact that, across the years since our independence, thousands from other religions have sought to benefit from our services in education, health care and social development is an outstanding proof that Christianity in India is not expendable. Mother India still needs to experience greater socioeconomic equity, neighbourly love, forgiveness of past hurts, peace and justice. Mahatma Gandhi himself recognized the importance and urged Christians to ‘live’ their faith. It is true that social media are one of the modern ways we can share these values across the internet, but the time-tested way is, as always, on a one-to-one basis with our non-Christian neighbours through the ‘medium’ of our authentic Christian lives.

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MESSAGE TO THE YOUNG Don Ángel Fernández Artime, RM

Let Us Celebrate Life !

Each new day is a blank page presenting us with a host of possibilities on the horizons of our life. This is the incredible gift that we call time.

In much of the world, September marks the beginning of school, and many families organize their life around this reality. In other places, the rhythm of life stays as it was because New Year is at the center of the calendar and determines the changes. In both cases, however, a host of possibilities are presented to us. It is most natural to think that we will always see a new dawn, that we will have good health, and that life will hold many possibilities – but it is not always this way and neither is it so for everyone.

It is certain that time or, better, life – which has time as its measure – envelops a host of possibilities, relationships, and experiences…

Not long ago, I was speaking with a Brother in his 80s. He was advising me to live my life with passion – squeezing out of it all I could, just as one would squeeze a lemon or a bunch of grapes to get out all the juice. This is what this Brother, who has excellent intellectual, academic, and religious formation, told me.

He did not mean to say that one must live a crazy life, running from one place to the

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other, or seeking this or that because one is dissatisfied. No. He was referring, rather, to the impassioned exercise of taking control of one’s life, of this true gift received from the Lord of Life.

I wish to offer you some reflections about time and its possibilities. Let’s imagine that there exists a bank which adds to our personal account 86,400 dollars every morning. This strange bank does not carry over our funds from one day to the next, but every night it takes out of our personal account whatever we have not used. Every one of us has an account in one of these banks! What is the name on this bank? Time!

Each day this bank, beyond adding new funds, removes whatever is left over from the day before. It never keeps a balance. If the full amount is not used up in one day, what remains is lost. It cannot be reversed.

You cannot make any credit card charges to your account for the income of the following day. You must live in the present with the funds for today. So: ¨ To understand well the value of an entire year, we can ask a student who has had to repeat a course;

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¨ To understand the value of a month, we can ask a mother who gave birth to her baby prematurely;

this treasure by sharing it with others who are most dear to us, especially by dedicating our time to them.

¨ To understand the value of a week, we can ask the editor of a weekly publication;

Let us not forget: time waits for no one. Let us also remember what is most important of all: as believers, we know that time is only a means, but the gift is life itself, given for us to share, and in this sharing we are truly happy.

¨ To understand the value of an hour, we can ask the help of those who are in love and who expect to see their loved one at any moment; ¨ To understand the value of a minute, we can ask someone traveling who missed his or her plane or train by just one minute; ¨ To understand the importance of a second, we can ask someone who avoided an accident by one; ¨ To understand the value of a millisecond, we can ask the athlete who earned a gold medal in the Olympics by this margin.

My wish for you, dear readers, is that we do not let life just pass us by or live it in any old way. Once we have had the experience of living life fully, enjoying all the beauty and wonderful things that surround us – and even the difficulties which weigh us down at times – accepting this challenge becomes a passion.

May you be happy!

Such is the value of time!

Thus, I think we should wish that each one of us treasure every moment of our lives.

Let us give much more importance to 60 SANGATI

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Write to the Editor on sangatidonbosco@gmail.com

Letters to the Editor...

April - June 2017 | Vol 10 Issue - 02

Congratulations! thanks for e-mailing me a copy of Sangati. It’s fantastic. Power packed with current well researched articles. Your magazine will definitely touch lives and inspire them.

Continue your good work. All the best. FR. NELSON LOBO (Ofm Cap) Goa - Fr Nelson Lobo (Ofm Cap), Goa

As usual an enchanting issue. It is getting thicker by the issue. A wonderful sign that many want to contribute to a magazine that is easily readable and attractive. Bravo!

- Fr Ian Figueiredo, Rome

I like your editorial. Many of us have left the Youth to themselves and have failed to mentor, educate, lead, and accompany the young in our company leaving them to their devices (Mobiles etc). Thank you for another good issue of Sangati.

- Valentine D’Souza, Goa

The heart touching articles, the reflections and the knowledge that is shared, the concern shown for the issues of the young makes your ‘Sangati’ the best bulletin.

- Ageema Fernandes, Goa

July - Sept 2017

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SALESIAN

BENAULIM FATORDA LOUTULIM KAKATI ODXEL DABOLIM OROS KUDAL PARRA PALIEM PANJIM SIRSI

PROVINCE NEWS

Workshop on “ARDUINO” at DBCE Fatorda

Retreat for the Salesians

The Department of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering in association with IETE STUDENT CHAPTER conducted a one day workshop on “ARDUINO” on August 12, 2017. The resource persons were Mr. Myron and Miss.

Cecilia.

The Salesians of Mumbai and Panjim province attended a week-long retreat at Padre Arrupe Institute Raia, Goa from August 22-28, 2017. The retreat was preached by Fr. Savio Rodrigues SJ, highlighting a few spiritual techniques from Ignatian Spirituality. It was truly a moment of renewal and grace for all the retreatants.

Extra Ordinary Visitation begins

The main objective of this workshop was to upgrade the skills of the students and to provide them a common platform to explore the use of ARDUINO and its application using the ARDUINO software.

Jubilees Celebrated

Fr. Maria Arokiam began the extra Ordinary visitation of the Province of Panjim. He was welcomed with the ‘Zhaanj’ drill dance which led him to the hall. The program commenced with kindling of the lamp by the dignitaries and the prayer service. Rector and Principal Fr. Clive Telles welcomed the Guest.

The mellifluous welcome song by the College students was followed by the Western Dance performed by the school students. Fr. Maria Arokiam took the stage to reveal his joy on seeing how Don Bosco institutes are places where the spirit of Don Bosco is alive. His talks were peppered with humorous anecdotes.

The Salesian province of Panjim celebrated the jubilees of seven of its confreres at Don Bosco Quepem,Goa on August 22, 2017. While Br. Francis Mascarenhas and Br. Anthony Rocha celebrate sixty years of their first profession, Br. Frederick D’Souza celebrates fifty years of his perpetual profession, Fr. Allwyn D’Souza celebrates twenty five years of his priestly ordination and Frs. Augustine Fernandes, Adrian Pinto and Richard Correia celebrate 25 years of their first profession in the Salesian congregation. The celebration began with a solemn Eucharistic celebration followed by a short felicitation program for the jubilarians and lunch. The presence of Fr. Maria Arokiam Kanaga, the Regional Superior for South Asia added colour to this day. A number of members from the Salesian family were also present for this ocassion.

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PINGULI QUEPEM SHIRVA KELMBET SULCORNA SUTGATTI TRASI TUEM CORTALIM GHATAPRABHA TIVIM

Don Boscos Celebrate the Marian Month

DB Sutgatti Elect School Leaders

Hard work and proper time management are the keys to a successful life said S R Naik Police Inspector of Navanagar and Amargol Police Station at Don Bosco High School, Sutgatti Hubballi during the installation of the school parliament on July 9, 2017.

Mormugao Past Pupils Visit a Hospice for Terminally Ill

Don Bosco institutions in the province of Panjim celebrated the Marian Month from July 15 - August 15, 2017. With daily special devotion through variety of ways, Mary is honoured and venerated. The culmination of the month happens with the Marian Evening. Don Bosco’s special devotion to Mary is commemorated.

Vocation Animator’s Meet

The Local Vocation Animator’s Meet was held on July 29, 2017 at Don Bosco, Panjim. Fr. Edison Fernandes SDB was the resource person.

Through his thought provoking and insightful sessions, the resource person was able to ignite the minds of the participants to think of different and new ways of Vocation Promotion.

The authentic followers of Jesus will attract vocations, he stressed.

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As part of the Social Service Project for the year, the Don Bosco Past Pupils, Mormugao Unit, along with their families and Delegate, Fr. Tony Alemao, visited “Shanti Avedna”, Lotulim, a hospice for the terminally ill cancer patients. The project was undertaken in memory of the past Delegate Fr. Romulo Noronha and Mr. Agnelo Mendonca, a former past pupil of Don Bosco.

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SALESIAN

SOUTH ASIA NEWS

Social Surfing Workshop at Don Bosco Tura

New Delhi Celebrate Jubilees

Don Bosco College organized a workshop on Social Surfing for the students of the First Semester Arts, Science and Commerce Social Surfing on August 19, 2017. ‘’Looking at the growing use of online spaces in India, Centre for Social Research and Facebook came together and initiated this programme. #SocialSurfing intends to initiate the dialogue on how the user can have a positive online experience by maximizing the use of social media platforms.’’ ‘’Programme Goal is aim at Creating a culture of positive gender sensitive online environment, by promoting use of counter speech, through sensitive campaigns and listing userdriven best practices. #Social Surfing intends to engage with a diverse group of internet users and build their capacities for a positive and gender sensitive online experience.

With these workshops, we also aim at initiating a dialogue on Counter speech, for the very first time in India. #SocialSurfing is a pure educational program.’’

Salesians Release ‘JYOTI’ a Sadri Film

The Salesian province of New Delhi celebrated the jubilee of eight confreres at Don Bosco provincial house, New Delhi on August 20, 2017. The diamond jubilee of profession and golden jubilee of ordination of Fr D’Souza Joseph, golden jubilee of profession of Fr Naikamparambil Joseph and Fr Peedikayil Michael, Silver jubilee of ordination of Fr James Jainivas, Fr Koorappallil Jose Mathew and Fr Dang Edward and silver jubilee of profession of Fr Manjakattil Noble George and Fr Hemlet Kujur.

Salesians Meet External Affairs Minister Regarding Release of Fr Tom

Salesians met Ms.Sushma Swaraj, Honourable External Affairs Minister of India on August 17, 2017 at 12.30 pm in the Head Quarters of the External Affairs Ministry in New Delhi. It was regarding the situation of Fr Tom Uzhunnalil sdb, an Indian Salesian priest, who hails from Kottayam, who was abducted in March last year in Yemen’s city of Aden.

DB Band Bring Laurels at State Independence Day Celebrations at Assam

The Don Bosco schools of Bengtol and Boko enthralled the audience with a brilliant Brass Band display at the 70th State Independence Day celebration graced by the Chief Minister, a host of eminent personalities representing the Government of Assam and special invitees from all walks of life. The band performance was of superior quality that it not only enthralled the audience but brought astonishment to the viewers at the way the students exhibited their talents.

The film produced by Fr Jonas Kerketta SDB, focuses on the need to promote education in the rural areas to promote development.

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The Salesians of Cadiz awarded Prize for Energy Efficiency

A group of seven pupils of the Electrical Vocational Training of the Salesians of Cadiz won second prize in a national energy efficiency competition. During the school year the pupils created a project for energy efficiency which was presented to the Schneider Electric company competition. The prize puts its Vocational Training students among the best in Spain in terms of energy solutions.

“Happy with Don Bosco”: a Camp to reaffirm that We are Family

The greatly enjoyed experience of “Happy with Don Bosco”, which took place 8-13 August, came to its conclusion. The summer camp gathered 212 Cuban, Dominican and Puerto Rican young people at the spiritual house of the FMA sisters in Peñalver, Havana. With joy, the event reiterated the Rector Major’s message for 2017: “We are Family!”

The 100 years of Salesian presence in the country was also celebrated.

July - Sept 2017

WORLD NEWS RIP Fr Andriano Bregolin

20 Years of ‘Missionary Salesian Voluntary Service’ of Kraków

Former Vicar General of the Salesian Congregation, Fr Adriano was currently serving as Director of the Salesian Institute of Florence.

On August 23 during a hike in the mountains, Fr Adriano Bregolin died of a sudden heart attack.

On August 27, the “Missionary Salesian Voluntary Service” (SWM) “Młodzi Światu”, of the Kraków Province (PLS), celebrated its 20th anniversary of activity. Since 1997, more than 400 volunteers have been sent to Salesian missions around the world to help with projects such as the construction of school facilities, hospitals and orphanages; work in camps for refugees and street children; organization of summer outings and camps for young people; creation of development and educational projects for the world’s most needy..

Salesian Youth Movement 2017 Meet

Recharging oneself of Don Bosco’s spirit and transmitting it to one’s peers, what over 250 young people of the Salesian Youth Movement (SYM) of Europe and the Middle East have done this summer during the “Confronto Salesian Youth Movement 2017.” On the 202nd birthday of the Saint of the Young, the meeting’s concluding events and relocation of Don Bosco’s relic are scheduled at the Basilica of Colle Don Bosco.

The SYM 2017 Confronto Meeting ended with the Eucharist presided over by the Rector Major at the Don Bosco Basilica and was followed by the relocation of the relics of Don Bosco stolen and found again in June; the relic’s return was celebrated in the presence of the civilian and military authorities who collaborated in its recovery.

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13 Year Old Creates a Library

August 27: Jeferson Gabriel Ferreira, a 13-year old student of the Salesian Institute “São Gonçalo”, is committed to creating a library for the community in Várzea Grande all by himself. The initiative is the result of his love of books and the concomitant absence of a library in that area.

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CHURCH

WORLD NEWS

Pope Francis will visit Myanmar and Bangladesh

The Church in Pakistan proclaims the Year of the Eucharist

The Catholic Church of Myanmar is divided into three archdiocese Mandalay, Taunggyi and Yangon - and 13 dioceses. The prominent figure of the Burmese Church is Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, born 1948, archbishop of Yangon. The Salesian received the purple from the hands of Pope Francis in the Consistory of February 14, 2015, becoming the country’s first cardinal.

“We want to make the Eucharist the center of our Christian life, our families and our homes”: with this spirit, the Catholic Church in Pakistan celebrates 2018 as a special “Year of the Eucharist”: this is what Bishop Benny Travas, at the head of the diocese in Multan says to Fides. The Bishop is president of the liturgical Commission of the Bishops’ Conference of Pakistan.

On 28 August, the Holy See Press Office announced that Pope Francis will visit Myanmar and Bangladesh from November 27 to December 2. Press Room Director Greg Burke reported the Pope has welcomed the invitation of the respective heads of state and bishops.

The Catholic Church of Bangladesh has two archdiocese - Dhaka and Chittagong - and six suffraged dioceses. In the Consistory of November 19, 2016, the Pope elevated the archbishop of Dhaka, Msgr. Patrick D’Rozario, born 1943, to cardinalate. The religious of the Congregation of the Holy Cross is the first cardinal of the country’s history.

Lawyers to Pursue Exploiters

Children systematically mistreated and forced into prostitution, without rights, no voice and no one worrying about their inhuman conditions.

This is the harsh reality of over a million girls who are victims of child prostitution in India. It is a phenomenon that even the Country’s punitive laws are unable to curb.

Since April 2014, the Dutch Free a Girl Foundation has proposed to intervene against this hell.

Thanks to the School for Justice, 19 young people survived the abuse of exploiters and will be trained so that they can access University and study Law. According to the founder of the project, the goal is not only to redeem these girls from prostitution networks but to transform them into the best lawyers and public prosecutors in the Country, in order to eradicate the impunity enjoyed by exploiters in India.

India’s first Jesuit University opens academic year The Jesuit-run St. Xavier’s College in in eastern India’s K o l k a t a city began f unctioning as the nation’s first Jesuit university on July 7, opening its first academic year 6 months after achieving the new status. West Bengal state chief minister Mamata Banerjee unveiled the plague of the new building of St. Xavier’s University, Kolkata, along with business tycoon Lakshmi Mittal, a former student of St. Xavier’s College who funded the building.

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Bring Christian values to politics Bring Christian values to politics; don’t lose your saltiness, Zimbabwe’s Archbishop of Harare, Robert Ndlovu says.

As Zimbabwe approaches general elections scheduled for 2018, the Archbishop of Harare, R o b e r t Ndlovu has challenged Catholics to be active in politics and to bring the mind of Christ to the process.

July - Sept 2017

IN HIS VINEYARD Jason Pinto SDB

Celebration of God’s Faithfulness

The Salesian province of Panjim celebrate the life-long dedication of seven of its jubilarians – Bro Frederick D’Souza (golden jubilee of final profession), Bro Francis Mascarenhas & Bro Anthony Rocha (diamond jubilee of first profession), Fr Allwyn D’Souza (Silver Jubilee of Priesthood), Fr Richard Correia, Fr Augustine Fernandes & Fr Adrian Pinto (Silver Jubilee of first profession).

A bombay boy, Bro Frederick is a technical expert.

He works as a motor mechanic, Electrician, machinist, plumber, welder, carpentar... He makes any part of the machine, dismantles the whole car or bike and refixes it. There isn’t anything that he cannot do. Youngsters have gained abundantly from his expertise.

Bro Francis hails from Usgao, Ponda Goa. He has been a choice of many Salesian Superiors for his meticulous and efficient work on the desk. His message for the young is “pray meaningfully, work diligently and give glory to God”.

Fr Allwyn was influenced by his priest uncle Fr Victor D’Souza and the simplicity of Fr Cajetano Lobo, both Salesians. He loves taking

challenging roles. Calling all youngsters to give their best he is convinced that there is more joy in giving oneself for others rather than keeping it for oneself only. Allwyn joined the Salesians after some years of work.

From our very own Salesian Parish of Kudal, Sindhudurg is the simple and musically talented Fr Augustine who made his profession 25 years ago with his motto “you are the potter, I am the clay”. While music is his passion, honesty is his best and only policy. With his contagious smile and sound of music he is definitely the centre of attraction for any occasion.

Fr Adrian is a jovial and meticulous person.

He loves to preach and teach the young. He believes in living life to the full without any compromise. “You are mine” is his motto.

Fr Richard hails from Velim, Goa. He believes in fighting for justice and likes to preach the love God made manifest through Jesus Christ. With his motto “remain in the love of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit” he truly reflects God’s Trinitarian love to all whom he encounters. His message for the youngsters is to live life to the full.

As these Jubilarians celebrate their jubilees we invoke God’s choicest blessings on them and assure them of our prayers.

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Congratulations Jubilarians!

Bro Frederick D’Souza, Bro Francis Mascarenhas, Bro Anthony Rocha Fr Augustine Fernandes, Fr Allwyn D’Souza, Fr Adrian Pinto, Fr Richard Correia To follow Don Bosco, Contact: Fr Joel D’Souza 9421117819 | Fr Austin Fernandes 9420906544 | Fr Kiran Nazareth 9765958832