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Message of His Holiness Pope Francis for the 2021 World Communications Day
"Come and see!" This has always been the way that the Christian faith has been communicated, from the time of those first encounters on the banks of the River Jordan and on the Sea of Galilee.
"Come and See" (Jn 1:46). Communicating by Encountering People Where and as They Are
The 55th World Communications Day is celebrated on the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord, which in 2021 falls on Sunday, 16 May.
The text of the World Communications Day message is published each year on 24 January on the Feast of Saint Francis de Sales, the patron saint of journalists and editors.
Nothing replaces seeing things at first hand - In communications, nothing can ever completely replace seeing things in person. Some things can only be learned through first-hand experience. We do not communicate merely with words, but with our eyes, the tone of our voice and our gestures. Jesus' attractiveness to those who met him depended on the truth of his preaching; yet the effectiveness of what he said was inseparable from how he looked at others, from how he acted towards them, and even from his silence. The disciples not only listened to his words; they watched him speak.
"In the epochal change we are experiencing, in a time that obliges us to social distance due to the pandemic, communication can enable the closeness that is necessary to recognise what is essential, and to truly understand the meaning of things.
"We do not know the truth if we do not experience it, if we do not meet people, if we do not participate in their joys and sorrows. The old saying "God meets you where you are" can be a guide for those engaged in media or communications work in the Church. In the call of the first disciples, with Jesus who went to encounter them and to invite them to follow Him, we also see the invitation to use all media, in all their forms, to reach people as they are and where they live."
Prayer
Lord, teach us to move beyond ourselves,
and to set out in search of truth.
Teach us to go out and see,
teach us to listen,
not to entertain prejudices
or draw hasty conclusions.
Teach us to go where no one else will go,
to take the time needed to understand,
to pay attention to the essentials,
not to be distracted by the superfluous,
to distinguish deceptive appearances from the truth.
Grant us the grace to recognize your dwelling places in our world
and the honesty needed to tell others what we have seen.