Keywords: digital culture, digital media, parish priest, pastoral care, virtual life
Abstract:
Services in the Church, the mystical body of Christ, are varied, according to the calling by the Lord and the response of each baptized Christian. “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.” (1 Corinthians 12, 4-5). Monastics have chosen, out of love for God, to retreat from the world and make holiness their life’s purpose, towards which they advance through ascesis and unceasing prayer. The simplicity of spiritual life is a priority, whereas new communication means have little importance. The parish priest, who lives in the world, has as an eternal goal not only his own salvation but the shepherding of others towards communion with God. As such, in his pastoral and liturgical ministry, he has contact with the social and cultural environment of the community that he serves. From the communication perspective of the relationship with society, three major pastoral typologies emerge, which do not exclude hybrid approaches: The “Euchologion priest”, who is dedicated exclusively to sacramental life. His ideal is to live as a monk in the world, wary of social changes. He keeps away from modern technologies and advises his disciples to beware of them as they are temptations coming from evil spirits and obstacles on the path to salvation. The priest who is aware of the digital world. On his way from the church or on the way back, he does not avoid the digital Areopagus. Firmly attached to the values of the Orthodox faith and of traditional culture, he is open to the dialog with modernity. As such, he is connected with the new information and communication technologies. The missionary web surfing pastor. Usually a “digital native”, he considers that for the younger generation, the preaching of the Holy Gospel, the catechesis and the everyday interaction between people should benefit from the support provided by the new information and communication technologies. If for traditional communities, isolated and compact, model A is both necessary and sufficient, in the crowded urban areas, in the diaspora or in communities spread across a large geographical area, the priest’s opening towards digital media becomes a necessity. Digital media and culture are an important part of the contemporary daily universe, linked with the education system, with public administration, with mass media and entertainment. The priest needs to relate with digital environments in order to connect to the new culture and be a missionary of the Gospel of Christ in the virtual world. Knowing the specific language and main characteristics of this new culture is similar to the attitude displayed by the Holy Fathers towards the culture of their times. The extension of traditional direct communication with the faithful through new information and communication technologies is a form of spiritual interactivity and can increase the sense of community in parish life. By navigating the sea of digital life, the spiritual pastor is discovering both opportunities and risks, with direct effects on real life, on a personal as well as on a community level. Understanding the value system promoted by media culture and the way in which it influences the spiritual life of the faithful can be helpful in the struggle to cultivate the values of the true faith, to avoid new idolatries and the illnesses of modernity. But in order to be a safe and steady guide on the path to salvation, the spiritual pastor from the digital culture must be aware of himself and to keep alive the connection of the faithful with the safe harbour of the Holy Eucharist and with the Church’s life of prayer: “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Pt 3, 15).
Pages: 108-115