Media in postoral WT-SST-MDU

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Can the Church function in the virtual world? This question can be answered within the framework of practical theology. After all, within the scope of its research is pastoral communication, which is directly concerned with man as a person open to communication with God[1] and with others, and capable of forming individual-community relationships. Thus, pastoral communication has a distinctly personal character and implies the establishment of interpersonal communication, exchange of information and cooperation (Nęcki 1996, 109).
Pastoral theology also deals with kairology. The name itself indicates the study of the signs of the times (cf. Matt. 16:1-3).[2] The object of kairology's study is primarily the relationship between the Church and the world, which may be arranged differently.[3] The Church may keep these relationships to a minimum in order to refrain from concretes with a “godless” society. It can set itself the goal of publicly seeking out, stigmatizing and combating the evils that are rife in it. In such a role, the Church will wage “holy war” against society. There is a second extreme possibility, which is for the Church to draw closer to secular society to the point where it will seek to either influence it or govern it in the name of God. Pastoral theology points to the third possibility, according to which the Church, in accordance with its salvific mission complemented by extensive activity, can establish relations with society based on dialogue. In this case, it is a question of dialogue adapted to the abilities of those spoken to and to the circumstances, since it is different to speak with children, differently with adults; differently with believers in Christ and differently with those who do not believe in Him. However, the Church's dialogue with the world must first take into account the proper relationship between the sacred and the secular. Then one must take into account the increased, comprehensive progress (development) that has changed the life of modern human society and highlighted its pluralism. And finally, it is necessary to appreciate the maturity achieved by modern man, who, believer or not, under the influence of civilization, has become capable of creative thinking, of having a conversation, of entering into a serious dialogue."[4]
Pastoral theology, meeting the contemporary socio-cultural challenges, is constantly improving its own ecclesiology, whose task is to define the essence, purpose, tasks and ways of life and action of the Church in the current conditions of history.[5] Within the framework of practical theology there is also the Church's theory and practice of media (media theology), which belongs to the broader pastoral communication. And it is from the perspective of communication that a new answer must be given to the fundamental question: what today is the overarching purpose of the life and activity of the Church, whose members live in the real and virtual worlds?
Before answering this question, it is necessary to turn to a brief description of the situation of the believer in the media world. “Our life today is very busy with the vision of the outside world. The means of communication have grown so large, have become so aggressive that they draw us in, that they detach and disconnect us from ourselves, depriving us of personal consciousness. Let's be careful! We can move from the position of mere observers to that of critics, thinking people and judges. The attitude of thinking consciousness is extremely important for today's man if he wants to become a living human being, and not a mere screen on which thousands of images fall. If we Christians want to discover the signs of the times, an act of reflection is necessary for us, because, as the Council teaches in the Constitution Gaudium et spes, explaining time, that is, the empirical-historical reality that surrounds and affects us, must be done in light of the Gospel. The discovery of the signs of the times is a work of Christian consciousness. It results from the juxtaposition of faith and life, but not by artificially and superficially superimposing some pious thought on our experiences, but rather on perceiving at what points these experiences of ours, because of their inner dynamism, because of their obscurity, and sometimes because of their immorality, demand the ray of faith, the Gospel word that would define and redeem them. Or the discovery of the signs of the times occurs by realizing at what point and where they come out of themselves to meet the higher plans, which we know to be Christian and divine plans, such as the search for unity, peace, justice. At what point does our possible action of charity or apostleship merge with the maturity of favorable circumstances indicating that the hour has come for the simultaneous development of the Kingdom of God in the human kingdom?” (Paul VI 1974, 563).
Jesus called the Church to save people, which in practice means realizing the work of salvation and making His Person present. According to Christ's design, in the Church people should be able to have real access to the means of salvation: sacrifice, the saving word and prayer. The salvific mission of the Church, therefore, is to connect people with God in a real way. This is the vertical dimension of pastoral activity, which the Church fulfills through its priestly and prophetic functions.
The Church offers sacrifice, preaches the word and prays, i.e., celebrates the liturgy and carries out various forms of popular piety. According to the teaching of the Second Vatican Council, it is the Eucharist that is “the source and at the same time the summit of the entire Christian life” (Lumen Gentium 2002, 11). The Eucharist and the other sacraments contain the spiritual good of the Church because they make Christ present (Presbyterorum ordinis 2002, 5). The Church's liturgical activity is therefore the “ascension” of people to God.
In its prophetic function, the Church transmits and interprets Revelation, which contains the Truth of God. When Scripture is read in church, then Christ Himself speaks (Sacrosanctum Concilium 2002, 7). The proclamation of the Word of God is, in its essence, the “descent” of God to man.
The horizontal dimension, on the other hand, has all the Church's ministries and works of the apostolate, as well as evangelization and various forms of extensive (complementary) activities, which are carried out within the framework of the royal function: to serve is to reign (servire Deo regnare est).[6] Their purpose is to build community, which consists in the connection between a particular person and the community and between individuals. This activity can be called the new implantatio Ecclesiae,[7] which the Church carries out according to the principle: per visibilia ad invisibilia (through the visible reality to the invisible).
Thus, in the life and activity of the Church, we are dealing with two types of communication: 1) between man and God (ascending and descending connectivity) and 2) between people. Two basic questions then arise: 1) what role can the media play in the Church's activities aimed at connecting man with God? 2) what role can the media play in man's connectivity with others, or with the Church community? From these questions arises a concrete problem: does connectivity in the virtual world meet the criteria for real connectivity, and can these two types of connectivity be balanced?
1 Dialogue between Church and society in truth
Dialogue between the Church and the society in which she lives and works is a path of moving toward and seeking the truth. For this thesis, however, we need to assume that man naturally seeks the truth, the source of which is God, and this opening to God has empowered him to accept the truth proclaimed in the revealed religion, the Bible, the old and new covenants (Balthasar 1985, 17-18). The proclamation of God's truth resulted in the development of Christianity, which took over all of humanity. However, under the influence of external changes, the Church's place in modern society is increasingly threatened. The main reason for this new situation of the Church lies in socio-cultural and moral changes that lead to the atheization of societies. Their members do not need God for daily work and consumption, and the hedonistic goal of life even encourages the rejection of spiritual values. John Paul II called this lifestyle “an effort to impose an anthropology without God and without Christ.” He also stated that the contemporary culture of many societies “gives the impression of a ‘silent apostasy’ of the satiated man, who lives as if God did not exist.”[8] In contrast, the Church teaches that God cannot be thrown to the margins of social life, and that His activity should not be confined to the sphere of human privacy, since He must be considered the highest value in public life as well.
In addition to atheization, the second problem in the relationship between the ecclesiastical and secular communities is misunderstood pluralism. J. Ratzinger says that “pluralism - which is right and which also corresponds to the structure of Christianity, which opens up a space for the freedom of reason and its possibilities - tends to degenerate somewhat towards relativism. And then Christians begin to think that Christianity is only one among many voices, and therefore they too should not bring their personal beliefs to the political stage. This phenomenon can be found today in both the United States and Western Europe. There we observe this peculiar schizophrenia of the Catholic politician, who privately wants to be a faithful Catholic, while in public is convinced that he should not bring his personal views into the public sphere, explaining this by the need to respect pluralism.” [9]
Difficulties in the dialogue between the Church and society can be overcome through honest dialogue, in which the media play an increasingly important role. It is therefore necessary to constantly try to bring the Church and the media closer together, the real world of salvation with the virtual world of the new culture. The Church's activity is based on the Truth of Revelation, which is the “cause of things,” and when it is “subjected to a comprehensive study seeking a definitive and exhaustive answer, human reason reaches its peak and opens up to religion. For religion is the loftiest expression of the human person, since it is the pinnacle of his rational nature. It flows from man's profound pursuit of truth and forms the basis of a free and personal search for the Divine” (John Paul II 1983, 1-2). The search for truth along different paths but in one direction expresses the deepest aspiration of the human spirit, which manifests itself in the search for God, and at the same time in the search, through the search for God, for the full dimension of humanity, the full meaning of human life (John Paul II 1978, 11). In the Church, the priority of spiritual values over material values is revealed. Is it possible, then, that in the virtual world truth will be a fundamental feature of the new culture, through which the magnificent heritage of the human spirit will be able to express itself?
The Church, through its activities, enters into man's natural need to know the truth, and at the same time creates its own space for knowing and interpreting the Revealed Truth. This is necessary in order for it to fulfill its salvific mission, that is, to make Christ present in worship and the proclamation of the word, and to make the Gospel real in pastoral life and activity. The first area of the Church's cooperation with the media appears here, since in fulfilling its priestly and prophetic function the Church has from the beginning made use of various achievements of human thought. Thus, in the liturgy, books (first handwritten and then printed) were in widespread use, as well as technical audiovisual means as an aid to easier and more effective proclamation of the word of God. The use of modern means of media communication has never raised questions about the content and form of priestly-prophetic activity. However, the question arises: what are the limits of using technical media communication tools in fulfilling liturgical and teaching functions? Some members of the Church, especially those more associated with the already traditional ways of fulfilling these functions, for example, have doubts about the use of tablets in the liturgy? There is likely to be resistance from traditionalists, with simultaneous enthusiasm from church progressives.
2 The place of man in the cooperation of the Church and the media
The Church's use of media demands the resolution of a question: how far can technology enter the space of the mystery of man's communication with God? A clear answer emerges: the connectivity of man with God is based on the individuality, uniqueness, or identity of the human person (secularity) and the objective unknowability of the Persons of the Holy Trinity (holiness). Because of the ontological difference between man and God, building communication between them faces many difficulties. What is a problem in relations between man and God can become helpful in relations with other people, since all people have one rational nature (rationalis natura).[10] However, a necessary condition for communication, fruitful dialogue and the establishment of interpersonal relations is openness to the “otherness” (individua substantia) of the other in God. “Whoever remembers,” writes G. Miller, ”that we are all children of the same Father, and whoever believes that in Jesus God has become our brother, will see his brothers and sisters in the people standing next to him and will treat them as such. Note that security and the ability to develop oneself is a universal desire of people. So when the community of believers fulfills what it is called to do, then it can begin to restore hope to people looking for community, fidelity and trust, security and solidarity. Fulfilling these expectations is only possible if these processes take place within us. The more Christians are connected to God, the more fraternity there will be among them, since love of God is that conclusive criterion for love of neighbor, and vice versa. Fraternity thus becomes the exponent of whether Christians take God seriously” (Miller 1991, 137).
A person can reach out to another person if he respects the other person's “otherness.” Such an attitude will enable him to remain himself, i.e. man will retain his own uniqueness, which seems to be his first calling. Every person is called to be an original (unique) person, which means that not only who he is, but also what he experiences, what he thinks, what he says and how he acts should be unique. Each person receives his own existential vocation and follows an individual path of salvation. It should therefore be foreign to every human being to lock him or her into a rigid framework of patterns of action, or to limit his or her freedom to know the Truth and seek connection with God. In such a perspective, media communication offers new opportunities for man. One can even accept the thesis that, thanks to the richness of media communication, man has more and more opportunities to become himself and learn new paths leading to the Revealed Truth, as well as to discern values and principles of life. The consequence of this, however, is the need to respect the principles of this new media communication of truth.
3 Principles of media communication of truth
In the first place should be placed the rule of kaleidoscope in the search for truth, which a person should know, understand and accept. Truth in media cognition is a multiform complex whole. Thus, each person can see the truth in his own way. For it is enough to look at the truth from a different perspective, and it seems to look completely different from the truth learned a moment ago, or the truth learned by another person who shares his discovery with others. It is not the “appearance” or message of the media truth that should be argued about, but the image of the truth should be established first. The truth conveyed by the media is received differently by different people, but attempts can be made to describe it and create an image that is its totality. The role of media communication in such a conception is reduced to that of a delator[11] of truth as seen by different people in the context of their uniqueness and individuality. The truth conveyed in the media changes as in a kaleidoscope, but this does not deprive it of its value and meaning, since only its image changes, but the content of the truth is the same, and a person, if he makes an intellectual effort, is able to describe and use the truth learned through the media.
In second place appears the tree rule in learning media truth. Truth is always a unity, but all the time it develops from a seed into a huge tree. And so the truth that people living at the beginning of the 21st century know can be compared to a tree that grew from a seed, that is, a picture of the truth that people living at the beginning of the era after the birth of Christ had; if humanity continues to develop civilization truth will become an even bigger tree, without ceasing to be the same truth. The truth conveyed in the media has the characteristics of actual human knowledge. Therefore, it cannot be accused of not being a seed, and one cannot resent the fact that its current form often fails to meet the expectations of the viewer. Truth is transforming all the time, and it is up to man to be able to see its source and recognize its potential. Different ways of communicating the truth do not violate its essence, but only represent its external form.
In the third rule of truth inquiry conveyed in the media, the symbol is binoculars. From learning the truth, holistic and certain knowledge is born. In media communication, on the other hand, truth is presented on the basis of facts, which makes it only partial knowledge that is “seen through binoculars.” Thus, media communication starts from what can be known through the senses, and every viewer has the right, and is even called upon, to use this sensory truth to know the truth in objective terms. What the media show is an image of objective truth, but limited by the media's field of vision. The purpose of the media is not to teach the truth, so if one wants to seek the truth in media coverage, he should be aware that what he sees and hears is only a part of the whole truth. It is therefore to know the truth in a completely individual way, since the media message itself does not occupy a central place, but one should seek it, that is, come closer to it through personal needs to know the truth.
The fourth rule is about taking a holistic view of the truth in order to seek an understanding of specific facts (part of the whole) in its perspective. This is the rule of the candle, which fills the space with light and reveals its hidden secrets. The truth in media communication does not present ready-made solutions, so it is necessary to treat the truth conveyed in the media as a symbolic whole of absolute truth, which can be confronted with a concrete fact. The point, therefore, is that learning about truth in the media should preserve its absolute value, while recognizing that truth cannot be possessed, but can only be “saturated” with it. Truth is visible, clear, appealing, but its value lies in the fact that its source is outside the reality in which man lives.
Rules alone are not enough, because their addressee is man, and it is up to him how he will use the benefits of the media and how he will avoid the dangers of the virtual world. The rules outlined are intended to help preserve the value of absolute truth and emphasize the personal nature of media communication, which demands respect for the two most important values: freedom and responsibility. On the other hand, there are two basic criteria in their use: truth and justice. Together they form the foundation of an authentic deontology in the use of modern powerful social media (John Paul II 2005, 3).
The rules outlined above also open up new perspectives for cooperation between the Church and the media. John Paul II stressed that it is “the Church, which, by virtue of the message of salvation entrusted to it by its Lord, is also the teacher of humanity, that feels the obligation to make its own contribution to a better understanding of the perspectives and responsibilities associated with current developments in social media. Precisely because they influence the consciences of individuals, form their mentality and determine their vision of affairs, it must be reiterated in a firm and clear way that the tools of social media belong to an organic structure of rights and responsibilities, both from the point of view of ethical formation and responsibility, as well as with regard to laws and institutional competence. Everyone and everyone is responsible for the positive development of the media at the service of the common good.” [12]
4 Media communication and the salvific mission of the Church
Media communication concerns the Church, which is a salvific community,[13] and at the same time a human community.[14] As for the social dimension of the Church, there is little difficulty in accepting media communication, since the ecclesial community is conditioned externally through concrete socio-cultural, economic, political realities. Thus, the Church, as a human community, is connected to the world in which secular realities and spiritual values are confronted, good and evil face each other.[15]
On the other hand, the salvific dimension is linked to a very specific question: is there a God in the virtual world? Is it possible to connect with Him through the media? Answering these questions requires some findings. First, it is necessary to refer to nomenclature. Consistently, then, the name should be used: “virtual world”. Unlike the “real world,” which is the creation of God, the author of the “virtual world” is man. This is the fundamental difference.
Therefore, it can be argued that, according to the Church's teaching, media are “gifts of God” that, “according to His providential intention, unite people in brotherhood and thus help them cooperate with His plan of salvation.”[16] God bestows on man not only spiritual goods (graces), but also concrete fruits of the work of creation. However, the term “virtual world” should be viewed differently. This is because it is not a created world, but as the name says: “unreal.” That is, the world can be real (actual) and unreal (unreal). Man has access to both, but in the real world the laws established by God apply, while in the virtual world it is man who establishes the laws, using the principle of the relative autonomy of earthly reality.[17] In the real world the presence of God is real, and we recognize him using sensory and rational cognition, and at higher levels of spiritual development through mystical experiences. In the virtual world, on the other hand, man cannot exist, but can only direct it. And into the virtual world, understood in this way, man can invite and introduce God and make it possible to recognize him through symbols. In the virtual world, therefore, neither man nor God can be real. This statement has very big implications for the Church's salvific mission.
Above all, in carrying out the priestly and prophetic function, the Church sets a basic condition: the presence of God and man must be real. Therefore, it is not possible to celebrate Mass online or administer other sacraments, and certainly not to make confession online, as the lay faithful often ask priests. The saving power of the word also requires two conditions: the saving word is proclaimed only during the liturgy, and only by an ordained clergy person (bishop, presbyter, deacon)."[18]
The case is different with prayer and various forms of popular piety, and evangelization. A Christian can pray by participating in the broadcasting of Mass or other services, and can use various means of evangelization, including experiencing retreats conducted on the Internet. However, these are virtual formulas, meaning it is up to the individual to decide what role they will play in his life.
On the other hand, in the royal function, which provides ample opportunity to carry out the new commandment of love, each person can not only use various forms of communication with other people and form bonds with them, but also has unlimited opportunities to create original methods of communicating with people and seek various ways to form community ties.
5 Principles of cooperation between the Church and society in the virtual world

First, it is necessary to clearly specify how the “ontological” community of Christians can be renewed so that it also becomes a “humanly” conscious community of life and action. According to John Paul II, any initiative serves the true renewal of the Church when it is based on a solid awareness of vocation and responsibility for that special grace, unique and unrepeatable, by which every Christian in the community of the People of God builds up the Body of Christ. There is a key rule of all Christian apostolic and pastoral “practice,” the practice of the inner life and the social life, which every Christian should apply according to his vocation. For it is the principle of “royal service,” which commands every Christian, following the example of Christ, to demand of himself precisely what he is called to do, and to which he has committed himself by the Grace of God. Such fidelity to the vocation of a disciple of Christ carries with it the solidarity responsibility of all Christians for the Church. Thus, in the community of God's people, guided from within by the action of the Holy Spirit, each person has “his own gift,” which is his own vocation and participation in the saving work of Christ This gift simultaneously serves others, builds up the Church and builds up fraternities in the various spheres of human existence on earth (John Paul II 1979, 21).
On the other hand, the basic principle of participation of Church members in the real (temporal) world was formulated by the Second Vatican Council. According to the Council Fathers, Christians must not neglect their temporal duties, since by faith they are even more obliged to fulfill them, according to their own vocation. At the same time, involvement in temporal affairs should be closely linked to authentic religiousness. The Fathers also point out that true religious life does not consist in fulfilling acts of mere worship and certain moral obligations, but in the close connection between the faith they profess and their daily life (Gaudium et spes 2002, 43).
Since the virtual world is not and should not be an alternative to the real world, but creates new ways of realizing the Christian vocation, therefore it can be considered that not only in the real world, but also in the virtual world, the faithful must make the effort to renew the temporal order, since this is their own task, which they are to carry out, guided by the light of the Gospel and the spirit of the Church, urged by Christian love (Apostolicam actuositatem 2002, 7).

[1] God first spoke to man and constantly invites him to dialogue. Through this, he becomes someone else, and at the same time himself: someone he was from the beginning. Cf. Kowalczyk 2001, 122.
[2] “The Church always has the duty to study the signs of the times and explain them in the light of the Gospel, so that she can answer people's perennial questions about the meaning of present and future life and their relationship to each other in a manner adapted to the mentality of each generation. It is therefore necessary to know and understand the world in which we live and its sometimes dramatic expectations, aspirations and characteristics.” Gaudium et spes 2002, 4.
[3] Signs of the times are “not accidental events of history, but indications of God's will, which contain encouragement for the progress of humanity, but also warnings against errors and deviations.” Strzeszewski 1994, 296.
[4] Paul VI 1964, 78. The Second Vatican Council, in its pastoral constitution Gaudium et spes, expressed “profound respect for man and confidence in his efforts, hence the method of dialogue is raised to the rank of the main methods of pastoral influence.” Majka 1986, 531.
[5] “It is necessary, therefore, to study a specific theological discipline - pastoral theology, or practical theology, which is a scientific reflection on the daily growth of the Church, in the power of the Holy Spirit, in the context of history.” John Paul II 1992, 57. John Paul II pointed to man as the fundamental way of the Church (John Paul II 1979, 14). For the Church is made up of people, and therefore God speaks in and through the history of each person. As Church members fulfill their Christian vocation in the world, therefore, every person also discovers God's presence in the profound social, economic, political, cultural, scientific, technical, as well as moral, moral and religious transformations of concepts and aspirations, ideals and lifestyles. The scope and speed of these changes has also become a challenge for pastoral theology, in which history is no longer just a space of ready-made solutions that could only be the result of thought processes. History is treated as a space of continuous revelation of God. Kerber, Ertl, Hainz 1991, 34.
[6] John Paul II 1979, 21. “A true disciple of Christ, therefore, is only one who ‘shares’ in His mission, becoming like Him a zealous servant of others, even by self-sacrifice. For service, that is, concern for the needs of others, is the essence of all authority properly exercised: to reign is to serve." John Paul II 1998.
[7] John Paul II 1996, 3.
[8] John Paul II 2003, 7. In such thinking, man is considered “the absolute center of reality, thus making him take the place of God, contrary to the nature of things, forgetting that it is not man who makes God, but God who makes man. Forgetting God has led to the abandonment of man. (...). One should not be surprised if in this context a vast space has opened up for the free development of nihilism in the field of philosophy, relativism in the field of theories of cognition and morality, pragmatism and even cynical hedonism in the structure of everyday life.” Synod of Bishops 1999, 6.
[9] Christianity is a path that we should also follow against the current! With Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, President of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, interviewed by Marek Lehnert, Bogumił Łoziński, Marcin Przeciszewski (KAI - July 2004). http://niedziela.pl/artykul/1491/Chrzescijanstwo-jest-droga-ktora-winnismy (accessed July 8, 2017).
[10] Persona est rationalis naturae individua substantia (Boethius).
[11] The Latin word delatio means: to bring, to bring, to deliver. A delator in the positive sense is one who announces and communicates the teaching of the Church to its members and seeks to spread it outside the Church.
[12] John Paul II 2005, 10; cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2494.
[13] “It is the fundamental task of the Church in all epochs, and in our epoch in particular, to direct the gaze of man, to direct the consciousness and experience of all mankind toward the mystery of Christ, to help all men to commune with the depth of Redemption which is in Jesus Christ.” John Paul II 1979, 10.
[14] “The Church, as a human society, can also be studied and defined in those terms used by the sciences of any human society.” John Paul II 1979, 21.
[15] The Second Vatican Council states that “the imbalances from which the world today suffers ... are linked to a more fundamental imbalance that takes place in the human heart” (Gaudium et spes 2002, 10). See John Paul II 1986, 5.
[16] Pontifical Commission for the Social Media 1971, 2.
[17] “If by autonomy in earthly matters we mean that created things and human societies enjoy their own laws and values, which man is supposed gradually to know, accept and order, then autonomy so understood must be demanded; for not only is it demanded by the people of our time, but it also corresponds to the will of the Creator. (...) But if the words “autonomy of temporal things” are given the meaning that created things do not depend on God, and that man can use them without relating them to God, then everyone who recognizes God senses how false such views are. For creation without the Creator disappears. Besides, all believers, whatever religion they follow, have always heard the voice and revelation of the Creator in the speech of creatures. Moreover, creation itself falls into darkness by forgetting God.” Gaudium et spes 2002, 36.
[18] Homilies must not be preached to the unordained faithful. “For it is not the fact that someone possibly possesses a greater ability to speak or has acquired a better theological preparation that is important, but the fact that this function is reserved to a person who has received the sacrament of Holy Orders.” Instruction on Certain Questions Concerning the Cooperation of the Lay Faithful in the Ministerial Ministry of Priests 1998), 35.

Term 2024/25_L:

New technologies and increasingly modern means of communicating information are crucial in the media world. They are used today for super-modern cyber communication, and while they are essential, there are signs of dangerous dangers associated with them. One of these is the changing role that information media play today. Their main domain has until now been the transmission of information. Today, it is becoming increasingly clear that the media are beginning to shape reality, blurring the boundaries between reality and fiction.[1] With the help of modern media, a virtual world is being created, ruled by artificial intelligence.[2] To fully understand the virtual world (cyberspace), one needs, first of all, knowledge of the concept: “communication.”
The term: “communication” (Latin: communicare) in the cyber dimension means the transmission of information between persons using devices, devices and man, devices and the environment, between technical devices themselves. The consequence of communication is the establishment of communication between persons, connection between devices, interactivity between man and devices and interaction with the environment. The term: communication also has a personal dimension and means the exchange of verbal and non-verbal signals between persons or between a person and a community or vice versa. The purpose of personal communication is interpersonal connection, understanding, establishing relationships, deepening ties, as well as interaction (interactivity).
In this personal dimension of the concept of “communication” it is necessary to take into account the meaning of the Latin word: communio (community, fellowship). Personal communication means the establishment of interpersonal relationships (communio personarum) and the formation of community (named relationships), or fellowship (unnamed relationships). Thus, the concept of communion reveals the activity of specific individuals (they form a community of love),[3] or anonymous individuals (community) who are bound by the idea of solidarity.[4]
Combining these two meanings: cybernetic and personal, it is possible to define communication as the establishment of communication between persons, person and community, devices and man, devices and environment, and between technical devices themselves (the creation of a “network”), thanks to which it is possible to transmit information - symbolic content (by means of the written word, image, sound), which results, in the personal dimension, in the establishment of interpersonal relationships and action (activity) individual, in the community, or community.
Communication brings many benefits to a person. It can be an aid to understanding oneself and others, a support in learning about the physical world and culture, a way of interacting with others, the formation of community or social ties, interaction and coordination of activities, the accumulation and transmission of experience and socio-cultural traditions. Communication takes place at different levels and scopes - from communication between individuals to group communication to global communication. The means, ways and methods of communication, as well as its intensity and effectiveness, are also different.[5] Communication is a manifestation of culture, which in a narrow sense is precisely about communication.
The development of information technology is the driving force behind the current transformation of human society, but until now it has also been so, although in a completely different dimension (fire, the wheel, means of transportation, up to the new means of communication).[6] It turns out that only the acceleration and expansion of the possibilities of cybernetic communication has dramatically changed humanity, which has become a global society, functioning without spatial, temporal, socio-cultural limitations. New devices and ways of communication have made it easier and faster for people to communicate, but no longer through direct, personal contact: for communication in cyberspace, the intermediation of media tools is needed. It can be said that the “old” culture, in which the most important way to communicate was to meet “face to face” at a specific time and place, is giving way to a “new culture” in which people use the mediation of communication tools and techniques, but at the same time leveling spatial-temporal and socio-cultural boundaries by creating a virtual world."[7]
Communication tools, new programs and applications and, above all, social communicators are changing man, his daily life, personal relationships and affecting social activity. Most often, the personal or social dimension of modern people's communication is also emphasized.[8] However, culture has been placed in the background in cyber communication, yet today's people are witnessing the passing away of the old culture and the birth of a new culture. Thus, this article is an attempt to analyze the phenomenon of cyber communication in the perspective of culture with its core: the Christian religion.
Old and new culture
The new culture operates in two spaces. The first dimension of the new culture is the real world, which exists and develops on the basis of the principle of the relative autonomy of terrestrial reality.[9] With regard to this world, it is reasonable to claim that the source of its origin, existence and development is the creative plan of God, in the implementation of which every human being, but also all of humanity, has its own share.
In contrast, the second dimension of the new culture is the virtual world (cyberspace). It was built by man,[10] who, acting in accordance with the will of God the Creator, uses the achievements of knowledge, discoveries and inventions, and serving to improve communication. What is the nature of this cyberspace? It belongs entirely to nature, since man cannot “spiritualize” the virtual world.[11] God, therefore, has no direct involvement in the creation of this world, since it is created by people according to the law of the relative autonomy of earthly reality. Instead, the real world and the virtual world are connected by the person of man.
Man, entering the virtual world, does not cease to be a person through his body and spirit at the same time,[12] for he is a “spiritualized” body, just as the spirit is so deeply united with the body that it can be called an “embodied” spirit. [13] Man, created in the image of God, is a being who, on the one hand, belongs to the natural world and, on the other, is transcendent in relation to it.[14] It follows that man must remain free in relation to both the real and virtual worlds in order to be open to full communication with God. This raises the ethical question: does this contribute to authentic human development, supporting individuals and peoples in being faithful to their transcendent destiny?[15]
The hierarchs of the Catholic Church, analyzing the current situation, state that “the revolution in the social media entails a fundamental transformation of the elements by which people comprehend the world around them and check and express what they comprehend. The constant availability of images, ideas and their rapid global transmission have profound consequences, both positive and negative, for the psychological, moral and social development of individuals, the structures and functioning of societies, intercultural communication and the perception and transmission of values, worldviews, ideologies and religious beliefs."[16]
Thus, it can be concluded that the new tools and modes of cybernetic communication are contributing to constant changes in earthly reality, but above all they have changed man himself and his ways of functioning in the real world. The modern world, thanks to cyber communication, has become a “global village.” Instead, it can be said of today's man, who lives in the real world and simultaneously develops cyberspace, that he is a globally communicated being, and his life can be called consuming the fruits of communication."[17]
Although the old culture is giving way to a new culture, of which cyberspace is an integral part, man's ultimate goal, which is a transcendent destiny, should not change. Thus, man in the virtual world remains a free person, but one who seeks God on his path of pursuing his life's vocation. The sense of power given to man by today's advances in technology, however, can have the effect of leading to an understanding of man's autonomy that undermines his dependence on God and leads to atheism. “The adherents of such atheism claim that freedom consists in man's being an end unto himself, himself the sole author and demiurge of his own history; and this, they think, is incompatible with the recognition of the Lord, the author and goal of all things, or at least makes such a claim entirely superfluous.” [18] For this reason, the Vatican Council teaches that education for true freedom consists in forming such people who, while adhering to the moral order, would by their own reason judge things in the light of truth, plan their actions with a sense of responsibility, and strive to follow all that is true and right, entering into cooperation with others. [19] This is also a prerequisite for creating a new culture in which religion will continue to signify man's close relationship with God, and cybernetic “communication should proceed from person to person and serve the integral development of persons.”[20]
It turns out, then, that the powerful tools of cybernetic globalization, the new information technology and the Internet, which are used in the new culture, “transmit sets of cultural values - ways of thinking about social relations, the family, religion, the human condition - whose novelty and spectacularity can undermine and overwhelm traditional cultures.”[21] Therefore, “dialogue between cultures appears today as particularly necessary, if we consider the impact of new social communication techniques on the lives of individuals and nations.”[22]
New culture: God and man in virtual communication
Modern social media are cultural factors that contribute to history.[23] The new culture “historically” joins the era of time-limited information communication, and “functionally” belongs to cyberspace, which today is a “global village” without territorial, socio-cultural borders. The new culture, the time of unlimited communication and the global village together form a virtual world. The means of social communication in the virtual world have become for many the main tool for shaping individual, family, social attitudes. [24]
Man living in the real world seeks God both in the transcendental world and in earthly reality. So does God also exist in the virtual world? If God is omnipresent, then He is also in cyberspace, and His presence can be recognized in symbols and signs as in the real world. The essence of God's presence in these two worlds centers on communication. Man in the real world communicates with God through word and image, while in the virtual world only the order changes, because the image comes first, followed by the word. This is because the virtual world is an image (iconographic) world. Communicating with God through symbols and virtual signs that speak with content when a person wants to think it over, speak it out, or write it down, is just as valuable as communicating with God through the written word, which is also a kind of image and symbolic sign.
In the past, paintings were placed in churches, which acted as the Bible of the poor (Biblia pauperum). The paintings spoke to the faithful with the content of the representations and became the word of God, which they took in with both mind and heart. Today the image has been transferred to the glass screen, and in the near future it will be in space through hologram transmission. The image, then, is still only a tool, because communication takes place interpersonally: God and man communicate. An image, no matter how it is communicated, fulfills its role when an interpersonal relationship is established and interaction is created.
So what is the difference between the written (printed) word and the displayed (virtual) word? Is the word of God read from a book and the word of God read from a screen or hologram different? There is no difference between them, because the word of God is always the word of the Living God. Thus, the source of the word does not change, and only the way it is conveyed is different. The word and image, therefore, cannot replace the presence of God, who is alive and acting towards man only in a relationship of personal presence. The exclusion of personal presence deprives both the transmission of the printed word and the virtual word of the power of the Living God. [25]
This principle also applies to man's relationship to transcendence. Man, who lives simultaneously in the realm of material goods and spiritual values, can symbolically transfer them into the virtual world. However, these goods and values, whether occurring real or virtual, cannot balance each other, because in man the primacy has the spiritual, which is expressed by the dignity of his mind, will and heart. Therefore, the word and image, symbolizing man's experiences in the virtual sphere, do not represent any spiritual value if man does not appear there in person. In other words - it is not the word and image, but the persons of God and man that form relationships and can communicate.[26] This means that even the relationship between man and man has no personal value if they communicate only virtually in word and image without establishing an interpersonal relationship. If the recipient of a media message remains only in the realm of virtual transmission of content, then even if the image depicts a person or symbolizes his experiences, it will not be a personal message. It is therefore necessary to make a clear distinction between sender and receiver and the message itself, as well as the manner and tools of its transmission.
Communication in cyberspace has two basic dimensions: social and individual. In the social dimension, many people participate in virtual contact (media communications) and there is a mutual exchange of information between them. In the social dimension, the multifaceted interactivity of cyber communication blurs the distinction between sender and receiver, since everyone, at least potentially, can communicate something and receive something at the same time. It is thus a multidirectional communication.
In contrast, on the individual level, what matters is the individual person who opens or closes to receive information. A message always carries a certain content, which an individual person must accept mentally and evaluate its value volitionally (conscience-heart acceptance), on which the impact of this information on his person and life mainly depends. Virtual information that meets with mental-volitional acquiescence becomes a kind of obligation for man and has a tidal effect on the decisions he makes. “Today, this is particularly true of the Internet, which is helping to bring about revolutionary changes in commerce, education, politics, journalism, international and intercultural relations - changes not only regarding how people communicate, but also how they understand their lives."[27]
Thus, a twofold interaction is taking place in virtual communication. On the one hand, a new social worldview is taking shape, one that can be controlled to a very small degree. While, on the other hand, the necessity of defining the moral boundaries that each person individually should set in order to protect himself from the persuasive imposition of a worldview formed in the global virtual world appears.
However, the question must be asked: is it possible to shape the conscience of the entire virtual world? In other words, is there any chance of creating such mechanisms of global control in this world that, without violating the right to freedom of the media, will protect society and especially the individual person from suggestive influence on his personal worldview based on an ethical code and with respect for the moral law based on evangelical and humanistic values?[28]
John Paul II stressed that it is “the Church, which, by virtue of the message of salvation entrusted to it by its Lord, is also the teacher of humanity, that feels the obligation to make its own contribution to a better understanding of the perspectives and responsibilities associated with current developments in social communications. Precisely because they influence the consciences of individuals, form their mentality and determine their vision of affairs, it must be reiterated in a firm and clear way that the tools of social media belong to an organic structure of rights and responsibilities, both from the point of view of ethical formation and responsibility, as well as with regard to laws and institutional competence. Everyone and everyone is responsible for the positive development of the media at the service of the common good.” [29] In particular, “young people must learn how to function well in the world of cyberspace, making prudent judgments in accordance with sound moral criteria about what they find in it, and apply the new technology for their integral development and for the benefit of others.”[30]
The personal nature of media communication demands respect for two core values: freedom and responsibility. In turn, there are two basic criteria in using them: truth and justice. Together they form the foundation of an authentic deontology in the use of modern powerful social media. [31]
The new culture: virtual communication and the new evangelization
Cyber deontology is primarily concerned with the use of social media for evangelization. The evangelical message is to reach a great number of people through it, but it is also to be characterized by its ability to penetrate the conscience, to sink into the heart of each individual person with respect for what is most personal and personal in him."[32]
The media today are becoming indispensable not only in the first introduction to the faith, but are also necessary in catechetical teaching, or in the further deepening of the faith. [33] The Church, using the truth of the Gospel and the wisdom of theology, must seek knowledge of how to communicate with God and with people through the tools of social media.[34] Indeed, not only the fulfillment of the teaching function through traditional methods (preaching the word of God), but also virtual communication tools, especially the Internet, can be used to sustain and strengthen Church members in Christian commitment. Man, when entering cyberspace, should be aware that there, too, he can encounter God through a religious experience made possible by His grace. Experiencing the full closeness of God, however, requires interaction with other believers in the real world (the communion dimension of communication). The Church, therefore, should constantly seek ways to lead people from cyberspace into real, real and full communion.[35]
The tools of virtual communication (media) operate in cyberspace, but belong to the real world, and therefore make it possible to reach people in every latitude, overcoming the barriers of time, space and language. It is therefore a new way of evangelization that makes it possible to reach everyone with the message of faith, who wants to enter into dialogue with the mystery of God, revealed in Christ. [36] The role of the media in the new evangelization can be properly defined by taking into account, on the one hand, the creative plan embodied in the historical scientific process,[37] through which humanity “continues to move forward in revealing the resources and values hidden in all of creation.” [38] On the other hand, it is necessary to look at the media as “gifts of God” that unite people in a community of faith and thus help them cooperate with the plan of salvation.[39] The media, therefore, are not a private matter, but belong to the heritage of humanity and are an instrument of the new evangelization for the Church.
The Church's first task in relation to the media is therefore to use them to spread the Gospel.[40] Powerful tools of communication create and publicize a “new culture,” which is in opposition to the “old culture” with which the salvific message has hitherto been united.[41] In the new culture and media evangelization, it is very important to treat the word of God correctly. The Church's teaching on inspiration emphasizes the truth that God spoke through people, and this means that the human-historical factor belongs to God's action. Therefore, the biblical word is fulfilled only in the Church's response, which we call Tradition.[42] In the new evangelization, therefore, the media should be treated as a new way of God speaking. On the other hand, because of the human-historical factor in the new evangelization, there is no change in the role of the Church, which points out the ethical and moral criteria related to the media process - criteria that are found in both human and Christian values.[43]
Today, the Church must look for opportunities to communicate the Gospel in the “new culture,” since the use of technology and the technology of modern communication is an integral part of its mission in the third millennium. In the “new culture,” the Church should use the tools of communication for religious information, evangelization and catechesis, for the formation of pastors in this field and for educating the users and addressees of various communication tools to mature responsibility. [44] Pastors should encourage the spread of the Gospel with the help of the media.[45] The new media evangelization should therefore more strongly emphasize the role of Church members, who have the right to speak freely about what is good for the Church, but with due concern for the purity of faith and morals, respect for pastors and concern for the common good and dignity of persons.[46]
The purpose of the Church's media should be to convey the full truth about the meaning of human life and history, especially in light of the revealed word of God and the teaching of the Magisterium. Often, however, social media omits what is truly new and important, among other things, including the message of the Gospel, and focuses only on what is fashionable or attracts momentary attention.[47] The Church's response to the threats of the “new culture” is the “new evangelization.” The new culture is based on new ways of communicating with the help of modern technological advances and the language of the media. For this reason, today the tools and means of communication matter more than the content of the message. [48] In the new media evangelization, therefore, it should be emphasized that the Christian faith encompasses two spheres: it reveals to us revealed truths that transcend reason, but at the same time it enters deeply into people's daily lives."[49]
Conclusion
The media have changed the modern world, but they have an even greater impact on human life. Today, it is necessary to recognize the virtual world as an integral part of human existence. However, it is above all the Church that should very strongly emphasize that it cannot become a substitute for the real world, and the virtual community should not replace the real human community. Above all, man should live in the real world, and the virtual world can complement it and enable man to more fully experience life in a complementary whole."[50]
In the new media culture, human life still physically belongs to the real world, but many moments of human existence must confront media processes. This clash between man and the media can be seen in the formation of personality and conscience, the interpretation and structuring of emotional ties, upbringing and formation, the elaboration and spread of cultural phenomena, the development of social, political and economic life. [51] The Catholic Church must also find its place in the new culture, since the media have become “the first Areopagus of modern times” and it is not enough to use them to spread the Christian message and the Magisterium of the Church. Therefore, with the help of the media, “it is necessary to integrate the message itself into this ‘new culture’ created by modern media.”[52]

[1] “It is a kind of fabulation of the world.” R. Kapuściński, Autoportret reporter, Krakow 2003, p. 107.
[2] Artificial intelligence (AI): a model of intelligence based on computer programs whose feature is learning.
[3] Communication, which serves an authentic community, is “more than the proclamation of views and expression of feelings. At the deepest level, it is the giving of oneself in love.” Pontifical Commission for the Social Media, Pastoral Instruction on the Social Media Communio et progressio 23 May 1971, 11.
[4] “The use of the new information technology and the Internet should be conscious and guided by the resolute practice of solidarity, at the service of the common good, within and among nations. This technology can be a means to solve human problems, to promote the integral development of the person, to create a world governed by justice, peace and love.” Pontifical Council for the Social Media, Ethics on the Internet 22 II 2002, I, 5.
[5] See on this subject M. Golka, Barriers to communication and the (dis)information society, Warsaw 2008. Communication is the transfer of information from a natural language system to a technical system, or between different logical systems. Communication means making sense of words and transferring data. Communication occurs between groups of people, organizations and societies. K. Wódz, J. Wódz, Functions of social communication, Dąbrowa Górnicza 2003, p. 7.
[6] To a large extent, new technology drives and supports globalization, creating a situation where national borders do not hinder the exchange of information. Pontifical Council for the Social Media, Ethics on the Internet 22 II 2002, I, 4.
[7] According to R. Zerfass, “the autonomy of the modern media has led to the creation of an ‘artificial’ world of data, information, trends and perspectives, a kind of interpretation-sound barrier that makes us doubt whether we are still able to reach the real world at all.” R. Zerfass, From Aphorism to Sermon, Krakow 1995, p. 32.
[8] In the new culture, the media must “try to communicate with people, not just speak to them. This means that they should learn about people's needs, understand their aspirations and, in all forms of communication, show the delicacy that human dignity demands.” John Paul II, Address to Media Professionals, Los Angeles September 15, 1987.
[9] “If by autonomy in earthly matters we mean that created things and human societies enjoy their own laws and values, which man is gradually to learn, accept and order, then autonomy understood in this way must be demanded; for not only is it demanded by the people of our time, but it also corresponds to the will of the Creator. For all things, by the very fact that they are created, have their own permanence, truthfulness, goodness and at the same time their own laws and order, which man must respect, having recognized the proper methods of the individual sciences or arts. Therefore, methodical investigation in all scientific disciplines, as long as it is conducted in a truly scientific manner and with respect for moral norms, will really never oppose faith, for secular matters and matters of faith derive their origin from the same God. Yes, one who humbly and persistently tries to investigate the secrets of things is guided, as it were, though unconsciously, by the hand of God, who by maintaining everything makes things what they are. Therefore, let it be deplored that some mental attitudes, which formerly, as a result of the rightful autonomy of the sciences not being clearly understood, were also not lacking among Christians themselves, and which, having caused feuds and disputes, led the minds of many to oppose faith and knowledge. But if the words “autonomy of temporal things” are given the meaning that created things do not depend on God, and that man can use them without relating them to God, then anyone who recognizes God senses how false such views are. For creation without the Creator disappears. Besides, all believers, whatever religion they follow, have always heard the voice and revelation of the Creator in the speech of creatures. Moreover, creation itself falls into darkness by forgetting God.” Vatican II, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et spes, 36.
[10] “(...) the media do nothing on their own - they are instruments, tools used as people wish to use them.” Pontifical Council for the Social Media, Ethics in the Social Media , 4.
[11] According to the truth proclaimed by the Church, matter is not of itself capable of giving rise to either life or spirit. It is God who is the Creator of the spiritual soul, which ultimately constitutes the “humanization” of man. John Paul II, Catechesis Man - the image of God - a corporeal-spiritual being 16 IV 1986, 7.
[12] “Corpore et anima unus.” Vatican II, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et spes, 14.
[13] John Paul II, Letter to Families Gratissimam sane 2 II 1994, 19. “Man as an embodied spirit, that is, a soul that expresses itself through the body, and a body formed by the immortal spirit, is called to love in this very united whole. Love includes the human body, and the body participates in spiritual love.” [13] John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation Familiaris consortio November 22, 1981, 11.
[14] John Paul II, Catechesis Man - the image of God as a corporeal-spiritual being 16 IV 1986, 1.
[15] Pontifical Council for the Media, Ethics on the Internet 22 II 2002, I, 1.
[16] Pontifical Council for the Social Media, Pastoral Instruction on the Social Media on the Twentieth Anniversary of Communio et progressio Aetatis novae 22 II 1992, 4.
[17] Some people view “globalization as a devastating flood, threatening the social principles that kept them safe and the foundations of the culture that gave direction to their lives.” John Paul II, Address to the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences 27 April 2001, 3.
[18] Vatican II, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et spes, 20.
[19] Vatican II, Declaration on Religious Freedom Dignitatis humanae, 8.
[20] Pontifical Council for the Social Media, Ethics in the Social Media 4 VI 2000, 21.
[21] Pontifical Council for the Social Media, Ethics on the Internet 22 II 2002, III, 2.
[22] John Paul II, Message for the XXXIV World Day of Peace 2001, 11.
[23] Pontifical Council for the Social Media, The Church and the Internet 22 II 2002, 2.
[24] John Paul II, Apostolic Letter Il rapido sviluppo 24 I 2005, 3.
[25] In the history of the Church's preaching, one can see the process of the slow diminution of the narrative form and, at the same time, the increasing appreciation of analytical and abstract communication. One of the reasons for this phenomenon was the use of print to disseminate Church teaching. This form of teaching had a catechism-like character, in which the emphasis was on dogma and moral precepts appealing more to the intellect than to man's faith. See R. A. White, La comunicazione pastorale, in Teologia e comunicazione, ed. C. Giuliodori, G. Lorizio, Cinisello Balsamo 2001, p. 205.
[26] The Second Vatican Council further states: “The singular reason for human dignity is man's vocation to participate in the life of God. From the very beginning, man is invited to converse with God. For he exists only because God created him out of love and continues to preserve him out of love, and he lives fully according to the truth when he voluntarily acknowledges this love and entrusts himself to his Creator” (Vatican Council II, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et Spes, 19).
[27] Vatican II, Decree on the Means of Social Communications Inter mirifica, 2.
[28] “While respect for freedom of expression may call for a degree of tolerance even of the voices of hatred, the internal rules of the Internet industry and, when necessary, the intervention of public authorities, should establish and enforce reasonable limits on what may be said.” [29] Pontifical Council for the Social Media, The Church and the Internet 22 II 2002, 8.
[29] John Paul II, Apostolic Letter Il rapido sviluppo 24 I 2005, 10. Cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2494.
[30] Pontifical Council for Social Media, Pontifical Council for Social Media, The Church and the Internet 22 II 2002, 7.
[31] John Paul II, Apostolic Letter Il rapido sviluppo 24 I 2005, 3.
[32] Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii nuntiandi 8 Dec 1975, 45. This is pointed out by H. Urs von Balthasar, stating that Revelation only to the poor is glad tidings and “is fruitful only in the infertile, just as it is fruitful only and only in the obedience of faith, which allows itself to be guided by the word against man's desire to dispose of himself. Revelation can become a “treasure” in God, a “precious pearl,” a miraculous “good” (Isaiah 57:13; Matthew 5:4; 19:29). The soil of the human heart “corresponds” to the divine sower only if, receiving the seed, it does not bring - as a result of forced and careless listening to the word of God - only a withering crop, but persists in the habitual act of faith, which in the Church tradition is called the act of contemplation”. [33] H. Urs von Balthasar, Who is a Christian?, Krakow 1999, pp. 66-67.
[33] Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii nuntiandi 8 December 1975, 45.
[34] John Paul II, Apostolic Letter Il rapido sviluppo 24 I 2005, 5.
[35] Pontifical Council for the Social Media, The Church and the Internet 22 II 2002, 9.
[36] John Paul II, Apostolic Letter Il rapido sviluppo 24 I 2005, 5.
[37] Pontifical Council for the Social Media, Pastoral Instruction Aetatis novae 22 II 1992, 1.
[38] John Paul II, Encyclical Laborem exercens 14 IX 1981, 25; Cf. Vatican II, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et spes, 34.
[39] Pontifical Commission for the Social Media, Pastoral Instruction Communio et progressio May 23, 1971, 2.
[40] John Paul II, Apostolic Letter Il rapido sviluppo 24 I 2005, 2.
[41] In the new culture, religion is often deliberately destroyed through such actions as: “ignoring or relegating religious issues and experiences to the sidelines; treating religion without proper understanding or even with disdain as an object of shallow curiosity that does not deserve serious attention; spreading religious novelties at the expense of traditional faith; unfriendly treatment of legitimate religious communities; judging religion and religious experience according to secular criteria of usefulness and favoring those religious views that suit secular tastes; and attempting to enclose transcendence within the confines of rationalism and skepticism. Today's media often reflect the state of the human spirit, typical of postmodernism, closed 'within the limits of its own immanence, without any reference to transcendence' (Fides et ratio, 81).” [41] Pontifical Council for the Social Media, Ethics in the Social Media 4 VI 2000,18.
[42] J. Ratzinger, The Spirit of the Liturgy, Poznań 2002, p. 151.
[43] Pontifical Council for the Social Media, Pastoral Instruction Aetatis novae 22 II 1992, 12.
[44] John Paul II, Apostolic Letter Il rapido sviluppo 24 I 2005, 2.
[45] Cf. Code of Canon Law, can. 822, § 1.
[46] Cf. Code of Canon Law, can. 212, § 3; can. 227. No one has the right to speak on behalf of the Church or to imply that he is her spokesman if he has not been authorized to do so by law; nor should personal views be presented as Church teaching (cf. can. 227). “We conclude that the vast majority of people who play any role in social communication are reliable individuals who wish to do the right thing. Public officials, those who shape political decisions and those who run businesses strive to act in the public interest as they understand it. Readers, listeners and viewers want to use their time well for personal growth and development, so that their lives will be happier and more creative as a result. Parents are concerned about ensuring that the content permeating their homes through the media serves the good of their children. Most professional media workers want to use their talents in the service of the human family and are concerned about the growing economic and ideological pressures that are leading to a lowering of prevailing ethical standards in many media sectors. All of these people make countless choices about the media. Their content varies from one group to another and from one individual to another, but all these choices have an ethical weight and are subject to moral evaluation. In order to choose correctly, those making the choices must 'know the principles of the moral order and strictly put them into practice' (cf. Inter mirifica, 4).” [46] Pontifical Council for the Social Media, Ethics in the Social Media 4 VI 2000, 4.
[47] Pontifical Council for the Social Media, Ethics in the Social Media 4 VI 2000, 13. “Among the temptations that exist on the side of religion are adopting an exclusively negative and judgmental attitude toward the media; failing to recognize that the legitimate principles of the proper functioning of the media, such as objectivity and impartiality, may not allow special treatment for the institutional interests of religion; presenting religious content in an emotional and manipulative manner, as if it were a commodity that must compete in an overly saturated market. the use of the media as tools of control and domination; the unnecessary secrecy of information and other offenses against the truth; the silencing of the Gospel injunction to repent, repent and improve one's life and replacing it with a colorless religiosity that demands little from people; the fostering of fundamentalism, fanaticism and religious exclusivism that fuel contempt and hostility toward others.” [48] Ibid, 18.
[48] John Paul II, Apostolic Letter Il rapido sviluppo 24 I 2005, 3.
[49] “New times demand ... that the Christian message be communicated to modern man by new methods and expressed in language and forms that are readable, so that the Gospel answer to the questions of the man of our time may be comprehensible, meaningful and profound to him, while at the same time in no way compromising or distorting the content of the Gospel message.” John Paul II, Inaugural Address Delivered at the Opening of the Proceedings of the Fourth General Conference of Latin American Bishops New Evangelization, Human Progress, Christian Culture “L'Osservatore Romano” 13(1992)12, p. 24 (Polish edition).
[50] Perhaps a good image of this complementarity would be the unity of the human person, in which body and spirit form a whole. Man as an embodied spirit, that is, the soul that expresses itself through the body, and the body formed by the immortal spirit, is a united whole. John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation Familiaris consortio 22 XI 1981, 11.
[51] John Paul II, Apostolic Letter Il rapido sviluppo 24 I 2005, 3.
[52] John Paul II, Encyclical Redemptoris mission 7 Dec 1990, 37.

(in Polish) Grupa przedmiotów ogólnouczenianych

(in Polish) nie dotyczy

(in Polish) Opis nakładu pracy studenta w ECTS

The basis for recognition of the student's workload is firstly participation in class and active involvement in the discussion of the topics discussed in the lecture. Also taken into account is the student's personal interest in the presented problems of the lecture presented during class in the form chosen by the student (prepared written material, presentation, voice in discussion). The student also has the right to ask for personal consultations with the lecturer and propose alternative ways to demonstrate knowledge of the lecture topic to the requirements. The evaluation will also take into account the student's own work and time spent preparing for class, reading literature, especially achievements in carrying out internships, projects and original ideas related to the topic of the lecture. Self-study and the results of the student's personal scientific search on the topic of the lecture will also count towards the final grade. It will be an obligatory task for the student to prepare an essay on a topic selected from the list proposed by the lecturer, but with the possibility of preparing an essay on an original topic proposed by the student that falls within the topic of the lecture. Participation in teaching classes, development of the content of the lecture: 30 - 2 Own work with the subject reading and preparation of an essay as a written paper for credit: 30 - 1 Student workload in hours: 60 Number of ECTS points: 3

Subject level

elementary

(in Polish) Punkty ECTS

(unknown)

Learning outcome code/codes

P6S_WK P6S_UK TMA_W01, TMA_W03, TMA_W10, TMA_W13, TMA_W23, TMA_U01, TMA_U05, TMA_U12, TMA_U28 TMA_K01, TMA_K18

Type of subject

obligatory

Preliminary Requirements

Man living in the real world seeks God both in the transcendent world and in earthly reality. So does God also exist in the virtual world? If God is omnipresent, then He is also in cyberspace, and His presence can be recognized in symbols and signs as in the real world. The essence of God's presence in these two worlds centers on communication. Man in the real world communicates with God through word and image, while in the virtual world only the order changes, because the image comes first, followed by the word. This is because the virtual world is an image (iconographic) world. Communicating with God through virtual symbols and signs, which speak with content when one wants to think it over, speak it out, or write it down, is just as valuable as communicating with God through the written word, which is also a kind of image and symbolic sign. Can the Church function in the virtual world? This question can be answered within the framework of practical theology. After all, within the scope of its research is pastoral communication, which deals directly with man as a person open to communication with God and with others, and capable of forming individual-community relationships. Pastoral communication, therefore, has a distinctly personal character and implies the establishment of interpersonal communication, information exchange and interaction. Crucial in the media world are new technologies and increasingly modern means of communicating information. They are used today for super-modern cyber communication, and while they are essential, there are signs of dangerous dangers associated with them. One of these is the changing role that information media play today. Their main domain has until now been the transmission of information. It is now increasingly clear that the media are beginning to shape reality, blurring the boundaries between reality and fiction. Through modern media, a virtual world is being created, ruled by artificial intelligence. To fully understand the virtual world (cyberspace), first of all, one needs to know the concept: “communication”. On the other hand, in the ecclesial field, knowledge of the Church's salvific and complementary activities is essential.

Course coordinators

Jan Przybyłowski

Learning outcomes

The purpose of the lecture is to answer the basic question: what today is the overriding purpose of the life and activity of the Church, whose members live in the real and virtual worlds? Before answering this question, it is necessary to turn to a brief description of the situation of the believer in the media world. “Our life today is very busy with the vision of the outside world. The means of communication have grown so large, have become so aggressive that they draw us in, that they detach and disconnect us from ourselves, depriving us of personal consciousness. Let's be careful! We can move from the position of mere observers to that of critics, thinking people and judges. The attitude of thinking consciousness is extremely important for today's man if he wants to become a living human being, and not a mere screen on which thousands of images fall. If we Christians want to discover the signs of the times, an act of reflection is necessary for us, because, as the Council teaches in the Constitution Gaudium et spes, explaining time, that is, the empirical-historical reality that surrounds and affects us, must be done in light of the Gospel. The discovery of the signs of the times is a work of Christian consciousness. It results from the juxtaposition of faith and life, but not by artificially and superficially superimposing some pious thought on our experiences, but rather on perceiving at what points these experiences of ours, because of their inner dynamism, because of their obscurity, and sometimes because of their immorality, demand the ray of faith, the Gospel word that would define and redeem them. Or the discovery of the signs of the times occurs by realizing at what point and where they come out of themselves to meet the higher plans, which we know to be Christian and divine plans, such as the search for unity, peace, justice. At what point does our possible action of charity or apostleship merge with the maturity of favorable circumstances indicating that the hour has come for the simultaneous development of the Kingdom of God in the human kingdom?” (Paul VI 1974, 563).
Jesus called the Church to save people, which in practice means realizing the work of salvation and making His Person present. According to Christ's design, in the Church people should be able to have real access to the means of salvation: sacrifice, the saving word and prayer. The salvific mission of the Church, therefore, is to connect people with God in a real way. This is the vertical dimension of pastoral activity, which the Church fulfills through its priestly and prophetic functions.
The Church offers sacrifice, preaches the word and prays, i.e., celebrates the liturgy and carries out various forms of popular piety. According to the teaching of the Second Vatican Council, it is the Eucharist that is “the source and at the same time the summit of the entire Christian life” (Lumen Gentium 2002, 11). The Eucharist and the other sacraments contain the spiritual good of the Church because they make Christ present (Presbyterorum ordinis 2002, 5). The Church's liturgical activity is therefore the “ascension” of people to God.
In its prophetic function, the Church transmits and interprets Revelation, which contains the Truth of God. When Scripture is read in church, then Christ Himself speaks (Sacrosanctum Concilium 2002, 7). The proclamation of the Word of God is, in its essence, the “descent” of God to man.
The horizontal dimension, on the other hand, includes all the Church's ministries and works of the apostolate, as well as evangelization and various forms of extensive (complementary) activities, which are carried out as part of the royal function: to serve is to reign (servire Deo regnare est). Their goal is to build a community, which relies on the connection between a particular person and the community and between individuals. This activity can be called the new implantatio Ecclesiae, which the Church carries out according to the principle: per visibilia ad invisibilia (through the visible reality to the invisible).
Thus, in the life and activity of the Church we are dealing with two types of communication: 1) between man and God (ascending and descending connectivity) and 2) between people. Two basic questions then arise: 1) what role can the media play in the Church's activities aimed at connecting man with God? 2) what role can the media play in man's connectivity with others, or with the Church community? From these questions arises a concrete problem: does connectivity in the virtual world meet the criteria for real connectivity, and can the two types of connectivity be balanced?

Assessment criteria

The student's achievements in terms of acquired knowledge, skills and competencies will be evaluated according to the grading scale adopted in the regulations. Since the topics of media and pastoral care of the Church are, by definition, interdisciplinary and applied, therefore, the final evaluation will take into account participation and activity in class, as well as skills and competence in proposing original, creative ways of using theory in practice.The student should have a basic knowledge of media, ecclesiology and pastoral care. The student will gain knowledge of the Church's mission and new ways of carrying it out. He is acquainted with the possibilities of practical use of media in the activities of the Church.
He or she is acquainted with the possibilities of applying the media to the daily life of Church members.

Practical placement

Not applicable

Bibliography

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Term 2024/25_L:

Additional information

Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system:

Description of WT-SST-MDU in USOSweb