THE world of entertainment was singled out for criticism by Archbishop Desmond Connell at a Mass in Dublin yesterday.
The archbishop condemned "the flood of foul language that is brutalising the relations between young people today" during his homily at a Mass in the Church of St Brigid's in Blanchardstown to mark the opening of the academic year.
He continued: "I do not have to identify the sources of this perversion of speech; they are particularly active in the world of entertainment."
Dr Connell said: "It is a form of violence against dignity that reduces communication between persons to a kind of mutual assault.
"It is more than a mere symptom of an ever increasingly violent society; rather it creates a predisposition to violence and hatred by making the other person unworthy of respect.
"There is no remedy for this unless it be found in a rediscovery of reverence, reverence for the name of God, for the dignity of the persons with whom we live, for the goodness of the environment that God has given us."
The archbishop also commented on the role of education in a world which is "deeply affected by greed". He said the world today is a place where one is "much more concerned with what one may have, than with the kind of person one is".
Dr Connell defined the role of an educator as helping to share with young people the beautiful gifts that come from God, and the wisdom to see the mystery of His presence in the world.
"This is what inspired Edmund Rice," he said. "It has inspired many religious men and women who dedicated themselves to their mission as educators."