The director of the Faculty of Theology at the Catholic University of Portugal, Father Luís Miguel Figueiredo Rodrigues, stated in an interview with the ECCLESIA Agency that one of the conclusions of the research published in the book 'Digital Ecology' underscores that the concept of ecology cannot be foreign to the digital environment. The priest explained that the way we are in the digital environment and in other environments interact with each other, and that the way we use the digital conditions the rest of our lives.
The interviewee noted that the digital world is not a static environment nor one that can be switched off, highlighting that today people live more in an "on/life" model than "on/off." The algorithms install desires and perceptions that subtly condition people's choices and worldviews. He argued that it is necessary to develop media and digital literacy, and that one cannot exist without face-to-face relationship, without a body.
Regarding evangelization in the digital world, Father Rodrigues pointed out that it is very easy to make a podcast or disseminate a message, but evangelizing is not informing; it is creating situations conducive to the person meeting the Lord. He emphasized that digital does not allow for celebration nor being before the other, so one cannot remain only in the digital to evangelize.
The book 'Digital Ecology' was coordinated by Father Luís Miguel Figueiredo Rodrigues, Alex Villas Boas, Bishop D. Alexandre Palma, and Fabiano Incerti, resulting from research developed at the Centre for Research in Theology and Studies of Religion (CITER) at the Faculty of Theology of the UCP. The publication, freely accessible, is part of the 'Caring for Our Common Home' collection and brings together contributions from researchers in the fields of theology, philosophy, communication, education, and digital culture.
