ARCHBISHOP SEÁN Brady of Armagh and Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin have expressed hope that modern technology can help find new and inspired ways of communicating the word of God.
Both men made their observations in submissions to the Vatican's Synod of Bishops, which is in Rome for a gathering entitled The Word Of God in the Life and Mission of the Church.
Archbishop Martin said he is bishop of a diocese where a climate of secularisation has made "dramatic and rapid" inroads into a culture that until recently had been marked by a "strong presence of belief". For many today, the scriptures are "unexplored, almost alien territory".
He said the fact that many retain a superficial knowledge of Jesus from their catechesis may become an obstacle to the development of a deeper faith.
Archbishop Martin said the proclamation of the word and the exercise of charity belong together.
He said pastoral efforts to expand access to the word of God have to be changed: "Reading has become a middle-class pastime. The poorer, while in no way illiterate, read little more then the sports pages of newspapers. New ways - visual rather than verbal, experiential rather than intellectual - have to be found to introduce them to . . . the word."
Cardinal Brady paid tribute to the contribution made by the Protestant tradition to biblical scholarship, suggesting that the emphasis in the Reformation on improving access to the scriptures was a "bonus from which all Christians have benefited".
He said that, given the challenges which face the family today, Catholics might learn from the Protestant tradition of "having a Bible in the home".
Cardinal Brady expressed the hope that modern technology would help communication of the word of God: "Modern communications technology gives the church wonderful possibilities to communicate its message. It is to be hoped that the synod will come up with practical proposals to enable the church to take full advantage of this opportunity."
The three-week synod closes on October 26th.