SPICE (ST PAULS INSTITUTE OF COMMUNICATION EDUCATION) organised a two-week summer workshop in Journalism which concluded on 19 May at Bandra, Mumbai.

Giving away the certificates to 24 participants, Joe Dias, the founder General Secretary of Catholic Secular Forum (CSF) said the need of the hour is to utilise our talents to be proactive communicators for the Church. “Writing is a powerful medium of communication,” he observed. He exhorted the budding writers to grow in the art of writing and make a difference to the world. He said it would seem a small initiative of the SPICE, but its impact would be felt far and wide which can never be measured. This is also the case with the power of the media, especially the printed word.

The two-week Journalism workshop was inaugurated by Rev. Fr Michael Raj, Provincial of the Society of St Paul, at SPICE, Mumbai, on 7 May. Fr Joe Eruppakkatt ssp, the Course Director underlined the importance of the apostolic mission of evangelization through the media in the light of the charism of Blessed James Alberoine, the Founder of the Pauline Family, who said “media is a gift of God” and with the help of the media we can “fight evil with good”. He emphasized the specific purpose of this writing workshop as “to awaken the writer within” and to recognize the importance of the media apostolate in the Church as the most effective and powerful means of evangelization in the modern world.

This journalism workshop which was attended by 13 Religious Sisters, 3 Priests, 3 Seminarians and 5 lay persons was dealt under academic, pastoral and spiritual dimensions. The participants felt that it indeed is a challenge to keep writing simple, concise and appealing; to clarify thoughts, to focus on the idea and to touch the readers’ heart.

“This workshop encouraged me personally to sharpen my observation and writing skills,” said one participant.

Another said, “Writing communicates a message in a creative, convincing, clear and energizing way to touch the reader.”

The workshop included a series of lectures on learning to write, and hands on experience in writing feature articles, news report and analysis of different newspapers and articles. There were pertinent inputs by experts from the media and news agencies. It also included field trips, interview sessions and page designing course. The participatory methodology of the workshop and the mutual support of the participants were strengthened by music, video and attractive power point presentations.

SPICE, Mumbai, the media education centre of the Society of St Paul is engaged in conducting several courses in the field of media with academic, pastoral and practical approaches. Its next big project is the one-year PGDC in Journalism from next academic year.

Source: CRI, Gracy Fernandes

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