At least 34 Filipinos will participate in a Vatican-organized Jubilee event in Rome for “digital missionaries” and Catholic influencers from around the world.
Organized by the Dicastery for Communication, the “Jubilee of Digital Missionaries and Catholic Influencers” will be held at Auditorium Conciliazione from July 28 to 29, ahead of the Jubilee of Youth.
Msgr. Lucio Adrian Ruiz, secretary of the dicastery, said the event will focus on evangelization through social media and aims to foster a sense of community and mission within the Church.
He described it as a moment of “encounter, formation, and shared mission” for representatives from various countries, united in their commitment to the life of the Church and its evangelizing mission.
“We hope that through this gathering, participants will be enriched both spiritually and pastorally, and that the exchange of ideas and experiences will strengthen their roles within their respective local churches,” Ruiz said.
The event will also serve as a reunion for many who first met at the “Catholic Influencers Festival” during World Youth Day in Lisbon, Portugal, in 2023.
The Philippine delegation includes priests, journalists, and those involved in church media ministries from various dioceses and church organizations.
Expected to welcome the delegates are Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s secretary of state; Archbishop Rino Fisichella, pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization’s section for new evangelization; and Dr. Paolo Ruffini, prefect of the Dicastery for Communication.
Scheduled speakers include the Fr. David McCallum, SJ, executive director of Discerning Leadership and a facilitator at the recent Synod on Synodality; and the Fr. Antonio Spadaro, an Italian Jesuit priest, journalist, and current undersecretary of the Dicastery for Culture and Education.
Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization’s section for first evangelization and new particular churches, will preside over a Mass for the delegates on the evening of July 28.
Participants will also be able to take part in major activities of the Jubilee of Youth, including a prayer vigil with Pope Leo XIV on Aug. 2 and the closing Mass on Aug. 3 at Tor Vergata, on the southeastern outskirts of Rome.
