(ANS – Brasilia) – From 18th to 20th May there was a National Seminar for Young Communicators in Brasilia. It was promoted by the Youth Commission and the Communications Department of the Episcopal Conference of Brazil (CNBB). The aim of the weekend was to provide formation for young professionals in various media and several representatives from the Salesian presence in Brazil took part.

The meeting began with a round-table discussion of the Pope’s message for World Communications Day, Silence and Word: Path of Evangelization. Fr Eduardo Pinheiro SDB, Chair of the Youth Commission, reminded the young communicators of their responsibility for evangelization: “Your greatest responsibility is not only to communicate well, or to transmit faith or values, but something even greater: to help the Church and society to understand what is happening in youth culture, which is permeated by the culture of the media.”

On 19th May the day centred on a message which Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli, Chair of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, gave in a live video conference. It was based on the theme of Brazil’s commitment to World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro in 2013, and on testimonies from young people. “I know that the young people from all over the world will receive a fraternal welcome,” said the prelate, “but I think that you should be offering something more: the witness of a deeply Christian life. Your friends who are coming will be hoping to meet you as disciples of Jesus. This is the greatest communication which you should be offering to all the young people taking part in World Youth Day.”

Don Antonio Spadaro SJ, a lecturer at the Gregorian University in Rome, said in his talk: “The Internet is no longer an instrument, but an environment, an integral part of our daily life.” So “the real challenge for the Church is not to use the web well, but to live it well, to live in the web as in an environment. We exist in the web. A part of our life is digital, and a part of our life of Faith is also digital: it is a place where our Faith is lived out.”

On Sunday 20th, the final day of the Seminar, Sr Élide Folgolari, adviser to the Communications Department of CNBB, organised group work in which the participants were encouraged to reflect on the topic ‘How can we communicate Christian life through our profession?’ In all the reports, the key word turned out to be ‘witness’.

After this the Youth Commission gave a presentation on its current plans and activities, drawing attention to a web site for young people, www.jovensconectados.org.br ,  already in operation for a year and intended to motivate and animate young people in the lead up to World Youth Day 2013.

Fr Pinheiro presided at the closing Mass.

Published 28/5/2012