Sunday, June 1, was another day for the annual ritual of the World Communications Day. It was the climax of a Weeklong programme of activities and lectures centred on communication, one of the vital activities that define the mutuality of human coexistence. The Day was established by Pope Paul VI in 1967 to give us an opportunity to ponder on communication, its mode and emerging technologies in relation to the world.
In the 2025 World Communications Day, 59th in the series, the immediate past Pope Francis, in a message on the theme, “Sharing with gentleness the hope that is in your hearts” (1 Peter 3:15-16), called for communication that fosters dialogue and moves away from aggressive and divisive rhetoric that is usually focused on striking or dominating.
While addressing professionals in the business of mass communication, the Pope recognized that the present times are characterized by disinformation and polarization, emphasizing, at the same time, the importance of their work as journalists and communicators.
The pontiff, however, observed that today’s communication, much too often, generates not hope, but fear and despair, prejudice and resentment, fanaticism and even hatred.
Quoting the Pope, “All too often it simplifies reality in order to provoke instinctive reactions; it uses words like a razor; it even uses false or artfully distorted information to send messages designed to agitate, provoke or hurt.”
The message acknowledged the prevalence of violent and divisive discourse in various forms of media and social networks. An exasperated Pope complained that he had, on several occasions, and to no avail, spoken of the need to “disarm” communication and to purify it of aggressiveness. He reflected on the direction in which television talk shows go as well as numerous verbal attacks on social media.
As the Pope addresses Catholics who pay allegiance to him, it would not be out of place to assume that, as a topmost leader in Christendom, he has spoken as well to members of other Christian denominations. By extension, the Holy Father spoke to Muslims and people of other faiths in the globe that while interacting and sharing our various beliefs, we should not fail to be gentle about it.
This gentleness in sharing faith is exemplified by Jesus Christ who, according to Biblical accounts, preached with love, and understanding. We observe as well that Christ discouraged the use of arms even in the face of aggression. For instance, he chastised his apostle Peter who drew a knife and plucked off the ear of one of the aggressors who came to take Him away, telling him, “Sheathe your sword.”
The Pope said that Christian communication, indeed communication in general, should be steeped in gentleness and closeness, like the talk of companions on the road.
“This was the method of the greatest communicator of all time, Jesus of Nazareth, who, as he walked alongside the two disciples of Emmaus, spoke with them and made their hearts burn within them as he interpreted events in the light of the Scriptures,” the pontiff stated.
He encouraged communicators to discover and make known the many stories of goodness hidden in the folds of the news, saying that it is good to seek out such seeds of hope and make them known, to help the world to be “a little less deaf to the cry of the poor, a little less indifferent, a little less closed in on itself.”
Passionately, he is appealing that we do not allow instinctive reactions to guide our communication, urging us to always spread hope, even when it is difficult, even when it costs, even when it seems not to bear fruit. Again, that we must communicate to heal wounds.
Having heard this message, it is left for the entire humanity to put it into practice. Often, we experience harsh comments and press releases coming from politicians as they throw brickbats at each other. The message touches also on the stories generations pass onto coming generations, which eventually become history. We must begin to ask if we are truly communicating hate, and multiplying it by so doing, or mitigating it when we speak to our children about other persons.
Picking on the word, “gentleness”, someone described a gentleman as one who allows another person to take what belongs to him. It goes to corroborate a television report sometime in Egypt when a group of young people invaded the business premises of some Christians. A Muslim lad was asked why they always attack Christians. “They are rich and when we attack them, they do not retaliate,” he replied.
This emphasizes the need for the two parties in the communication process to remain on the same level of gentleness. If the gentle party does not get an equally gentle reply, perhaps gets violence instead, it is likely to influence his behaviour in the communication flow, resulting in a breakdown.
The Pope again highlights one other troubling phenomenon which he termed the “programmed dispersion of attention” through digital systems that profile us according to the logic of the market and modify our perception of reality. The result, he stated, is “atomization of interests” that ends up undermining the foundations of our existence as community, our ability to join in the pursuit of the common good, to listen to one another and to understand each other’s point of view.
According to him, identifying an “enemy” to lash out against thus appears indispensable as a way of asserting ourselves. He further observed that “when others become our ‘enemies’, when we disregard their individuality and dignity in order to mock and deride them, we also lose the possibility of generating hope.
It was as if the Pope had Nigeria in mind as he dished out those powerful words meant to repair a damaged world. We are all aware of the discordant tones in the nation’s politics, which portrays leaders as incapable of dealing with dire situations. Invariably, our economy goes to shambles and the vulnerability of the weak among us increases. His message of gentleness in faith and hope sharing must be embraced by everyone regardless of religion. Indeed, if all the major religions are to be gentle, as the Pope has prescribed, election rigging, Boko Haram, Jihad, crusades and the acrimony that characterizes our discussions in matters of religion, politics and culture would be a thing of the past.
Dr. Odu can be reached through [email protected] or SMS 07016722929
