The importance of the Internet in today's world of evangelization was discussed by the participants of the "Tangled in the Net" media workshop, which took place on Saturday, September 19.
The workshops were started by Fr. Adam Stankiewicz, MIC, deputy custodian of the Lichen sanctuary, who thanked for coming and encouraged active participation in the discussion and exchange of observations on the use of social media.
The first speaker was Fr. prof. UKSW dr hab. Józef Kloch with a lecture entitled "The Church During the Pandemic". Fr. Kloch presented a few examples of the use of the Internet and on-line transmissions from the church, thanks to which the inhabitants of the analyzed parishes could participate during the lockdown in the masses of St. and services in their homes, thanks to the Internet transmission. Quoting the statement of one of the residents: "I went to church for so many years, and now the church has come to me" Fr. Kloch emphasized the fact that in the presented example, the granddaughters played a large role, who helped and taught their grandparents to launch online broadcasts from the temples. According to the professor, online broadcasts during the pandemic were a prosthesis that worked.
According to Fr. Klocha's communication creativity was great. However, he emphasized that the dialogue regarding the need to understand the role of digital communication in pastoral care should be continued.
The same lecture block also featured: Rev. Dr. Łukasz Wiśniewski, MIC and Mrs. Katarzyna Matusz-Branecka from the Association of Marian Helpers presenting the main assumptions of the action "Missionary on fasting", the main idea of which was to pray for the chosen missionary. According to the speakers, thanks to the involvement in the media and the Internet, over 40,000 people declared their willingness to pray for the missionary. Among the main reasons for the action was, inter alia, awakening the missionary spirit.
The last one was prof. UKSW Monika Przybysz with a lecture entitled "Evangelization in the network".
The professor encouraged evangelization through social media, indicating which target groups of recipients use specific media. For example, she reported that a parent spends 67 minutes a day with their child, personally using various electronic devices for several hours. 90 % of the message comes to us in a visual form, and young people most often use the TIK TOK application, where they upload the videos they have recorded. - If we want to be successful in youth ministry, we must not be there - Przybysz emphasized. The speaker also pointed to 4 pillars of social media in the pastoral ministry: presence, testimony, dialogue and service.
Each block was followed by a lively discussion in which the participants of the meeting joined the room.
Warsztaty zostały zorganizowane przez Sanktuarium Maryjne w Licheniu Starym oraz Stowarzyszenie Pomocników Mariańskich. Spotkania odbywały się w sali konferencyjnej Domu Pielgrzyma „Arka”.
Text and photos: Sanctuary Press Office
