The Jubilee for Digital Missionaries and Catholic Influencers takes place over two days, 28th-29th July 2025. The days coincide with the beginning of the Jubilee of Youth which takes place over several days, and reflects the pattern of World Youth Days.
The warnings of Chapter 1 of Vatican II's Decree Inter Mirifica , on the means of social communication, appear exceptionally prescient of the world of digital communications, a world which was inconceivable at the time of its promulgation (translation from Flannery ed. Vatican Council II).
There exists therefore in human society a right to information on the subjects that are of concern to men either as individuals or as members of society, according to each man's circumstances. The proper exercise of this right demands that the content of the communication be true and - within the limits set by justice and charity - complete. Further, it should be communicated honestly and properly.
In his message for the 2013 World Day of Communications, Pope Benedict XVI wrote of the part that can be played by social media networks: "Social Networks: portals of truth and faith; new spaces for evangelization".
The culture of social networks and the changes in the means and styles of communication pose demanding challenges to those who want to speak about truth and values. Often, as is also the case with other means of social communication, the significance and effectiveness of the various forms of expression appear to be determined more by their popularity than by their intrinsic importance and value. Popularity, for its part, is often linked to celebrity or to strategies of persuasion rather than to the logic of argumentation. At times the gentle voice of reason can be overwhelmed by the din of excessive information and it fails to attract attention which is given instead to those who express themselves in a more persuasive manner. The social media thus need the commitment of all who are conscious of the value of dialogue, reasoned debate and logical argumentation; of people who strive to cultivate forms of discourse and expression which appeal to the noblest aspirations of those engaged in the communication process. Dialogue and debate can also flourish and grow when we converse with and take seriously people whose ideas are different from our own. “Given the reality of cultural diversity, people need not only to accept the existence of the culture of others, but also to aspire to be enriched by it and to offer to it whatever they possess that is good, true and beautiful” (Address at the Meeting with the World of Culture, Bélem, Lisbon, 12 May 2010).
In his message for the 2011 World Day of Communications, Benedict XVI also addressed the question of communicating the Gospel in the digital age:
The task of witnessing to the Gospel in the digital era calls for everyone to be particularly attentive to the aspects of that message which can challenge some of the ways of thinking typical of the web. First of all, we must be aware that the truth which we long to share does not derive its worth from its “popularity” or from the amount of attention it receives. We must make it known in its integrity, instead of seeking to make it acceptable or diluting it. It must become daily nourishment and not a fleeting attraction. The truth of the Gospel is not something to be consumed or used superficially; rather it is a gift that calls for a free response. Even when it is proclaimed in the virtual space of the web, the Gospel demands to be incarnated in the real world and linked to the real faces of our brothers and sisters, those with whom we share our daily lives. Direct human relations always remain fundamental for the transmission of the faith.
Digital missionaries might take to themselves one sentence from the prayer for the Jubilee, bearing in mind that they may not see the response to their posting from people in a very different part of the world:
May your grace transform us into tireless cultivators of he seeds of the Gospel.
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