Part V - Cyberspace in the Life of the Church

5. Cyberspace in the Life of the Church

1. 
   5.1 Introduction
   How the available tools in the Cyberspace can be implemented for the daily functions of the Church is our main attention in this chapter. First part of it will be dealing with the present IT tools and upcoming technologies which are in the array to be added very soon.
   5.2 Cyberspace Tools
   5.2.1 Website
   A website (alternatively, web site or Web site) is a collection of Web pages, images, videos or other digital assets that is hosted on one or several Web servers, usually accessible via the Internet, cell phone or a LAN[1].
   5.2.2 Web page
   A Web page is a document, typically written in HTML[2], that is almost always accessible via HTTP[3], a protocol that transfers information from the Web server to display in the user’s Web browser.
   5.2.3 World Wide Web
   All publicly accessible websites are seen collectively as constituting the “World Wide Web”. The pages of websites can usually be accessed from a homepage, and usually reside on the same physical server. With a web browser, user views web pages that may contain text, images, videos, and other multimedia and navigates between them using hyperlinks. The World Wide Web was created in 1989 by Sir Tim Berners-Lee, working at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland. The URL[4]s of the pages organizes them into a hierarchy, although the hyperlinks between them control how the reader perceives the overall structure and how the traffic flows between the different parts of the sites. Some websites require a subscription to access some or all of their content. Examples of subscription sites include many business sites, parts of many news sites, academic journal sites, gaming sites, message boards, Web-based e-mail services, social networking website, and sites providing real-time stock market data.
   5.2.4 E-mail
   E-mail, short for electronic mail and often abbreviated to e-mail, email or simply mail, is a store and forward method of composing, sending, storing, and receiving messages over electronic communication systems.
   5.2.5 Web Directory
   A web directory or link directory is a directory on the World Wide Web. It specializes in linking to other web sites and categorizing those links. A web directory is not a search engine, and does not display lists of web pages based on keywords, instead it lists websites by category and subcategory. The categorization is usually based on the whole web site, rather than one page or a set of keywords, and sites are often limited to inclusion in only one or two categories.
   5.2.6 Internet forum
   An Internet forum is a web application for holding discussions and posting user generated content. Internet forums are also commonly referred to as Web forums, message boards, discussion boards, (electronic) discussion groups, discussion forums, bulletin boards, fora (the Latin plural) or simply forums. The terms “forum” and “board” may refer to the entire community or to a specific sub-forum dealing with a distinct topic. Messages within these sub-forums are then displayed either in chronological order or as threaded discussions.
   5.2.7 Newsletter
   A newsletter is a regularly distributed publication generally about one main topic that is of interest to its subscribers. Newspapers and leaflets are types of newsletters. Additionally, newsletters delivered electronically via email (e- Newsletters) have gained rapid acceptance for the same reasons email in general is gaining popularity over printed correspondence. Many newsletters are published by clubs, churches, societies, associations, and businesses, especially companies, to provide information of interest to their members, customers or employees.
   5.2.8 Blog
   A blog (web log) is a website where entries are commonly displayed in reverse chronological order. “Blog” can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog. Many blogs provide commentary or news on a particular subject; others function as more personal online diaries. A typical blog combines text, images, and links to other blogs, web pages, and other media related to its topic. The ability for readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important part of many blogs. Most blogs are primarily textual, although some focus on art (artlog), photographs (photoblog), sketchblog, videos (vlog), music (MP3 blog), audio (podcasting) are part of a wider network of social media. Micro-blogging is another type of blogging which consists of blogs with very short posts.
   5.2.9 SMS & MMS
   Short Message Service (SMS), the transmission of short text messages to and from a mobile phone, fax machine or IP address. Messages must be no longer than 160 alpha-numeric characters and contain no images or graphics. Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) is a standard for telephony messaging systems that allows sending messages that include multimedia objects (images, audio, video, rich text) and not just text as in Short Message Service (SMS). It is mainly deployed in cellular networks along with other messaging systems like SMS, Mobile Instant Messaging and Mobile E-mail.
   5.2.10 Online Chat
   Online chat can refer to any kind of communication over Internet, but is primarily meant to refer to direct one-on-one chat or text-based group chat (formally also known as synchronous conferencing), using tools such as instant messaging applications. There are countless web users replacing traditional conversational means with online chat and messaging. Like email, which has reduced the need for and usage of letters, faxes, and memos, online chat is steadily replacing telephony as the means of office and home communication.
   5.2.11 Podcast
   A podcast is a collection of digital media files which is distributed over the Internet using syndication feeds for playback on portable media players and personal computers. The term can refer either to the content itself or to the method by which it is syndicated; the latter is also termed podcasting. The host or author of a podcast is often called a podcaster. The term “podcast” is a portmanteau of the acronym “Pod” – standing for “Portable on Demand” – and “broadcast”.
   5.2.12 Online journalism
   Online journalism is defined as the reporting of facts produced and distributed via the Internet. An early leader was The News & Observer in Raleigh, North Carolina. Steve Yelvington wrote on the Poynter Institute website about Nando, owned by The N&O, by saying “Nando evolved into the first serious, professional news site on the World Wide Web—long before CNN, BBC, MSNBC, and other followers.” It originated in the early 1990s as “NandO Land”.
   5.2.13 Internet radio
   Internet radio (e-Radio) is an audio broadcasting service transmitted via the Internet. Broadcasting on the Internet is usually referred to as webcasting since it is not transmitted broadly through wireless means but is delivered over the World Wide Web. The term “e-Radio” suggests a streaming medium that presents listeners with a continuous stream of audio to which they have no control much like traditional broadcast media. Internet radio “stations” are usually accessible from anywhere in the world.
   5.2.14 Internet TV
   Today, with the increase in Internet connection speeds, advances in technology, the increase of total number of people online, and the decrease in connection costs—it has become increasingly common to find traditional television content accessible freely and legally over the Internet. In addition to this, new Internet-only television content has appeared which is not distributed via cable, satellite, or terrestrial systems. Internet television utilizes the connections of the Internet to deliver video from a source to a target device.
   5.3 Proposed Cyber Portal Model for Catholic Church
   Some of the main cyber tools which are available now are discussed above. Setting up an all comprehensive portal with all the possible gadgets is our aim. Some of the ideas which I have presented here are already implemented in smcnews.com portal (See More catholic News). I may make use of the said web portal for further explanation.
   Same Portal should be accessible via all the possible internet enabled devices, for example the entire internet enabled Mobile Phones and Palmtops and new generation devices. Scalability in all directions and platform independency should be there. i.e Modules which are designed later should be freely integrated with the existing one and it should perform its functionality in all devices.
   5.3.1 Church Module
   Details of each diocese.
   Details of each parish, under each diocese category.
   5.3.2 Priests Module
   Details of each priest, under each diocese category.
   Methods to reach priests.
   5.3.3 News Module
   Updated news from the Catholic Church and related ones.
   Provision to email news from readers to the editor.
   Readers should be allowed to post their comments on the news.
   5.3.4 Online Radio
   Updated news from the Catholic Church and related ones.
   Devotional songs and live discussions on various topics.
   Seminars and important meeting’s live transmission.
   5.3.5 Online TV
   Web interface of the Church own Television Channel.
   Regular content of a TV Channel with Catholic perspectives.
   Interactive Television programs via web.
   5.3.6 Online Library
   Search facility from world famous catholic libraries, paid and non-paid services.
   Allow users to post reviews on books they have read.
   5.3.7 Online Catechesis
   Links to all freely available Church Documents.
   Catechetical texts for each class in different languages, along with sound and video.
   Online examination
   Special sections for Pre-marriage course and adult baptism and Eucharistic preparation.
   Special section for selecting a mender from any diocese (priests or nuns).
   5.3.8 Web directory
   Reviewed website links
   Other Church sites
   Other links of Catholic sites
   5.3.9 Internet Forum
   A Catholic forum where experts of Sacred Sciences from famous Catholic universities are answering questions from outside.
   Each forum with different topics and administrated by different authorized persons.
   5.3.10 Live Chat (Catholic Call Centre)
   Text based live chat centre, where users can get answers and advises from experts online.
   A Toll Free number to call at any time for counseling from anywhere in the world.
   5.3.11 Free Downloads
   Church related documents.
   Open Source Programs for Church administration.
   Songs, Sermons, Discussions etc, via podcasting both in audio and video formats.
   5.3.12 SMS / MMS Based Services
   Flash News via SMS and MMS.
   Daily reading, Feast and Important day’s reminder via SMS.
   5.3.13 On Demand Services
   Service of any type via web on demand.
   5.4 Late Pope John Paul II and Cyberspace
   As Pope John Paul II’s health declined in his last years, so did his ability to speak to his flock of more than one billion Roman Catholics worldwide. In response, the man who had transformed the role of pope from that of administrator to global evangelist abandoned sermons from the pulpit in favour of messages in cyberspace to spread his word. Establishing a “virtual papacy”, the Pope issued letters, speeches, personal reflections and sermons through the Vatican website, which launched in 1995. Now, many of the Catholic Church’s cardinals, the high-ranking priests are following suit, using the internet to address their congregations. Just weeks before his death, Pope John Paul II issued a letter urging priests and Church officials to explore the internet’s potential for evangelization and education. “Do not be afraid of new technologies! These rank ‘among the marvelous things’ - inter mirifica - which God has placed at our disposal,” he wrote. The Pope’s call for internet presence has been followed to varying degrees by Catholic dioceses across the world.
   5.5 Cyber diocese
   The former Bishop of Evreux in France, Jacques Gaillot, has ventured even further into cyberspace, establishing what he calls his “diocese without borders”. The Vatican sacked the “red cleric” from his post in Evreux for his liberal views, placing him in charge of the Diocese of Partenia instead. But the appointment was actually a punishment, since Partenia no longer exists. The once bustling centre of commerce located in modern-day Algeria disappeared beneath the sands of the Sahara 1,500 years ago. In response, the bishop developed a website where he can preach with passion to millions.
   5.6 Affinities between Catholic doctrine and Linux Free Software
   “The technological configuration underlying the Internet has a considerable bearing on its ethical aspects. Use of the new information technology and the Internet needs to be informed and guided by a resolute commitment to the practice of solidarity in the service of the common good. The Internet requires international cooperation in setting standards and establishing mechanisms to promote and protect that common good. Individuals, groups, and nations must have access to these new technologies. Cyberspace ought to be a resource of comprehensive information and services available without charge to all, and in a wide range of languages. The winner in this process will be humanity as whole and not just wealthy elite that controls science, technology, and the planet’s resources. Determined action in the private and public sectors is needed to close and eventually eliminate the digital divide.”[5]
   The above statements sound as if they could have been written by Richard M. Stallman, founder of the Free Software Foundation (FSF). In fact, they come from the Vatican Report “Ethics in Internet”. The FSF position on the same issues is that society “needs information that is truly available to its citizens—for example, programs that people can read, fix, adapt, and improve, not just operate.”
   Technically and ethically speaking, Free Software, regardless of its price, can be freely modified and shared, and is free from per-seat costs, royalties, patents, and similar restrictions. The same definition can be applied to file formats and communication protocols. The term Free (with uppercase F) here indicates software and standards available under these conditions. In recent decades, the Catholic Church has published several documents that clearly match this approach to information technology. Here are some examples.
   For the purposes of this, we can regard software programs as a category of machinery. The 1967 Encyclical of Pope Paul VI on the development of peoples “Populorum Progressio” said, “Unless the existing machinery is modified, the disparity between rich and poor nations will increase rather than diminish.” Then in 1971, the Pastoral Instruction “Communio et Progressio” on the means of social communication stated: With the right to be informed goes the duty to seek information. Information does not simply occur; it has to be sought. On the other hand, in order to get it, the man who wants information must have access to the varied means of social communication.
   Consequently, the Catholic Church should not use proprietary file formats and computer protocols, since they can become a way to prevent access to information, restrict it or lock end users to any specific, maybe too expensive software program. This is very similar to Stallman’s request to put an end to proprietary email attachments. This right to information is inseparable from freedom of communication. When it comes to computer-based communication, this can be only guaranteed with Free formats and protocols. It also implies that computer users should be free to choose which programs to use for such communication. The same wish was expressed by Stallman.
   This freedom of communication also implies that individuals and groups must be free to seek out and spread information. It also means that they should have free access to the media. An example of the cultural potential of the media can be found in their service to the traditional folk arts of countries where stories, plays, song and dance still express an ancient national inheritance. Because of their modern techniques, the media can make these achievements known more widely. They can record them so that they can be seen and heard again and again and make them accessible even in districts where the old traditions have vanished. In this way, the media help to impress on a nation a proper sense of its cultural identity and by expressing this, delight and enrich other cultures and countries as well.
   Many developing countries are already successfully using free software and formats to preserve their cultural heritage since free software can be adapted quickly, at the smallest possible cost, to any language or dialect. Catholic missionaries worldwide should be informed that such tools exist.
   Ten years after “Communio et Progressio”, Pope John Paul II wrote in the Encyclical “Laborem exercens” that through work, man not only transforms nature, adapting it to his own needs, but he also achieves fulfillment as a human being and indeed, in a sense, becomes “more a human being.” As long as he intends his work also to increase the common good developed together with his compatriots, thus realizing that in this way work serves to add to the heritage of the whole human family, of all the people living in the world.
   In Christian tradition, the right to private property is subordinated to the right to common use, to the fact that goods are meant for everyone. The Church has always proclaimed that “when a man works he not only alters things and society, he develops himself as well. He learns much, he cultivates his resources, and he goes outside of himself and beyond himself.”
   The GNU[6] Manifesto of the Free Software movement only talks about programming and programmers, but there we can find a vision of work (programming in this case) as a way to become a better person and help others: “The fundamental act of friendship among programmers is the sharing of programs. GNU serves as an example to inspire and a banner to rally others to join in sharing. This can give us a feeling of harmony which is impossible if we use software that is not free.”[7]
   In 2002, besides the above quoted “Ethics in Internet”, the Vatican published “The Church and Internet,” which reminds us that “Church leaders are obliged to use the full potential of the computer age to serve the human and transcendent vocation of every person” because the Internet “offers people direct and immediate access to important religious and spiritual resources.” The same document points out that, as early as 1992, the Pastoral Instruction Aetatis Novae had called two-way communication and public opinion “one of the ways of realizing in a concrete manner the Church’s character as communion.” The Catholic Church is expected (“Ethics in Internet”) “to have a visible, active presence on the Internet and be a partner in the public dialogue about its development” and “be of help by indicating ethical and moral criteria which are relevant to the process.”
   5.7 Open Catholic Encyclopedias & Catholic Documents
   Open Catholic Encyclopedias and all the documents from Catholic Church should be made available at free of cost in the internet. Already Vatican’s official site[8] is doing this. And it should be permitted to use for the research works without any written permission. I have used all the cited documents in this paper from the Vatican site.
   5.8 Seminarians and Cyberspace
   An ocean away from family and friends, some U.S. seminarians at the Pontifical North American College in Rome are bridging the divide with online communities and digital means of communication such as Skype, instant messaging, Facebook, MySpace and more. But while it may have begun as simple e-mails and Web log, or blog, entries meant to keep loved ones in touch, their notes from Rome to home have blossomed into a whole new way these students preparing for the priesthood can share their spiritual journey with the rest of the world.
   5.8.1 What All Things a Seminarian Can Do in Internet
   It’s a great witness when we share our stories, our experiences in the seminary that include our hopes, our joys, our fears, our anxieties about the journey toward the priesthood, to our friends while we are in seminary. We need to integrate ourselves into these online communities and in a sense baptize the way these things work. Everyone’s opinion gets expressed and published, but nobody’s opinion necessarily has any truth to it. Well-formed Catholics and church leaders have a golden opportunity to move into the World Wide Web like any new mission territory and point people to the truth and to Christ.
   Very few people actually know a seminarian, and meeting one online and discovering he has many of the same interests as other young people can wipe away some preconceived notions about the kind of person who is drawn to a priestly or religious vocation. Being a presence in these online communities almost acts as a sort of accidental advertising for the Catholic Church.
   By answering questions and engaging people in reflection in these “electronic communities” can provide us with valuable opportunities to experience ministry work. We are ministering to these people in many ways, both in sharing our stories, in helping them along their way answering their questions, and providing them another avenue for their own personal faith exploration. It also helps strengthen our own love for God and priestly calling.
   Some other areas where seminarians can contribute
   
   · Content Managers for the Church sites.
   · Site Reviewers.
   · Digitize the Old Christian Manuscripts.
   The documents of Pontifical Council for Social Communications suggest that the education and training regarding the Internet ought to be part of comprehensive programs of media education available to members of the Church. As much as possible, pastoral planning for social communications should make provision for this training in the formation of seminarians, priests, religious, and lay pastoral personnel as well as teachers, parents, and students[9]. Teaching about the Internet and the new technology involves much more than teaching techniques; young people need to learn how to function well in the world of cyberspace, make discerning judgments according to sound moral criteria about what they find there, and use the new technology for their integral development and the benefit of others.
   5.9 Syro-Malabar Church and Her great plus in Cyberspace.
   
   I had an opportunity to be part of a survey conducted across India by 180 students, on various aspects of new cyber cities. One of the main results of the survey was that Cochin; the new Cyber City will become one of the dreamed destinations by many computer professionals by 2010. The survey was conducted in 2004, now it is 2008, already the development in Cochin is very evident that the predicted report in that survey is coming into reality. Syro Malabar Church, headquartered in Cochin, should make use of this golden opportunity to make her presence in Cyberspace. The Huge bandwidth available and the Catholic Professionals who are willing to share their time and technical knowledge freely to the Church should be made use of. A coordination and long term planning is needed for that. Less discussed and short timed projects along with quick decisions will not generate desired effects. The human resource available at many places, especially in different dioceses, should be made use of it via networked and centralized structure.
   5.10 Conclusion
   The Computer driven Information Revolution in the Cyberspace may be considered ‘good news’. The ability to link people – to connect them with vital information, with resources and with one another – is surely a benefit. Modern information technology does, in fact, give us an unprecedented capacity to connect with each other; to history; to an inexhaustible stream of ideas, information, images, cultures, arts and products. Hyperlinks have unimaginable potential for reshaping our personal and public life. Now it’s our turn to make use of it for the wellbeing of the whole world in a different way. Cyberspace, as it is, is good by nature, but how we make use of it paves its destiny. Mission through Bytes should be one of our agenda in this millennium. Fill the bytes with Jesus Christ’s good news; tell the world that everything is good with Christ, in whom we have the Salvation.
   
   Bibliography
   
   Barlow, J P., Crime and Puzzlement ( Paris, 1992).
   Capurro, R., “Does Digital Globalization Lead to a Global Information Ethic?”, Concilium (2005 / No. 1) p 36–45.
   Carson, D A., The Church in the Bible and the World: An International Study. (Rome, 1987).
   Cunningham, P J., Teilhard de Chardin and the Noosphere (San Francisco, 1997).
   Debbie, F W., Theology in-of and for Cyberspace, (Oxford, 2005).
   Del B., The House Church: A Model for Renewing the Church. (Oxford, 1988).
   Doctrine of Faith, Doctrinal note on some aspects of Evangelization, (Vatican, 2008).
   Ferdinand, P., “Cyberpower: Only the Power to Disturb?”, Concilium (2005 / No. 1) p 27–35.
   Floridi, L., The basis of biosphere (London, 1996).
   Gibson, W., Neuromancer (New York, 1984).
   John Paul II, Address to the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, (Vatican, 2000).
   John Paul II, Laborem Exercens, (Vatican, 1981).
   John Paul II, Message for the Celebration of the World Day of Peace (Vatican, 2001).
   John Paul II, Novo millennio ineunte, (Vatican 2001).
   John Paul II, Redemptoris Missio, (Vatican, 1990).
   John Paull II, Message on World Communication day (Vatican, 1990).
   John, H D., The Future of the Church: Where are We Headed? (UK, 1989).
   John,O., “Cyberethics: New Challenges or Old Problems?”, Concilium (2005 / No. 1) p 15–26.
   Mitchell, N D., “Ritual and New Media”, Concilium (2005 / No. 1) p 90–98.
   Mitchell, W., City of Bits (New York, 1995).
   Paul, D L., The Church in the Theology of the Reformers. (Atlanta, 1981).
   Pontifical Council for Social Communications, Aetatis Novae, (Vatican, 1992).
   Pontifical Council for Social Communications, Communio et Progressio, (Vatican, 1971).
   Pontifical Council for Social Communications, Ethics in Internet, (Vatican, 2002).
   Pontifical Council for Social Communications, Ethics in Communications, (Vatican, 2000).
   Pontifical Council for Social Communications, The Church And Internet, (Vatican, 2002).
   Reid,M A., “Becoming Queens: Bending Gender and Poverty on the Websites of the Excluded”, Concilium (2005 / No. 1) p 99–108.
   Simmons, D., Saga Hyperion (London,1989).
   Sterling, B., Formation of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (New York, 1990).
   Vatican Council II, Dei Verbum.
   Vatican Council II, Gaudium et spes.
   Vatican Council II, Inter Mirifica.
   
   WEB LINKS
   Vatican, Official Site, www.vatican.va.
   Search Engine, www.google.com .
   On Church, www.fatheralexander.org/booklets/.
   Christian History, www.ctlibrary.com.
   Christian Resources, www.iclnet.org.
   Real Faith, www.thercg.org.
   Encyclopedia, www.wikipedia.com.
   Dennis-Emmanuel Cabrera, http://www.pcentral-online.net.
   [1] Local Area Network
   [2] Hypertext Mark-up Language
   [3] Hypertext Transfer Protocol
   [4] Uniform Resource Locator
   [5] Pontifical Council for Social Communications, Ethics in Internet, (Vatican, 2002) n 8
   [6] General Public License (pronounced 'gnu')
   [7] General Public License p 3
   [8] Holy See, www.vatican.va
   [9] Pontifical Council for Social Communications, The Church And Internet, (Vatican, 2002) n. 7