UPS professors and students talked about the Pope's visit

Quito, lunes 29 junio 2015
Participants
Participants

 

Due to Pope Francis visit to Ecuador, the university's pastoral department in Quito held the forum "The Pope's visit to Ecuador: contexts and perspectives" on June  24th and 25th. 
The speakers were Jaime Castillo, professor at Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, Xavier Reyes , UPS professor and journalist, and Maritza Bautista member of the Movimiento Juvenil Misionero.

Father Marcelo Farfán, director of the pastoral department, welcomed everyone who attended and talked about the visit of Pope John Paul II 30 years ago which marked social, pastoral, political and economic commitments not just for the church but for the whole country. He added that the Pope's visit is not a matter of logistics but it is a spiritual event and a renewal of faith. 

Castillo spoke about the higher education context and its permanent reforms, new demands, and methodological challenges. He said people should reflect on the concepts of society and culture, and rethink education from interdisciplinary dialogues with new realities between academia, the public sector, the private sector, science and business.
He said the acceptance of Pope Francis is not because of his position in the church, but because of the type of person he is, with political and moral influence in the Western world, influencing public opinion and giving Latin America a meaning.

Xavier Reyes spoke from the media perspective and media coverage in the current context which is characterized by political confrontations. Traditional media coexist with digital ones and they propose new challenges such as technological coverage and the responsibility to create meaning of the Pope's visit through information. 

Bautista , through her history as a volunteer in the Missionary Youth Movement , talked about how the Pope's visit is a celebration for the whole country , especially for young people, to be committed to his ideals and live faith in an active way and not as simple spectators .

A great number of students and professors attended the event and showed great interest on the talk.