(November 14th, 2010 )
Dear Fathers/Sisters,
Greetings to you in the name of Jesus Christ!
This year, India Communications Day will be celebrated on Sunday, Nov. 14. This celebration offers the Church an excellent opportunity to sensitize the faithful on the importance of communications today. You are aware of the growing importance of the modern communications media and their profound influence on all sections of the society.
To help our Church personnel and the faithful to celebrate the day meaningfully, we are happy to send you the following:
· Liturgical notes for the Communications Day Eucharistic Celebration.
· Sermon Notes.
· The message of the Holy Father for the World Communications Day 2010.
A few suggestions to celebrate the “India Communications Day” meaningfully:
· Celebrating Communications Sunday with a meaningful liturgy during all the Masses, involving wherever possible media professionals and artistes.
· Organizing a Study Session on the theme of the day for media persons, communicators, artistes, writers and social activists.
· Holding a get-together for media persons (journalists, writers, publishers, artistes, cable operators, news agencies etc.) of the place and if possible, by awarding a couple of them for their outstanding service to society.
· Encouraging organisations/institutions to hold competitions like quiz, poster-making, skit etc. for children and youth on gainful use media.
· By identifying and encouraging talented children and youth to improve their skills in writing, singing, dramatizing, painting etc.
We will be extremely happy if you send a small report on the way you have celebrated the India Communications day.
Let us do our best in making the Church in India, a truly Communicating Church!
With kind regards and best wishes,
Fr. Lawrence Rodrigues
(Commission for Social Communications)
LITURGY
ENTRANCE ANTIPHON
The Lord says: my plans for you are peace and not disaster; when you call to me, I will listen to you, and I will bring you back to the place from which I exiled you.
PENITENTIAL RITE
The Church in India
I confess... Glory to God...
OPENING PRAYER
Father of all that is good, keep us faithful in serving you, for to serve you is our lasting joy. We ask this...
FIRST READING
SECOND READING St Paul
GOSPEL: Gospel according to St Luke (21:5-19)
PRAYER OF THE FAITHFUL
Cel.: Dear brothers and sisters, let us thank and praise God for the gift of digital communication technologies. Let us ask the Lord to grant us the wisdom to use effectively these media, saying:
Response: Lord, hear our prayer.
1. For the Holy Father, Bishops and Priests of the Church: that using the current digital technology, they may faithfully proclaim the Gospel to all people, let us pray to the Lord.
2. For parents and teachers: that they may help the young to become discerning consumers of the media, and insist on the content which uplifts and enhances the dignity of the human person, let us pray to the Lord.
3. For young people who are fragile and easily carried off by the media: that they may discern what is good, authentic and dignified, and thus be protected from everything that degrades and divides, let us pray to the Lord.
4. For those engaged in communication technology, like producers, directors, artists and for those who collaborate with them: that they may work with courage and determination to communicate truthfully, fairly and responsibly, let us pray to the Lord.
5. For public authorities: that they may be ever more conscious of their role in holding the media accountable and responsible for communication, communion and co-operation, let us pray to the Lord.
(Pray for local and personal needs)
Cel.: Ever-loving Father, you have endowed us with the means of social communications as your gifts to humanity. Give us the grace to become more aware of their immense potential that we may use them for the spread of the Good News to all people. We ask this...
PRAYER OVER THE GIFTS
Lord God, may the gifts we offer increase our love for you and bring us to eternal life. We ask this...
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
Father, may we grow in love by the Eucharist we have celebrated in memory of the Lord Jesus, who is Lord for ever and ever.
SERMON NOTES
In today’s Gospel we see how Jesus’ disciples wonder at the beauty and majesty of the Jerusalem Temple Temple
The new temples, where people gather around today and marvel at, are the various media business establishments. They have become so powerful today that they have invaded every aspect of our thinking, life-style and social fabric of human society. The new technological novelties like iPod and iPhone are taking people captive by their fascination. People are very much attracted by their utility and power as the disciples marvelled at the Jerusalem Temple
Today’s young people are at home with the new language of the media. The old culture is substituted with the new digital culture. The Church, however, warns that the digital culture should not be a substitute for dogma or theology, but should be employed to make initial contact with those who are far from the faith. The goal of this new temple of communication finally must become a means of encountering God.
Jesus warns us in the Gospel: “Many will come using my name and saying ‘I am he’, and ‘The time is at hand’. Refuse to join them.” In fact, in our own times we see certain religious leaders claiming to know the truth, allege that the end is near and many are drawn by these sects by their cleverly and effective use of the media.
In his message for the 44th World Communications Day, the Holy Father, Benedict XVI says: “Priests can rightly be expected to be present in the world of digital communications as faithful witnesses to the Gospel, exercising their proper role as leaders of communities which increasingly express themselves with the different ‘voices’ provided by the digital marketplace.”
Jesus then goes on to say: “When you hear of wars and tumults, do not be terrified”. Jesus seems to put the accent on the word “hear”. Now, it is clear that, today through the media we can listen to the news and know what is happening all around the world, we can hear news of the wars and terrorists’ attacks. The “hearing” from the media can often lead us towards fear and terror. But the hearing of the word of Jesus fills us with courage as he tell us, “….do not be terrified”. He further adds: “But not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives.”
What we need to do is to give witness to Christ, particularly in the face of rejection, mockery and persecution. Jesus is talking to everyone of us who is mocked at for hanging on to our Christian moral principles when the media project them as an outdated and old-fashioned morality. He is talking to all of us who fight to uphold the Christian family values and to fight against the media that deify self-gratification and selfishness. It is frightening because the Lord demands that we stand up for him, his Kingdom and the Christian way of life in a materialistic, self-centered world. This is the challenge before every Christian today in a media savvy world!
—Fr Vincent Carmelbhavan, ssp
Message of His Holiness - Pope Benedict XVI
For The 44th World Communications Day
Theme: "The priest and pastoral ministry in a digital world: new media at the service of the Word."
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The theme of this year's World Communications Day - The Priest and Pastoral Ministry in a Digital World: New Media at the Service of the Word - is meant to coincide with the Church's celebration of the Year for Priests. It focuses attention on the important and sensitive pastoral area of digital communications, in which priests can discover new possibilities for carrying out their ministry to and for the Word of God. Church communities have always used the modern media for fostering communication, engagement with society, and, increasingly, for encouraging dialogue at a wider level. Yet the recent, explosive growth and greater social impact of these media make them all the more important for a fruitful priestly ministry.
All priests have as their primary duty the proclamation of Jesus Christ, the incarnate Word of God, and the communication of his saving grace in the sacraments. Gathered and called by the Word, the Church is the sign and instrument of the communion that God creates with all people, and every priest is called to build up this communion, in Christ and with Christ. Such is the lofty dignity and beauty of the mission of the priest, which responds in a special way to the challenge raised by the Apostle Paul: "The Scripture says, 'No one who believes in him will be put to shame ... everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.' But how can they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach? And how can people preach unless they are sent? (Rom , 13-15).
Responding adequately to this challenge amid today's cultural shifts, to which young people are especially sensitive, necessarily involves using new communications technologies. The world of digital communication, with its almost limitless expressive capacity, makes us appreciate all the more Saint Paul's exclamation: "Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel" (1 Cor 9:16) The increased availability of the new technologies demands greater responsibility on the part of those called to proclaim the Word, but it also requires them to become more focused, efficient and compelling in their efforts. Priests stand at the threshold of a new era: as new technologies create deeper forms of relationship across greater distances, they are called to respond pastorally by putting the media ever more effectively at the service of the Word.
The spread of multimedia communications and its rich "menu of options" might make us think it sufficient simply to be present on the Web, or to see it only as a space to be filled. Yet priests can rightly be expected to be present in the world of digital communications as faithful witnesses to the Gospel, exercising their proper role as leaders of communities which increasingly express themselves with the different "voices" provided by the digital marketplace. Priests are thus challenged to proclaim the Gospel by employing the latest generation of audiovisual resources (images, videos, animated features, blogs, websites) which, alongside traditional means, can open up broad new vistas for dialogue, evangelization and catechesis. Using new communication technologies, priests can introduce people to the life of the Church and help our contemporaries to discover the face of Christ. They will best achieve this aim if they learn, from the time of their formation, how to use these technologies in a competent and appropriate way, shaped by sound theological insights and reflecting a strong priestly spirituality grounded in constant dialogue with the Lord. Yet priests present in the world of digital communications should be less notable for their media savvy than for their priestly heart, their closeness to Christ. This will not only enliven their pastoral outreach, but also will give a "soul" to the fabric of communications that makes up the "Web".
God's loving care for all people in Christ must be expressed in the digital world not simply as an artifact from the past, or a learned theory, but as something concrete, present and engaging. Our pastoral presence in that world must thus serve to show our contemporaries, especially the many people in our day who experience uncertainty and confusion, "that God is near; that in Christ we all belong to one another" (Benedict XVI, Address to the Roman Curia, 21 December 2009 ).
Who better than a priest, as a man of God, can develop and put into practice, by his competence in current digital technology, a pastoral outreach capable of making God concretely present in today's world and presenting the religious wisdom of the past as a treasure which can inspire our efforts to live in the present with dignity while building a better future? Consecrated men and women working in the media have a special responsibility for opening the door to new forms of encounter, maintaining the quality of human interaction, and showing concern for individuals and their genuine spiritual needs. They can thus help the men and women of our digital age to sense the Lord's presence, to grow in expectation and hope, and to draw near to the Word of God which offers salvation and fosters an integral human development. In this way the Word can traverse the many crossroads created by the intersection of all the different "highways" that form "cyberspace", and show that God has his rightful place in every age, including our own. Thanks to the new communications media, the Lord can walk the streets of our cities and, stopping before the threshold of our homes and our hearts, say once more: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me" ().
In my Message last year, I encouraged leaders in the world of communications to promote a culture of respect for the dignity and value of the human person. This is one of the ways in which the Church is called to exercise a "diaconia of culture" on today's "digital continent". With the Gospels in our hands and in our hearts, we must reaffirm the need to continue preparing ways that lead to the Word of God, while being at the same time constantly attentive to those who continue to seek; indeed, we should encourage their seeking as a first step of evangelization. A pastoral presence in the world of digital communications, precisely because it brings us into contact with the followers of other religions, non-believers and people of every culture, requires sensitivity to those who do not believe, the disheartened and those who have a deep, unarticulated desire for enduring truth and the absolute. Just as the prophet Isaiah envisioned a house of prayer for all peoples (cf. Is 56:7), can we not see the web as also offering a space - like the "Court of the Gentiles" of the Temple of Jerusalem - for those who have not yet come to know God?
The development of the new technologies and the larger digital world represents a great resource for humanity as a whole and for every individual, and it can act as a stimulus to encounter and dialogue. But this development likewise represents a great opportunity for believers. No door can or should be closed to those who, in the name of the risen Christ, are committed to drawing near to others. To priests in particular the new media offer ever new and far-reaching pastoral possibilities, encouraging them to embody the universality of the Church's mission, to build a vast and real fellowship, and to testify in today's world to the new life which comes from hearing the Gospel of Jesus, the eternal Son who came among us for our salvation. At the same time, priests must always bear in mind that the ultimate fruitfulness of their ministry comes from Christ himself, encountered and listened to in prayer; proclaimed in preaching and lived witness; and known, loved and celebrated in the sacraments, especially the Holy Eucharist and Reconciliation.
To my dear brother priests, then, I renew the invitation to make astute use of the unique possibilities offered by modern communications. May the Lord make all of you enthusiastic heralds of the Gospel in the new "agorà" which the current media are opening up.
With this confidence, I invoke upon you the protection of the Mother of God and of the Holy Curè of Ars and, with affection, I impart to each of you my Apostolic Blessing.
From the Vatican 24 January 2010 , Feast of Saint Francis de Sales.
Pope Benedict XVI
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