An Anthropology and Theology of Communication

Man as Communicator
Since the dawn of human civilization, man communicated and expressed himself with others either directly through speech and gestures, or indirectly through a medium such as writing. We know that even the cave men of long ago would write and draw certain symbols on the walls of the caves in order to communicate a message to those who may see their writing. From those ancient times up to now, people still continue to communicate with one another through basically the same means but with the added feature of the mass media. Interpersonal communication though has remained unchanged: it is still through speech, gestures, touch, eye contact, and body language. It is the media forms that have changed and advanced over the centuries. What was before only the medium of simple writing has now been transformed into the mass media of print: leaflets, brochures, newspapers, magazines and books. And what was before the simple speech, eye contact, or body language used to communicate to a few people, has now been amplified in the form of broadcast media: radio, television and movies.

The Internet
The Internet is the most recent form of social communications medium to hit the new millenium. It is special and unique in itself because it is the only mass media that can be interactive at the same time. Its features are like a combination of the print and broadcast media plus the added feature of two-way electronically-mediated communication. The two-way communication is expressed through messaging, chatting, the use of web cameras or through web conferencing.

In these modern centuries, human civilization has become more and more fascinated by its creation of new technology and the use of it in many aspects of its social life. In fact, sometimes, if people use too much of it, interaction in the interpersonal level lessens and thereby creates a more individualistic approach to life rather than the idealized communitarian approach. Although technology and the mass media it produces makes modern living much more manageable, people need to learn to strike a balance between their use of communications media and their own interpersonal interaction with others.

A Modern Anthropology of Communication
For people to be truly themselves, it is important to realize that the use of direct or indirect communication must be balanced and moderated first in the context of the family. This is important because the family is the basic unit of all institutions in our human societies. The family is the basic social, political, religious and economic unit that undergirds all present social, political, religious and economic institutions. If the use of the media in the family were unmoderated, then human bonds will deteriorate, the family as a unit will weaken, and each member of the family will be pulled into opposing directions because of the various influences the communications media gives. The task therefore of all media educators is to make people in modern society aware of the dangers that media can give to the family - especially if the family has the means to obtain all the latest technology relating to the computer and its companion media forms and gets tempted to use these indiscriminately.

Jesus, the Ideal Communicator
The method Jesus used for communication was simple and effective. He used speech, eye contact, gestures and body language for his preaching and teaching. And for his healing ministry, he used his sense of touch. The only medium he ever used was when he wrote on the ground when the people wanted to condemn a woman caught in adultery. Although it may seem anachronistic to say that the social communications media may be irrelevant if they were also present in Jesus' time, it will always be a basic truth and wisdom to say that interpersonal communication is the norm and standard for communication between peoples of all times. The social communications media is really only an alternative means of communication and should be used only for special purposes: like reaching out and sending a message to very large masses of people. During the time of Jesus, even the crowds that gathered before him were less than 5,000 people. Direct communication was still possible with this range and number of people. However, in modern-day societies, when you need to get out a message to the masses, you need media such as the print media and the broadcast media. And today, with a very globalized world culture, you need the special function of the Internet.

Towards a Theology of Communication: God Communicates His Love To Us
God communicated His love to us through the person of His Son, Jesus. Those who saw Jesus personally were blessed in a special way because they saw God's love personified in flesh and blood and preaching to them about the Kingdom; teaching to them about eternal life; and healing all of their infirmities and sicknesses.

After Jesus' passion, death and resurrection, he asked the Father to send the Holy Spirit to the apostles and disciples. And at Pentecost, the Church was born. So, in our day and time, God still communicates His love to us but through the Holy Spirit present in the Church and in the sacraments she administers to the people. Peoples around the world can experience God's love through Christian communities and families who live out the teachings of Jesus. And this love is extended and made more visible through the social communications media that multiply the Gospel message and magnify its outreach to anyone who can read print or listen to audio.

But a question arises. Many of the people in the world are still illiterate and very many belong to the information-poor societies. How can God's offer of salvation be communicated to them by the Church? The answer to this question is also a confirmation of the fact that the Internet media cannot replace interpersonal communication and interaction. And also, the grace of God can only be received through the living, liturgical and sacramental celebration of the Eucharist and the other sacraments. This is the reason why Jesus is held and esteemed as the ideal communicator. It is because he focused his communication to the simple people - the poor, the outcasts, the sick, and the marginalized. Although God uses all means necessary to make his gift of salvation known to all, and this includes the social communications media, nothing can still replace the genuine and sincere impact that a personal word, gesture, touch, eye contact or body language can give especially when it is inspired by the Spirit of God. And what better way to communicate this to others than through the Christian communities and families interacting with one another and with peoples of other faiths.

Dennis-Emmanuel Cabrera
December 22, 2004