RAPID DEVELOPMENT (reflection)

The Incarnate Word has left us an example of how to communicate with the Father and with humanity, whether in moments of silence and recollection, or in preaching in every place and in every way. He explains the Scriptures, expresses himself in parables, dialogues within the intimacy of the home, speaks in the squares, along the streets, on the shores of the lake and on the mountaintops. The personal encounter with him does not leave one indifferent, but stimulates imitation: “What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light; what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops,” (Mt 10:27).

            This may be my last reflection on the Church’s documents on Social Communication. One can correctly say that I did this out of duty; for the sake of fulfilling the requirements in the course Media Literacy. However, I can say that at the end, I was not just able to accomplish the tasks, but was also able to arrive at many realizations that I never had before. My eyes have been opened. My mind’s critical and reflective abilities have been more developed. But most of all, I realized that communication and its means are everybody’s concern and most especially, my concern as a seminarian trained to become a future pastor of the Church.

            I have learned a lot of things. What I won’t be able to forget is the nature of the course media literacy which is stated as “the set of perspectives that is actively used to expose oneself to the media to interpret the meaning of the messages encountered.” As the principle goes, Nemo dat quod non habet (You cannot give what you do not have.) and if I have the ability to interpret the meaning of the messages conveyed through the media, I then have the edge in guiding others as well.

            I also realized that what I have received, I must give to others as well. The quotation above reminds me of the responsibility I have already been given because of the training I have undergone and will still undergo.

            In the end, I pray to God to grant me the courage to do what is right, to denounce what is evil, to lead others and myself to truth freedom and to always live with everyone and with HIM in communion and love, guided by His HOLY SPIRIT, and, inspired and strengthened by His SON who gave His life for me and for everyone; a friend who had shown the true meaning of friendship, the friendship which is the highest form of love.

                There is, however, a culminating moment in which communication becomes full communion: the Eucharistic encounter. By recognizing Jesus in the “breaking of the bread,” (cf. Lk 24: 30-31), believers feel themselves urged on to announce his death and resurrection, and to become joyful and courageous witnesses of his Kingdom (cf. Lk 24:35).

 

Reflection: The Church and the Internet

The Internet places in the grasp of young people at an unusually early age an immense capacity for doing good and doing harm, to themselves and others. It can enrich their lives beyond the dreams of earlier generations and empower them to enrich others’ lives in turn. It also can plunge them into consumerism, pornographic and violent fantasy, and pathological isolation. Young people, as has often been said, are the future of society and the Church. Good use of the Internet can help prepare them for their responsibilities in both. But this will not happen automatically. The Internet is not merely a medium of entertainment and consumer gratification. It is a tool for accomplishing useful work, and the young must learn to see it and use it as such. In cyberspace, at least as much as anywhere else, they may be called on to go against the tide, practice counter-culturalism, even suffer persecution for the sake of what is true and good.

                The means of social communication are in themselves amoral. Inasmuch as they can transmit valuable information to the receivers, they can also transmit contents with immoral values. The internet is among the many means of social communication. Thus, it is in itself amoral. It’s like a knife. A knife helps people to make work such as cutting easier. However, the knife’s other possible use is not only limited to the main purpose for which it was made. It can be used to hurt the people who themselves are the ones who had the idea of such instrument. It is the same case for the internet. The only way to ensure the safety of each user, especially those who are more prone to the influence of immoral contents, is to have them educated on the real purpose and the appropriate use of the internet. This education must NOT be only a repressive type where persons are just told what or what not to browse in the internet. Rather, this education must be some kind of a weapon they can use to protect themselves. They must learn to imbibe an objective and critical perspective, with the guidance of the Gospel and the precepts of the Church.  How can this education be made possible? The document poses an answer:

As much as possible, pastoral planning for social communications should make provision for this training in the formation of seminarians, priests, religious, and lay pastoral personnel as well as teachers, parents, and students.³³Young people in particular need to be taught “not only to be good Christians when they are recipients but also to be active in using all the aids to communication that lie within the media…So, young people will be true citizens of that age of social communications which has already begun” ³⁴—an age in which media are seen to be “part of a still unfolding culture whose full implications are as yet imperfectly understood”.³⁵ Teaching about the Internet and the new technology thus involves much more than teaching techniques; young people need to learn how to function well in the world of cyberspace, make discerning judgments according to sound moral criteria about what they find there, and use the new technology for their integral development and the benefit of others.  

We, seminarians are undergoing these formation and preparation for such task through various seminars and lectures most especially in our subject called media literacy. It was in this class that I came into contact with different Church documents regarding issues related to Social Communication. It was in this class that I learned to form and arm myself with a critical perspective that I employ as I encounter messages conveyed through various means of social communication, uncovering facts and sorting the truth from mere deception for profit. And as I become a better person, it would soon be also my job to ensure the education which is due to the people specially the youth and children who are the future of the society and the Church; to teach them not just in a theoretical manner but also and most importantly, by my way of living.

           

 

 

Ethics in Advertising (A Reflection)

            There is and “imperative requirement” that advertising “respect the human person, his rightduty to make a responsible choice, his interior freedom; all these goods would be violated if man’s lower inclinations were to be exploited, or his capacity to reflect and decide compromised.” 

            We are human persons and we have dignity. We know we have one and we fight for the respect of our dignity, we fight to be respect. How will you react if you are told that your dignity is being violated without you knowing it? Do you not feel betrayed? Well, the truth is we are all being abused. Who is our enemy? Let us focus on one enemy: the advertisements. This is the content of my reflection.         

          We are already bombarded by different advertisements. Oftentimes, we set them aside. But more often than not, are attention is capture whenever there are attention grabbing ads.

          We are told that they abuse us first, on their content and how they advertise it and second, on the their impact on us, audience. We see ads having celebrity endorsers which they try to present to be the expression of true beauty. Big muscles, less fat, larger breasts, bigger buttocks, acne free, fair in complexion, etc. We are told that having this or that gadget raises us on a higher pedestal in our society. We may deny it but we are influenced by such ads. And in this case, we are hindered from reflecting and realizing the true meaning of beauty, and we often end up pursuing things in vain and end up unsatisfied. We seek for more, and we add money to the pocket of the endorsers and owners of products or services.

          There are also ads that stealthily invests on lust. I can recall advertisements that have a woman seemingly feasted upon by hordes of muscle-packed, half-naked men. There are ads having women sensually savored by their partner.

          All of these would affect the minds who are not so critical and especially of the young ones

          Lesson: Think, and think some more plus, a little bit of prudence. We must realize what is necessary and what is vain, what provides us with what we really need, and what only uses us for their own profit.

 

 

(Reflection on) 100 Years of Cinema

“It is quite common for a group of children, particularly adolescents, to reject certain values when they are presented in abstract form.”

 

            I agree that adolescents really tend to reject certain values when these values are presented to them in abstract form. I had a first hand experience that can attest to this.        

 

            Beginning the first semester until December  2007,  our batch were conducting catechism classes with third year high school students. Fortunately (and a very challenging fortune), I was assigned to one of the last [I don’t want to say the least.] sections where many students have attitude problems and often have rough manner when dealing with others. It was a very challenging task. They have a very brief attention span (which could be just for two or three minutes, without exaggeration), always noisy and inattentive. They seem not to care of the message of the Gospel we are sharing. Perhaps, they found such discussions to be too boring, or perhaps unrealistic to listen to discussions which include ideas such as God, Jesus, Good News, and other faith related ideas which they perceive as something abstract – something far-fetched from the reality of their lives.

 

            I can’t blame them. They have their own specific situations in life. They have their own worries and problems.  They are influenced by unhealthy barkadas (peers). And sometimes, we forget to keep in mind that they undergo such experiences. It might even be a fact that we have not experienced what they experienced thus making us ignorant of what it feels like, of how they feel.

 

            I didn’t last long with that section and asked to be transferred to another class. I gave up because I wasn’t ready yet. I wasn’t geared for such kind of audience. I have to be more patient and persevering. In my case, it can’t be like those in the movies we usually see. It was a failure on my part. However, I learned a great lesson in life out of a great challenge, a realization that opened my eyes to one aspect of the  reality of life. The lesson I learned, when it comes to dealing with them, is that in order to be an efficient preacher is to be able to speak within the context of their own experiences to be able to share their burden, and touch them with what is preached – Jesus, love, life’s meaning, etc.

 

Aetatis Novae (Reflection)

     “Profit, not service tends to become the most important measure of success. Profit motives and advertisers’ interests exert undue influence on media content: popularity is preferred over quality, and the lowest common denominator prevails. Advertisers move beyond their legitimate role of identifying genuine needs and responding to them, and, driven by profit motives, strive to create artificial needs and patterns of consumption.”

     We must accept the truth. We are saturated by the many half- truths proliferated by the media. How many times have we succumbed to half- truths? I think many will be in the state of denial when confronted by such question. They don’t want to accept that what they believed in were half-truths (ergo, half-lies) or perhaps, DISTORTED LIES in order to be seen as true. They don’t want to accept that they were duped. They don’t want to accept that they committed a mistake in believing. They don’t want to change the perspective which they have already assimilated, bringing a seemingly comfortable feeling and convenience above others.

      What am I talking about? I think you know it already. Let me refresh your memory. How many times are we told by advertisements that having fair complexion makes us more beautiful? How many times are we told that height is might? How many times are we made to believe that we are beautiful when we have muscular body and large genital/ slim, sexy body sans cellulites, wrinkles, dark spots, plus big breasts? How many times are we tried to think that when we use this telecommunications network, we are really ourselves and that we are accepted by the society? We are really tricked. Is physical attributing the sole basis of beauty? Are we not in the end going to die, rot and disintegrate into ashes? {Every beautifying effort, therefore, ends to nothing. Vanity of vanities . . . } Do we really fit into the community when we oblige to their standards (which are just the consequences of social Darwinism)?

     This is the time to wake up and realize that we are not just this body plus vanities. We are more than that. We are spiritual beings. We transcend this physical world. In the end, nobody can cling to what this world presents to be what we need. It might be difficult but it is possible. This is not about a rat (whose tail was cut and was ashamed of it) telling others that they have to cut their tail to be beautiful. This is to raise one person from the lowest level he/she has brought himself/herself into.

     Once the society tries to tell you what you should be (and it is not what you are really ought to be), don’t buy it!

 

(A Reflection on) Pornography and Violence in the Communications Media: A Pastoral Response

This document already pointed out the effects of pornography and violence in the communications media. In summary, these effects are:

Ø  Debasement of the human person’s dignity

Ø  Debasement of sexuality

Ø  Corrosion of human relationship

Ø  Exploitation of individuals especially women and young people

Ø  Undermined value of marriage and of family life

Ø  Development of anti-social behavior / weakened sense of morality

Ø  Formation of dangerous sex offenders

Can anyone deny these facts? Are they not appalling? If they are (and I believe that they are), why does our society still tolerate pornography and violence?

 

Aesthetics vs. Obscenity

            I have already written in my reflection on Inter Mirifica about the distinction between what is art and what is pornographic. The basis of distinction is the raison d’être of such presentation. We have to take note that the dignity of the human person in all his/her aspects must be respected.

            Love must also be a raison d’être. If something presented in the media does not edify, it is not based on love but exists only for profit and for sensual gratification (being) justified by bad libertarian arguments.

 

Our Challenge

            We are all being challenged to stand up against pornography and violence. And following the usual procedure, it must begin first with us. As Christians, we are to have the sense of morality proper to a TRUE CHRISTIAN. {Much more if we are among the group of ministers or religious or formandees.}As the youth, we have to stand against what is not right. It might be difficult (I’m referring generally to the male population) to restrain ourselves but we have to do it. In as much as one person deserves respect and love, so are the rest. We just have to bear in mind two principles: LOVE and RESPECT.

 

Communio et Progressio

Communio et Progressio covers a lot of areas on social communication. I can’t reflect on the totality of the document (due to time constraint and simultaneous activities). Because of this, I have reflected only on a part that struck me most.

“Communication is more than the expression of ideas and the indication of emotion. At its most profound level, it is the giving of self in love. Christ’s communication was, in fact, spirit and life”

How many instances have we limited the idea of communication into just mere babbling or scribbled words? What is being presented to us in Communio et Progressio is a new perspective on communication which has a deeper character. It is an act of self-giving in love. Christ is given as the greatest example. In this new perspective, a new element enters into the picture: love.  Love here is not about the romantics’ idea of love. This love is beyond the limits of crush/ attraction/ infatuation. This love is the love a married couple have, who have lived for ten, twenty (or more) years, living faithfully with and for each other; this love is the love priests and nuns have, committing themselves exclusively for God and His people, sacrificing promising careers and family life; this love is the love single blessed have, sacrificing the opportunity of having a family of their own due to loftier reasons which can only be understood in the context of charity. Looking at such peoples’ lives, I could recall a definition of love: “It is a disinterested giving of oneself.”  It is simple. Though anyone may contest against this idea of love, let us accept it for the moment. In loving, one would not expect anything in return [One does not invest in love in order to gain profit.]. In loving, you are giving yourself; you are sharing your being and, therefore, it is part of your existence to love and (consequently) to communicate. The love-communication relationship is not new. What was implicit was only explicated and our eyes were only opened to a new perspective. It is time for us to digest this idea. Christ is our perfect model – the way, the truth and the life. He shared his spirit and life, he taught what is true and just, and he shared his whole self with us. He did it because of love and in loving us, he communicated his whole self with us.

 

Guide to the Training of Future Priests Concerning the Instruments of Social Communication(A reflection)

      I am a future priest and obviously, I am under this guide concerning the instruments of social communication. It was written in the GUIDE [1^st level] that its purpose is “to enlighten the students, refine their critical sense, and firm their conscience”. It is a good objective. It was an eye-opener for me. It was only now that I realize that I am to have enlightenment, a critical perspective and a properly formed conscience. As this is a concommitant requirement for a stdent in formation towards priesthood, I started to evaluate myself as to whether I have come up to the standard of a seminarian.   Now, after reading the said purpose, I recalled my experiences.

 

TRAINING OF RECEIVERS

     As regards the division of responsibilities in student training:

I.                    Family: I thank God that I have a family who understands me and taught me not with a taboo morality.

II.                 Catechism Class: Never in my life was I able to attend a catechism class.

III.               School: I can recall a teacher in Anatomy who prevented the reporters form presenting images of their report (the human reproductive system). I don’t think presenting such images is bad when even in some elementary schools, such pictures can be ordinarily found in classrooms. I’m not trying to criticize the teacher but this is a clear evident of the unhealthy perspective toward such things.

PASTORAL TRAINING

In the seminary, I can attest to the fact that we are constantly trained to use means of social communication in the proper and right way. We are gradually and constantly guided towards Christian maturity. We had modular classes on human sexuality, personality development, etc. We have constant Spiritual Direction, recollections and retreats (including our family). In as much as we are trained theoretically, we do not lack practical experience. Writing in this medium is a concrete example.

SPECIALIST TRAINING

As of now, I am still discovering my expertise. I believe that working in this specific medium is one way to discover. I know that I still have a lot to learn, to know and to discover.

 

CONCLUSION

I realized how fortunate I am for entering the seminary and for being formed in the manner according to the Guide. If I would be able to go on in the vocation towards priesthood, I agree that my  future priestly life would be lived in a “rich and productive way”. If I would not be able to be a priest, nothing is lost. Instead, I gained more: I had become a better person.   

 

Inter Mirifica – a reflection

     Inter Mirifica points out that various means of social communication possesses a great impact on each member of the society. Thus, eveery member can be affected by the inputs they receive and can produce varying effect depending on the content. The Church, as she is obliged to preach the Gospel, is  aware of the use and at the same time, the threat of such means of social communication.

     The use resides on the efficiency of such means in reaching and affecting the recipients. The Gospel can be easily conveyed to the younger generation. On the  other hand, threat lies on the variety of contents that may be in contrast with the Gospel message. What could these contents be? They may be referring to pornographic materials  and heretical ideas.

     At this point, some discussions rise as regards the basis of distinction between art and pornography and limit of free expression of opinions. Perhaps the distinction between art and porno lies on the reason for existence of such presentation. Paintings of nude men and women [just like in the Sistine Chapel] are considered art since it emphasizes the appreciation of the beauty and dignity of the human body. Porno films, magazines and tabloids are different. They show nude men and women, in very seductive and provocative poses or in the act of sexual intercourse just for the sake of arousing and (later on) feeding the carnal desires of the viewers/readers. Porno does not appreciate/recognize the beauty, sanctity and the dignity of the human body and its unitive act. Perhaps it’s time to evaluate magazines [claiming to be just another lifestyle magazine for men] as to why print such kind of photos; or the films as to how relevant or how necessary are the included sex scenes .  As regards opinions, they deserve respect but if they turn out to be deviant and contradictory to one’s faith, to the truth and to the good, are they not supposed to be re-evaluated (before being accepted by the reader) and be rejected?

     The obligation  of distinguishing good from bad isn’t exclusive for men/women in white cloth. It is for every Christian. Some say that the Church is too conservative [having "ancient moral standards"]. However, no reasons are to be presented in front of such critics. We just have to look at their life, motives and reasoning. They (including many who claim to be Christians) have selfish motives and insatiable carnal desires. Simply put, since they recognize authority exercised by the Curch, they see that what they want is in conflict with her teachings. They find it to be incovenient and disturbing. Thus, they will justify their own desires through whatever means they can find.

In the end, I realized that whatever may be presented, they can be evaluated by the last line of par. 5:

For not all knowledge is helpful, but “it is charity that edifies”.

The questions now are :

Are we edified by  what these various means of social communication present?

Is love an underlying principle behind what they present?