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                                  VIS-Press releases   
      
   TRUTH, PROCLAMATION AND AUTHENTICITY IN THE DIGITAL AGE   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 24 JAN 2011 (VIS) - Made public today was the Holy Father's   
   Message for the forty-fifth World Day of Social Communications, which will be   
   celebrated on 5 June and has as its theme: "Truth, Proclamation and   
   Authenticity of Life in the Digital Age". The Message is dated 24 January,   
   Feast of St. Francis de Sales, patron of journalists.   
      
   Excerpts from the English-language version of the Message are given below:   
      
   "New technologies are not only changing the way we communicate, but   
   communication itself, so much so that it could be said that we are living   
   through a period of vast cultural transformation. This means of spreading   
   information and knowledge is giving birth to a new way of learning and   
   thinking, with unprecedented opportunities for establishing relationships and   
   building fellowship.   
      
   "New horizons are now open that were until recently unimaginable; they stir our   
   wonder at the possibilities offered by these new media and, at the same time,   
   urgently demand a serious reflection on the significance of communication in   
   the digital age. This is particularly evident when we are confronted with the   
   extraordinary potential of the internet and the complexity of its uses. As with   
   every other fruit of human ingenuity, the new communications technologies must   
   be placed at the service of the integral good of the individual and of the   
   whole of humanity. If used wisely, they can contribute to the satisfaction of   
   the desire for meaning, truth and unity which remain the most profound   
   aspirations of each human being.   
      
   "In the digital world, transmitting information increasingly means making it   
   known within a social network where knowledge is shared in the context of   
   personal exchanges. The clear distinction between the producer and consumer of   
   information is relativised and communication appears not only as an exchange of   
   data, but also as a form of sharing. ... On the other hand, this is contrasted   
   with the limits typical of digital communication: the one-sidedness of the   
   interaction, the tendency to communicate only some parts of one's interior   
   world, the risk of constructing a false image of oneself, which can become a   
   form of self-indulgence".   
      
   "Ever greater involvement in the public digital forum, created by the so-   
   called social networks, helps to establish new forms of interpersonal   
   relations, influences self-awareness and therefore inevitably poses questions   
   not only of how to act properly, but also about the authenticity of one's own   
   being. .... In the search for sharing, for 'friends', there is the challenge to   
   be authentic and faithful, and not give in to the illusion of constructing an   
   artificial public profile for oneself.   
      
   "The new technologies allow people to meet each other beyond the confines of   
   space and of their own culture, creating in this way an entirely new world of   
   potential friendships. This is a great opportunity, but it also requires   
   greater attention to and awareness of possible risks. Who is my 'neighbour' in   
   this new world? Does the danger exist that we may be less present to those whom   
   we encounter in our everyday life? Is there is a risk of being more distracted   
   because our attention is fragmented and absorbed in a world 'other' than the   
   one in which we live? Do we have time to reflect critically on our choices and   
   to foster human relationships which are truly deep and lasting? It is important   
   always to remember that virtual contact cannot and must not take the place of   
   direct human contact with people at every level of our lives".   
      
   "To proclaim the Gospel through the new media means not only to insert   
   expressly religious content into different media platforms, but also to witness   
   consistently, in one's own digital profile and in the way one communicates   
   choices, preferences and judgements that are fully consistent with the Gospel,   
   even when it is not spoken of specifically. Furthermore, it is also true in the   
   digital world that a message cannot be proclaimed without a consistent witness   
   on the part of the one who proclaims it.".   
      
   "We must be aware that the truth which we long to share does not derive its   
   worth from its 'popularity' or from the amount of attention it receives. We   
   must make it known in its integrity, instead of seeking to make it acceptable   
   or diluting it. It must become daily nourishment and not a fleeting attraction.   
      
   "The truth of the Gospel is not something to be consumed or used superficially;   
   rather it is a gift that calls for a free response. Even when it is proclaimed   
   in the virtual space of the web, the Gospel demands to be incarnated in the   
   real world and linked to the real faces of our brothers and sisters, those with   
   whom we share our daily lives. Direct human relations always remain fundamental   
   for the transmission of the faith!   
      
   "I would like then to invite Christians, confidently and with an informed and   
   responsible creativity, to join the network of relationships which the digital   
   era has made possible. This is not simply to satisfy the desire to be present,   
   but because this network is an integral part of human life. The web is   
   contributing to the development of new and more complex intellectual and   
   spiritual horizons, new forms of shared awareness. In this field too we are   
   called to proclaim our faith that Christ is God".   
      
   "The proclamation of the Gospel requires a communication which is at once   
   respectful and sensitive, which stimulates the heart and moves the conscience;   
   one which reflects the example of the risen Jesus when He joined the disciples   
   on the way to Emmaus".   
      
   "In the final analysis, the truth of Christ is the full and authentic response   
   to that human desire for relationship, communion and meaning which is reflected   
   in the immense popularity of social networks. Believers who bear witness to   
   their most profound convictions greatly help prevent the web from becoming an   
   instrument which depersonalises people, attempts to manipulate them emotionally   
   or allows those who are powerful to monopolise the opinions of others. On the   
   contrary, believers encourage everyone to keep alive the eternal human   
   questions which testify to our desire for transcendence and our longing for   
   authentic forms of life, truly worthy of being lived. It is precisely this   
   uniquely human spiritual yearning which inspires our quest for truth and for   
   communion and which impels us to communicate with integrity and honesty.   
      
   "I invite young people above all to make good use of their presence in the   
   digital world. I repeat my invitation to them for the next World Youth Day in   
   Madrid, where the new technologies are contributing greatly to the   
   preparations".   
   MESS/VIS 20110124 (1110)   
      
   SUMMARY   
      
   --- MPost/386 v1.21   
    * Origin: Sursum Corda! BBS =Meridian, MS= bbs.sursum-corda.com (1:396/45)