The Church and the resumption of Tourism in Post-Covid

This is an opportunity to rethink the Church's relationship with Tourism, without barriers, but in a structured thinking in partnership

International and European reports reveal that Covid-19 brought the greatest global crisis of our times, affecting in a unique way the way of living, working, traveling, socializing.

After World War I and the pneumonic flu, we saw a lot of what is happening today – an increase in people's general anxiety. Only when, after years, there was an optimistic growth cycle, that impact faded away.

With the pandemic, the general functioning of society is profoundly affected and it is not just tourism.

The fragility and distrust in relation to political regimes, socialization structures – which also includes the church – led to skeptical, nihilistic and sometimes radical views.

But the church can play an important role in the “restart” of Tourism, in addition to playing a fundamental role in renewing hope in the post-pandemic.

I list some main aspects:

1 – The Church and its agents are a source of support, comfort, guidance and social service for the communities where they operate.

2 – Religious communities can be the main vehicles for sharing health information, more widely and with greater acceptance than other sources of information.

3 – Spiritual support during public health emergencies and other health challenges is essential, and the Church can advocate for the needs of the most vulnerable populations.

4 – The church is a pillar of security and stability in a changing global society, as it has centuries of history with it, maintaining a strong close relationship with its direct communities.

5 – As an institution, the church can promote information, prevent and reduce fear and stigma, reassure people in their communities and promote preservation practices and better knowledge of their cultural heritage.

6 – Finally, the church can be an important partner in promoting respect and ensuring human rights-based approaches and in promoting peaceful inter-religious coexistence.

In addition to these opportunities for dialogue and proximity to communities, other scenarios of trust in the future emerge, which can be related to tourism.

We are witnessing a moderate recovery associated with increases in savings, consumption of durable goods, instead of superfluous spending, investments are emerging in strategic sectors such as the green economy, health, culture and education, to which science and education would be added. The technology.

The already recognized discourse of excessive monoculture in certain activities has given way to practices of incentive and financing for diversification. I am referring to a logic of economic rather than financial reconstruction, which can bring an apparently slower recovery, but more sustainable.

The thirst for travel and vacations is very present in individual discourse and some market queries reveal this, but a global vision does not show a quick recovery of mass tourism.

 

Tourism is the industry of peace and a builder of bridges between peoples

Thus, in times of health crisis, the following emerge as priorities: the preservation of life/health, the enhancement of heritage and culture, as spaces for the preservation of memories and identity roots, but also of the sense of belonging and identity, which contribute so much to the psychological well-being, and the feeling of brotherhood – because the enemy is the same for each one of us (Covid-19).

In this last aspect, religious institutions, as well as educational ones, can play a decisive role in the construction of new meanings for cultural landscapes.

In addition to the spaces of worship, there are the heritage elements that it is important to make known, safeguard and value as our common cultural heritage.

The Church has immense opportunities in specific areas, so it will be necessary to look at this relationship strategically and consider:

– A system of employment incentives in welcoming visitors to these heritage spaces;

– A training program for cultural education for the agents of this religious and cultural tourism system, associated with the cultural assets of the Church;

– The structuring of joint programs for the development of joint offers with other partners in the territory (namely Cultural Routes, giving as an example the Route of the Romanesque);

– The development of communication and promotion strategies for these offers;

– The establishment of local partnerships for the musealization, rehabilitation and interpretation of the Church's heritage sites and cultural assets.

The very reconfiguration of tourism and its relations will have to be more humane, being aware that the digitization of the sector can bring gains in individual security, but it does not replace interaction with others.

As Cardinal D. Tolentino Mendonça said this May 13th in Fatima: we have to be better; this is an opportunity to reconfigure life and here too there is a laboratory of opportunities.

This is an opportunity to rethink the Church's relationship with Tourism, without barriers, but in a structured thinking in partnership.

The meeting place with us can result from a closer relationship between Tourism and the Church, because, when we do Tourism, we look for discovery.

I remind you that Tourism is the industry of peace and a builder of bridges between peoples.

 

Note: this article is the summary of the communication presented by the author in the panel «Tourism: Challenges of the post-pandemic era», integrated in the promoted colloquy by the National Secretariat for Social Communications and by the National Work for the Pastoral of Tourism, which took place last Friday at the Mother Sovereign Sanctuary in Loulé.

 

Author: Alexandra Rodrigues Gonçalves is director of the Superior School of Management, Hospitality and Tourism at the University of Algarve, PAdjunct Professor/PhD in Tourism eiResearcher integrated at CinTurs – Research Center for Tourism, Sustainability and Well-being, UAlg

 

 



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