VATICAN: A Pastoral Reflection on Engagement With Social Media: Vatican Release
Sr. Jecinter Antoinette Okoth, FSSA
The Vatican through the Dicastery for Communication has released a document highlighting the challenges on social media engagement and encouraging reflectiveness and genuine presence in the digital world.
In the document published Monday, May 29, the Vatican acknowledged that technological advancements have led to new ways of human interactions hence the concern is “no longer whether to engage with the digital world, but how.”
“Great strides have been made in the digital age, but one of the pressing issues yet to be addressed is how we, as individuals and as an ecclesial community, are to live in the digital world as “loving neighbours” who are genuinely present and attentive to each other on our common journey along the “digital highways,” reads part of the document.
Members of the Dicastery for Communication noted that social media is an environment “where people interact, share experiences, and cultivate relationships unlike ever before. At the same time, however, as communication is increasingly influenced by artificial intelligence, there arises the need to rediscover the human encounter at its very core.”
Vatican officials have underscored that as the digital world has been developing over the past two decades, the “relationship with digital platforms has undergone an irreversible transformation.”
Hence, they disclose that these (Social media) platforms can evolve to become “co-created spaces, not just something that we passively use.”
The document co-signed by the prefect of Dicastery of Communication Dr Paolo Ruffini and its Secretary Monsignor Lucio A. Ruiz, highlighted further the concern for many Christians in need of guidance since social media, which is one expression of digital culture, “has had a profound impact on both our faith communities and our individual spiritual journeys.”
According to the Vatican officials, “Young people as well as older generations are asking to be met where they are, including on social media, because the digital world is “a significant part of young people’s identity and way of life.”
Some of the sub-themes covered in the document include information overload, constant scrolling, not giving others one’s full attention, being an “influencer,” witnessing to Christ, “digital detox,” the need for silence, intentional listening, and building community in a fragmented world.
