Fifth Professional Seminar for Church Communications Offices: Accepted Papers

Rome, April 27-29, 2006
Fifth Professional Seminar for Church Communications Offices

English | Italiano | Español

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.School of Church Communications

PAPERS

The Ecumenical and Inter-religious responsibility of Church Communication Offices

Prof. Joan-Andreu Rocha Scarpetta
Ateneo Pontificio Regina Apostolorum di Roma
jandreurocha@hotmail.com
Tel: 3404900907

Autore:

Prof. Joan-Andreu Rocha Scarpetta – Professor of Ecumenism and Theology of Religions, Director of the Master Program in "Church, Ecumenism and Religions" of the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum (Rome). Creator and Director of the Media Relation Office of the Montserrat Shrine and Cultural Centre (Barcelona) - Member of the UNESCO Association for Interreligious Dialogue – Member of the Academic Committee of the International Foundation for Intercultural and Interreligious Education (IFFIE).

Abstract:

The growing relevance of non-Christian religions in what used to be a mainly Christian sphere underlines the configuration of an emergent new Inter-cultural society. On the other hand the witness of faith which should be given in the public forum of the media makes it necessary for Christians to work together more effectively in their communications efforts and to act in more direct cooperation with other Christian Denominations and other Religions, not only to ensure a united religious presence in the very heart of mass communications, but also to make our faith more understandable to the faithful of other Christians Denominations and Religions. Considering these facts the Paper seeks to define the responsibility of Church Communication Officers in Ecumenical and Inter-religious dialogue from a theoretical and practical perspective.

After offering some considerations on the concept of "religious other", and the specific trends underlying Church, Christian and Religious Communication, the Paper presents a comprehensive synthesis of the different levels of Ecumenical and Interfaith dialogue according to the Catholic Church's Magisterium, from where three main levels of involvement of Church Communication Officers in Interfaith and Ecumenical dialogue can be deduced:

1) Information as language identity;
2) Communication as Dialogue and
3) Communication as Cooperation.

After proposing some specific examples that illustrate the practice of this three levels of "dialogue" from the perspective of Church Communication Offices, the Paper concludes with a description of a growing new paradigm in Church Communication that gives a prominent place to the Inter-cultural dimension of Modern Society and to the importance of self identity as the crucial starting point for an effective Ecumenical and Interfaith Communication.

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