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Office of Social Communication (OSC)

To bring a Christian dimension to all communication activities and develop 'Social Communication' within the Asian Catholic community in order to support Christian living and the service of the Gospel.

- FABC Meeting, Johor Bahru (1983)

FUNCTIONS

1. Collaborate and network with the Department of Communication of the Holy See in promoting the teaching of the Church, the World Communication Day, various Church documents on social communication
2. Exercising on behalf of the FABC responsibility for the governance, administration and management of Radio Veritas Asia (RVA)
3. Coordination and cooperation with --

-- FABC Central Secretariat and other FABC Offices

-- the Offices of Social Communication (OSC) in the FABC-member conferences

4. Professional support for Asian Bishops on social communication concerns
5. Promotion of research and study on Church and Social Communication in Asia
6. Collaboration and networking with Catholic, Christian and secular media organizations such as:

SIGNIS, International Catholic Association for Communication

Associations of the Press, Publishing Houses, Writers, Artists

Catholic and Christian News Agencies

Catholic and Christian Universities and Academic Faculties of communication and media studies

Other like-minded professional media organizations- Religious and Secular.

Objectives

1. To promulgate within Asia the directives on social communication of the Holy See and the FABC
2. To keep the Bishops of Asia abreast of developments in social communication, particularly those affecting the Asian Church
3. To collaborate with the media organizations and activities of the Catholic Church in Asia
4. To provide communication training for Bishops, priests, religious and apostolic workers
5. To help and support national and regional conferences to develop pastoral plans and to establish communication Offices
6. To help develop and support academic programs for pastoral/social communication formation through institutes like Veritas Asia Institute of Social Communication (VAISCOM)
7. Seek and facilitate scholarships and consultancy services in social communication
8. To coordinate with national and regional communication offices in devising ways and means to support evangelization and the ministries of the Church
9. To promote collaboration with media religious and secular media organizations in Asia.

Activities

1. FABC-OSC Bishops' Meet (BM) annual gathering of Chairman Bishops and Executive Secretaries of Episcopal communication Commissions/Offices in Asia
2. Bishops' Institutes for Social Communication (BISCOM), workshops and training, seminars and animation programs for the bishops and bishops' conferences personnel on relevant "Church and Social Communication" subjects.
3. Roundtables and Consultations among experts on relevant "Church and Social Communication" subjects and themes
4. Collaborate with the FABC Central Office for the upkeep of the FABC Website
5. FABC-OSC Book Series Publication and collaborate in the publication of "For All the Peoples of Asia" (FABC Documents).
6. Radio Veritas Asia: effective planning and guidance for governance, administration, personnel, finance, evaluation, policy formulation and other acts
7. Develop and support academic programs through Veritas Asia Institute of Social Communication (VAISCOM) for the pastoral formation of church leaders in Asia
8. Network and collaborate with secular and religious media organizations through joint activities.