At the opening ceremony, The Vatican Minister of Public Relations, Paolo Ruffini read the message from Pope Francis to the participants: "The choice of 'peace in the digital world as the theme of the plenary session is timely."
The Vatican Minister gave a keynote talk on the topic of Isolated Individuals in the Age of Hyperconnectivity. Minister Ruffini looked at the problems of loneliness, alienation, and slowly collapsing communities found in society today, as we enter a new era in which the real and the fake are mixed in a virtual space called the metaverse.
Minister Ruffini emphasized the role of Signis in making the world a better place. "The digital world is not already created, and we can change it. On the Internet, we weave a web of truth and beauty, faith and hope. By doing so, we can build a more human-level type communication." He then awakened the mission of Catholic journalists, saying: "It is up to us to inform and connect the values of solidarity, sharing, truth, and human dignity in the digital world."
"The Signis World Congress, being held during Pope Francis's synod journey, is also an important moment in the synod," said Helen Osman President of Signis World in her congratulatory speech. She also said, "Peace is not simply a state that does not cause war or has no hatred," adding, "It is in creating a world where we, with the support of Jesus Christ, deeply understand each other and where human dignity is respected."
On the second day, 'fake news and the crisis of trust' were dealt with centered on the keynote lecture of Dmitry Muratov, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize last year. (He auctioned the Nobel Peace Prize medal donating the proceeds to UNICEF for the benefit of refugees from Ukraine. The medal sold for US$103.5 million, the highest price ever recorded for a Nobel medal).
Archbishop Jeong Sun-taek, co-chairman of the Signis World Congress and the Archbishop of Seoul, was concerned about the technology and information gap that appear in the digital world and emphasized that "communication technology that cares for everyone is the way to communicate properly in the digital world. The church should play a role in conveying the charm of personal encounters and strive to spread the good values of the church in society."
Han Seung-soo (Daniel), the organizer of the Signis World Congress, said, "Korea is the only divided country in the world, even though it has reached the world’s highest level in IT infrastructure, technology, and market development. The fact that the SIGNS World Congress will be held in Seoul is very meaningful." He continued, "I hope that it will be a time to explore what digital media can and should do in the evangelization we pursue while freely using Korea’s digital environment."
