The two mentioned sicknesses are ills for our society. Some studies through reading of books have shown that genuine communication as a way to report about others is an “obligation obligatorily obliged”. If there is “genuine communication” which is constructive, there is also possibility to have “false communication” which destroys relationships and reputation.
What does mean Communication?
How often don’t you hear people talk about the communication? Actually, what does it mean communication? Literally, communication is exchange of information; which is between the people, e.g. by means of speaking, writing, or using the common system of signs or behaviour. There is now a big question relating on ways of communicating. There are some communications which are exactly sincere and real; and there are some communications completely false. Communication as means has been used by several people as method not only to pass the helpful or constructive message, but to make others convinced by their own ideas; as a way to “kill others” saying false things against others; which is considered as a clever trick or plot used to deceive others; hoax, flattery, cheating, fraud, treachery…Coming back to our main theme: “Thirst for genuine Communication”, we would like to deepen our reflexion based on the scheme of JACOBSON, the scientist who left us a wonderful scheme and model of communication. JACOBSON said that in any communication, we need to have the following elements: addresser, addressee, message, context, contact, code. What does it mean? Explaining the scheme, the addresser is the one who sends the message to the addressee. To be operative, the message requires a context seizable by the addressee, and either verbal or capable of being verbalized. A code fully, or not at least partially, is to the encoder and decoder of the message. A contact that is physical channel and psychological connection between the addresser and the addressee enables both of them to enter and stay in communication. The context is the situation in which something happens and that helps us to understand it. On the contrary, code is what helps us to understand and read the message. Hope to clearly and briefly give the explanation of the scheme of JACOBSON. How could this scheme be part of ours, as religious people? Considering Jesus-Christ, as a goal of our vocation, He is the message and we become addresser. We have to communicate Him to others, who are addressees. The addressees could be our confreres, people of God… Then, the code is the way we use to pass our message (Jesus- Christ) taking into account the context in which we are at that moment. In the end, the communication creates contact between us and the others. When we can reach the level of truly communicating with and to others, we will realize that we are liberated from our selfishness, paralysis and promoting togetherness.
Paralysis:
Every human being has the fully desire to live. He needs to experience the love. The daily experience teaches us that the family has an important role in the life of everybody. The one, who made a good experience of love from his family since his childhood, is capable to communicate and show love to others. In contrary, the one who lacks it is easily known in his way of dealing with others. Then, there is a risk of being blocked and not able to open to others. Communication is needed. Knowing that Christ is the goal of our togetherness, He is capable to cure our paralysis as He did in the gospels (Cf. Lk 5:17-26). Jesus came among humankind and revealed to them the secret of life and the path of happiness. Those really encounter and accept Jesus into their lives, have the same experience. They are delivered from the forces that paralyze them; they can shake off their inertia; they are happy. That is why the happiness of each individual is bound up with the happiness of all. When Jesus sees the faith which the paralytic and his companions draw near and present themselves, he says: “Man, your sins are forgiven you.” Jesus cures the entire person. Let us really put Jesus-Christ as Centre of our togetherness. We are sometimes missing Him as a motivation of our religious’ life. Return to Jesus-Christ and we will find the salvation. Life with Jesus- Christ makes us to be led by the Spirit and we become opponents to self-indulgence; because when “self-indulgence is at work the results are obvious: (…) the worship of false gods and sorcery; antagonisms and rivalry, jealousy, bad temper and quarrels, disagreements, factions and malice, drunkenness, orgies and all such things”. (Galatians 5, 19 -21)
Selfishness:
In this point, we’d like to assert that nowadays, the spirit of self-sufficiency is within people who believe they can do anything at all and imagine they are always competent and are always satisfied with themselves; but their own accomplishments are in fact incapable of making progress. They will go on committing the same faults again and again or will refuse to change when facts require them to change. Since we are in permanent contact with other worlds than ours and are constantly meeting new techniques and lifestyles with their conflicting values, we must be continually learning anew how to live in this changing society and how to make the new realities our own and adopt a responsible attitude towards them. The person who is always too quick to say “I know! I know!” is unable to learn anything at all or will at best grasp only half of it. Then the price of such self- sufficiency will be the failure of one’s undertakings. Those who too quickly think themselves mature and experienced enough to face all the challenges of modern life will easily fall victim to the challenges and will end up losing their souls and their happiness. We need to communicate humbly and to be “self-effacing” or to disappear as it were behind the activity we have undertaken. We must get rid of the atmosphere of telling lies and the habit of creating a climate of distrust, division. And suspicion around anything and everything leads in fact only to the destruction of every enterprise and every system of values. We really need more self-criticism and less criticism of others. How can you imagine people who don’t want others to be promoted? Any occasion of promotion for others has to be blocked. Then, they are so delighted of succeeding in destroying life of others. Listen to the instruction of Jesus, please. (Mt 7, 1-5). True and sincere communication of ourselves first is needed. In the end, we can be capable to communicate about others.
Conclusion:
Here we are in the end of our Journey called “Thirst for genuine Communication”. Generally, human being is a “being-with”. No one can feel happy being alone. We need to be with others, sharing our joy, burden… We are called to receive others, listen to them. That is what is creating the community, the congregation, even the society. But society is formed by the people who have different characters. The most important in our religious life is to listen, share, and create dialogue, harmony among us. I also believe that the perfect life’ style is not found in this world, but if people living in the same standard of life, has put Jesus- Christ as Model and Goal of their unity, there is hope to find understanding, unity and success. Otherwise, failure over failure and there is risk of looking for another “saint” to solve problems created by ourselves. God called us to be one. But the current reality makes us to be one another “homo homini deus et homo homini lupus”. Are we not God’s children? “Our love must be not just words or mere talk, but something active and genuine. This will be the proof that we belong to the truth, and it will convince us in his presence, even if our own feelings condemn us, that God is greater than our feelings and knows all things.” (1 Jn 3, 18-20).
May the Holy Spirit help us to be Honest Communicators about ourselves first, then about others in a way of building up God’s kingdom here in the earth. Amen!
