Browsing by Author "Deus, Venerato Babain"

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    Communication for Evangelisation
    (Tangaza University College, 1998-02) Deus, Venerato Babain
    To be a Christian is to be a missionary. By definition a missionary is an evangeliser. To evangelise is to carry the Word of God, to give witness to it and to call others to know God, to believe and to be saved. This is our vocation as believers in God. The call to evangelise is deeply rooted in the Bible. Prophets were called and entrusted with the Word of God. Jesus preached the Word of life and after His resurrection, Jesus commissioned His disciples to go and preach to all the nations. The Apostles of all times continue spreading the Gospel to those who hunger for the Word of God. In this essay we shall reflect on Communication for Evangelization. Human beings have a capacity to communicate and, in our case, we do so as Christians. Therefore, this reflection is a Christian approach to communication. We shall not deal with the technical terms of communication. Neither shall we enter into the theory of communication as such. We shall also not consider the definition, notion of evangelisation, or its methodology. We shall reflect on the them - e of evangelisation for communication as such. What we are saying is that we want to make communication in all its entirety, be at the service of evangelisation. Communication can be used in many ways; communication for development, for education, political awareness or for oppression. Our idea is that a Christian should see the social communication media as means to spread the Gospel, the Word of life. Therefore, any skills and technology are put at the service of spreading the Gospel. In other words, media and the whole science of communication are instruments for the missionary activity. The topic is approached from three angles. The first chapter considers traditional means of communication with an emphasis on one of the tribes from Africa. Here the idea is to show that human beings, by nature, have the potential to communicate. Communication did not start with modern technology. When we study traditional means of social communication, we are then in a position to choose from these same means elements which may still be used to promote the task of evangelisation. The second chapter looks at the documents of the Church. The Church as a teaching body which bears the deposit of faith, has been discerning, for many years, how to proclaim the Gospel using social communications media. Ideals are raised, warnings are given and recommendations are made. Social communication media is necessary for the Church's evangelisation of the modern world. The third chapter explorers the theology of communication. What are the theological consideration underlying communication or social media in the apostolate of evangelisation. We evangelise because God has sent us to do so. God is a communicator Himself. We are invited to continue this communication. Therefore, we have a mandate to speak to God, with God and for God. The heart of the matter in our reflection in this essay is that; If Jesus lived today in our world how would he evangelise? What methods would he use? How can we heed His command, to proclaim the Gospel, and preach about the kingdom values in the world of today conquered by the "media empire"? Jesus used effectively the social communication media of His time. It is of paramount importance, therefore, that we should also be aware of the means of communication and their effectiveness in our call to evangelise.