The Catholic Bishops' Conference of Bangladesh has just opened its
first online paper.
Launched on 27 October in cooperation with the Christian
Communication Centre, the website is named Pratibeshi
(Neighbours), after the oldest Bengali language Catholic weekly.
Founded in
1940, the paper is currently distributed in 30 countries.
For Pratibeshi editor Fr Joyanto Gomes, the online
edition "allows many users to read our news even on the internet." In fact,
"As the world changes, we must upgrade," he explained.
Hence, "We are going
down this path to have a direct contact with our readers."
The magazine's
new version will publish news about the Catholic Church, but also foreign news
as well as articles on cultural topics important for the Church of Bangladesh.
Pratibeshi's main goal is threefold: to present and
promote Christ's message and the Church's teachings through the new media;
stimulate, develop and raise spiritual, social, civil and economic awareness by
telling ordinary people's everyday experiences; and push Church personnel to
use the new forms of communication.
The
weekly is a member of SIGNIS, the World Catholic Association for Communication.
The online
site has already received its first feedback.
"I am happy to know
that Pratibeshi is also available
online," said Anthony Gomes Pius, a Catholic man from Dhaka. For him, "the
transition to a digital version offers the opportunity to reach more people."
For
Samual Purification, the Bishops' Conference did a great thing. The online edition
"will make it easier to read news and stories published by Pratibeshi."