Written by KOR SocCom
Seoul, Korea, 8 December 2024 -- On 7 December, the vigil of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, approximately 50 members of the Salesian Family and SDBs gathered at the provincial house in Shingil-dong, Seoul, to celebrate the inauguration of the Don Bosco Communications and Culture Center, presided over by Fr Marcello Baek, the provincial.
The newly established DBCC is set to undertake a variety of activities in the realm of social communications, excluding the printing sector. Its initiatives will encompass video production, digital and internet-related outreach, internal and external information dissemination, as well as domestic and international youth events and exchanges—including the upcoming World Youth Day Seoul 2027.
The Don Bosco Communications and Culture Center boasts a rich history within the Korean Province. In 1994, the community was formed under its own name and has been actively engaged in social communications-related activities. However, after losing its presence due to the reorganization of the province's communities and other factors, its visibility diminished, leading to its eventual closure. Subsequently, its functions were assigned to individual confreres, causing a further decline in its impact. After several years of limited activity, the provincial and provincial councils recognized the center's importance and decided to revitalize it in January 2024. They also chose to locate some of the facilities in the vocational school that had closed due to a significant decrease in student enrolment.
For three months, extensive remodeling was undertaken to adapt the facilities to meet the center's specific activities. A large LED wall (measuring 6 x 3 meters) was installed, enhancing the space’s appeal to today’s youth both in terms of design and functionality.
“I expect the Communication and Culture Center to help young people of this era to taste the salt. I ask that it will become a torch for those who are hungry for hope, finding a way to get closer to young people living in the digital culture, creating Don Bosco's oratory in it, and providing it to youngsters." This is what Fr Marcello expressed in his homily. The place where the DBCC is located is where the Vocational Training Center in Machine Engineering has been provided for the past 60 years, empowering underprivileged youth. It is a place that has lit a beacon for countless young people who have passed through it to overcome poverty and become good Christians and upright citizens who can firmly establish themselves in society. Therefore, the province has a sincere expectation that the center will illuminate new pathways that resonate with today’s youth in our ever-evolving world.
“At a time when AI is beginning to penetrate deeply into our lives, it is absolutely necessary to strengthen humanities education. We cannot beat AI with an education that only produces answers that are utility-oriented. The Church must guide and accompany young people so that they can live out their unique identities." This is what Professor Kim Thomas Aquinas Sang-ho, who gave a congratulatory lecture before the blessing ceremony for one hour on the topic of 'The Church's Youth Education in the Age of AI', emphasized. According to him, as one of the best experts in the Artificial Intelligence field, AI will provide us with a lot of extra time, so the direction of youth education should be to provide a way for youth to make good use of their extra time. From this perspective, he diagnosed that the direction of the DBCC is clear. Reflecting on the historical context, Professor Kim remarked, “During the industrial age, the training of machining engineering was indispensable, and the Salesian missionaries responded to the needs of that era admirably. Now, in the dawn of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the Salesian Society faces a new challenge: to illuminate the path for today’s youth like a lighthouse. I believe the Don Bosco Communications and Culture Center stands poised to meet these new challenges head-on.”
The Salesian family members who attended the inauguration ceremony expressed great joy at the birth of the new center, and at the same time prayed together in the hope that it would become a new form of oratory and set a benchmark for digital pastoral approaches aligned with the times.
