Pope praises role of archives, libraries, in tech-oriented world

May 14, 2024 at 2:06 p.m.
Pope Francis poses for a photo with teachers and students from the Vatican School of Paleography, Diplomatic and Archival Studies and the Vatican School of Library Studies during a meeting at the Vatican May 13, 2024. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
Pope Francis poses for a photo with teachers and students from the Vatican School of Paleography, Diplomatic and Archival Studies and the Vatican School of Library Studies during a meeting at the Vatican May 13, 2024. (CNS photo/Vatican Media) (Vatican Media)

By Justin McLellan, Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY CNS – The troves of knowledge stored in archives and libraries must be made available and accessible to all people, especially as they increasingly depend on technological means for their knowledge, Pope Francis said.

Scholars overseeing archives and managing libraries must have "a great openness to discussion and dialogue," Pope Francis told professors and students from the Vatican's archival and library sciences schools May 13. He encouraged them to develop "a readiness to welcome," especially the marginalized and those suffering "material, cultural and spiritual poverties."

The Pope encouraged the members of the two schools – the Vatican School of Paleography, Diplomatic and Archival Studies and the Vatican School of Library Studies – to avoid becoming complacent in distributing knowledge, particularly given the "decisive and epochal cultural challenges" of modern day, noting the problems of contemporary scholarship "related to globalization, to the risk of a flattening and devaluation of knowledge."

He highlighted humanity's "increasing complex relationship with technology," the challenges of engaging with and studying traditional cultures, making sources of information accessible to all and the responsibility of scholars to "defend all from the toxic, unhealthy and violent things that can lurk in the world of social media and technological knowledge."

Pope Francis also urged the scholars to avoid "self-referentiality" and to share their ideas and experiences with other academic institutions.

Marking the 140th anniversary of the archival school and the 90th anniversary of the school of library sciences, the Pope said that such anniversaries are not meant "just to honor old glories" but to "look forward to the future, to have the courage to rethink yourselves in the face of demands from the cultural and professional world."

The Pope praised the "decisive characteristic" of the two schools: their "eminently practical" and "concrete" approach to problems and studies, which he said enables them to come into contact with past knowledge and transmit it to future generations.

"Confronting the realty of things is worth more than ideology," he said. "Ideologies always kill.

"The Church needs quality Catholic journalism now more than ever. Please consider supporting this work by signing up for a SUBSCRIPTION (click HERE) or making a DONATION to The Monitor (click HERE). Thank you for your support.



Related Stories

VATICAN CITY CNS – The troves of knowledge stored in archives and libraries must be made available and accessible to all people, especially as they increasingly depend on technological means for their knowledge, Pope Francis said.

Scholars overseeing archives and managing libraries must have "a great openness to discussion and dialogue," Pope Francis told professors and students from the Vatican's archival and library sciences schools May 13. He encouraged them to develop "a readiness to welcome," especially the marginalized and those suffering "material, cultural and spiritual poverties."

The Pope encouraged the members of the two schools – the Vatican School of Paleography, Diplomatic and Archival Studies and the Vatican School of Library Studies – to avoid becoming complacent in distributing knowledge, particularly given the "decisive and epochal cultural challenges" of modern day, noting the problems of contemporary scholarship "related to globalization, to the risk of a flattening and devaluation of knowledge."

He highlighted humanity's "increasing complex relationship with technology," the challenges of engaging with and studying traditional cultures, making sources of information accessible to all and the responsibility of scholars to "defend all from the toxic, unhealthy and violent things that can lurk in the world of social media and technological knowledge."

Pope Francis also urged the scholars to avoid "self-referentiality" and to share their ideas and experiences with other academic institutions.

Marking the 140th anniversary of the archival school and the 90th anniversary of the school of library sciences, the Pope said that such anniversaries are not meant "just to honor old glories" but to "look forward to the future, to have the courage to rethink yourselves in the face of demands from the cultural and professional world."

The Pope praised the "decisive characteristic" of the two schools: their "eminently practical" and "concrete" approach to problems and studies, which he said enables them to come into contact with past knowledge and transmit it to future generations.

"Confronting the realty of things is worth more than ideology," he said. "Ideologies always kill.

"The Church needs quality Catholic journalism now more than ever. Please consider supporting this work by signing up for a SUBSCRIPTION (click HERE) or making a DONATION to The Monitor (click HERE). Thank you for your support.


Have a news tip? Email [email protected] or Call/Text 360-922-3092

e-Edition


e-edition

Sign up


for our email newsletters

Weekly Top Stories

Sign up to get our top stories delivered to your inbox every Sunday

Daily Updates & Breaking News Alerts

Sign up to get our daily updates and breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox daily

Latest Stories


Pope asks Vatican media to reduce spending as they share the Gospel
Pope Francis told members and staff of the Dicastery...

Catholic researchers' work on communism's martyrs continues
On Warsaw's Narbutta Street, amid a carpet of autumn leaves...

Pope urges prayers for parents who have lost a child
When a child dies, there is not much anyone can say ...

Papa Francisco: Asegúrense de que la confirmación no es la última vez que la parroquia ve a los jóvenes
La Iglesia Católica debe esforzarse más para que ...

‘ST. HEDWIG, PRAY FOR US!’
A dual anniversary for St. Hedwig Parish, Trenton
Father Jacek Labinski and his parishioners commemorated ...


The Evangelist, 40 North Main Ave., Albany, NY, 12203-1422 | PHONE: 518-453-6688| FAX: 518-453-8448
© 2024 Trenton Monitor, All Rights Reserved.