‘We need a communication based on humanity’

The key to rediscovering “the path to a fully human communication” is the “wisdom of the heart”. Pope Francis’ call for this year’s World Day of Social Communications is at the core of the video message the Prefect of the Vatican Dicastery for Communication, Paolo Ruffini, sent on Monday, 26 August, to participants in the Second General Assembly of the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon (ceama), concluding in Manaus, Brazil.

Uniting what is divided

The message, in Spanish, emphasizes the crucial importance of communication as a means to foster unity among peoples while preserving their cultural differences. Communication, Mr Ruffini notes, serves to “unite what is divided” and, as such, it is a cum munus, that is, a “mutual gift” that arises from the relationship that is established “by speaking, listening and understanding the other.” This shared gift “intertwines our differences, makes us members of each other, reflects how everything is interconnected”.

A human communication inspired by
the wisdom of the heart

A human communication, said Mr Ruffini, is necessary to counter the “colonizing invasion of mass media” in order to “build a better world”. We need a “different narrative” that “does not surrender to evil”, and a communication system that is “based on humanity”, rather than on technology or algorithms — one that encourages dialogue, a culture of encounter and care of the common home, the Prefect said, echoing Pope Francis’ words.

A spiritual gaze

In the face of “the exponential advancement” of digital systems and artificial intelligence, he again called for providing communication with “a spiritual gaze”, capable “of bringing back to unity what we have divided out of selfishness”, and he also called for ongoing education and collective responsibility.

CEAMA ’s Assembly

ceama was established in 2020 as a result of the special Synod of Bishops for the Pan-Amazonian region, held in the Vatican in October 2019. The body acts as a “bridge” between the various ecclesial and socio-environmental initiatives at a continental and international level, thus contributing to the implementation of the many proposals which emerged from the Synod.

The meeting held in Manaus brought together representatives of the Church in Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela and the French Amazon. They discussed the theme: “Christ Indicates the Amazon: Communion, Mission and Participation”, in view of the second session of the Synod of Bishops on Synodality, scheduled from 2 to 27 October in the Vatican. During the four days of discussions, participants focused on the current situation in the Amazon, listened to testimonies and shared moments of spiritual conversation.