Scottish Catholic Observer

Pope Francis wants the Church to embrace the all possibilities of the internet, as it is ‘a gift from God,’ according to his first World Communications Day message.

To mark the 48th World Communications Day, which will be celebrated on June 1, Pope Francis said ‘the networks of human communication have made unprecedented advances’ and offer ‘immense possibilities for encounter and solidarity.

“This is something truly good, a gift from God,” the Pope said.

In his address, the Holy Father urged Catholics to by reaching out to their neighbour through any means, including social media.

“How can we be ‘neighbourly’ in our use of the communications media and in the new environment created by digital technology?” he said. “I find an answer in the parable of the Good Samaritan, which is also a parable about communication. Those who communicate, in effect, become neighbours. The Good Samaritan not only draws nearer to the man he finds half dead on the side of the road; he takes responsibility for him.”

The Pope also said that Christian witness communication and our willingness to be available to others ‘by patiently and respectfully engaging their questions and their doubts as they advance in their search for the truth and the meaning of human existence’.

‘We are called to show that the Church is the home of all’ the Holy Father said, signalling he wants all Catholics to communicate the message of their Faith.

“Are we capable of communicating the image of such a Church?” he said. “Communication is a means of expressing the missionary vocation of the entire Church; today the social networks are one way to experience this call to discover the beauty of faith, the beauty of encountering Christ. In the area of communications too, we need a Church capable of bringing warmth and of stirring hearts.”

—You can view the full text of Pope Francis’s World Communications’ Day message here.