"Discovering" significant
symbols and metaphors for people, that can be of help in speaking of the
Kingdom of God to modern man, immersed in a digital "language" oriented
"towards a different logical organization of thought
and relationship with reality ", in which has "a more intuitive and
emotional than analytical tendency" and where there is a risk that
opinion takes precedence over truth.
It is a world which Benedict XVI invites us to approach
without preconceptions, positive or negative, to proclaim the Gospel in
the same style as Matteo Ricci who "in his work of spreading the message
of Christ always considered the person, the cultural and
philosophical context, values and language, capturing all the positive
things in tradition, offering to animate and elevate it with the wisdom
and truth of Christ. "
A model which the Pope proposed to the Plenary of the
Pontifical Council for Social Communications, which is convened in Rome until today March 3 on "Language and Communication".
Benedict XVI offered the assembly a reflection on language, not to be
understood "as a simple, temporary and interchangeable tool devoid of
concepts, but the living and pulsating context in which thoughts,
concerns and projects are born in the conscience of man and shaped into
gestures, symbols and words. "
The new languages that are developed in digital
communication, "geared toward a different logical organization of
thought and relationship with reality, often prefer the image and
hyperlinks. In digital communication, "the traditional
distinction between oral and written language, then, seem to fade in
favour of a written communication that takes the form and immediacy
spoken language. The dynamics of “shared networks, "also require that the person is involved in what he communicates. When
people exchange information, they are already sharing themselves and
their world view: they become "witnesses" of what gives meaning to their
existence. The risks involved, of course, are obvious to
all: the loss of interiority, superficiality in relationships, emotional
escapism, the prevalence of opinion more persuasive than the desire for
truth. And yet they are the consequence of an inability to fully and authentically live the sense of innovation. That is why there is an urgent need to reflect on the languages developed by new technologies".
Because "if the new languages have an impact on thinking
and living, this involves, in some ways, the world of faith, its
intelligence and expression."
"It is not only a question of expressing the Gospel
message in today's language, but of having the courage to think in a
deeper way, as happened in other times, of the relationship between
faith, the Church's life and the changes that mankind is experiencing. It
is the commitment to help those with responsibility in the Church to be
able to understand, interpret and talk about the "new language" of the
media in pastoral ministry (cf. Aetatis novae, 2), in dialogue with the
contemporary world, asking onself: What challenges the so-called 'digital thinking' poses to faith and theology? What questions and demands? ".