Theological and Ethical Anthropology

   CONTENTS  

Anthropology and the Christian faith in the digital era

What do youths plan for the future? Is it possible to pray on the web? What type of self-image is conveyed by the photos posted on social networks? These are the questions that motivate the interdisciplinary projects chaired by Professor Leomar Brustolin, of the Research Group Theological and Ethical Anthropology, which is composed of theologians, sociologists, and psychologists.

In 2011, undergraduate grant holders interviewed students from 18 to 24 years old attending various undergraduate courses at PUCRS who were enrolled in the discipline of Humanism and Religious Culture. The questionnaire that was developed, “The future under question: transcendence and hope in young university students,” sought to investigate the dreams, hopes, and expectations of youths. Most answers concentrated on short- and medium-term achievements, which correlated hope with well-being and placed more value on present than future achievements. According to Brustolin, this situation emphasizes the La Vita Buona theory formulated by Angelo Scola, the cardinal of Milan. The term “good life” indicates that the Christian experience does not entail heaviness but conversely a lightness that attributes value to happiness in the present. This lightness is the highest form of freedom, in which “want to be” and “must be” coincide. The relevance of this project, according to its chair, is that it provides common ground to all who study the topic of religion in youths.

Another project of the group asks: is it possible to pray online? Youths affiliated with Catholic communities were interviewed. This study concluded that the religious experience depends more on the testimony of and personal contacts with other people who had that experience, rather than on TV, the Internet, or other media, which can reinforce the message but cannot replace personal contact. Despite the importance of the virtual and digital element, the actual presence and community are indispensable for the Christian faith.

The latest project seeks to understand the representation of the body that youths have as a function of the exposure of their image on social networks. The aim of the study is to assess the perception that youths have of their image as publicized on the Internet and its relationship with the notion of the image of God held by the Christian faith to promote integral and solidary Humanism.