VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – If he were alive today, even St. Paul would send text messages, tweet and shoot emails to spread the news, Pope Francis said Saturday in his message for World Social Communication Day. the Roman Catholic Church.
St. Paul, who lived in the first century of the Christian era, spread the new faith to Europe and Asia Minor and is believed to have written much of the New Testament.
“All tools have their value, and that great communicator who was Paul of Tarsus would surely have made use of e-mail and social messaging,” the pope said in the message, titled “Come and see.”
Still, Francis said Paul was at his best preaching in person, saying that journalists and other communicators today should do more “take to the streets … meet people face to face to investigate stories or to verify certain situations first hand “.
He said that too often research reports were replaced by a “standard, often biased narrative” that was not able to capture problems and aspirations at the grassroots level.
“In communications, nothing can ever completely replace seeing things in person,” he said.
The world owes a debt of gratitude to journalists, camera operators, photographers and others who often risk their lives to seek the truth, he added.
“Thanks to their efforts, we now know, for example, the plight of persecuted minorities in various parts of the world, the many cases of oppression and injustice inflicted on the poor and the environment, and many wars that would otherwise be ignored. , “He said.
Report by Philip Pullella; Editing by Helen Popper