Romana

The “University Extension Center,” a corporate work of Opus Dei in São Paulo, organized in June a seminar to help citizens discover channels through which they could have a positive influence on public life.

The first speaker, Ives Gandra Martins, minister of the Superior Court for labor questions, spoke on the history of civic action dating back to ancient Greece, and suggested that the gradual loss of a sense of community is leading to the disintegration of Western culture. Margoth Giacomazzi Martins, a labor judge, Paula Nelli Dionigi, attorney for the state of São Paulo, and Paulo Restiffe Neto, a magistrate, responded to questions from those attending.

In the second talk, Carlos Alberto De Franco, a journalist and director of the Master’s Program in Journalism at the University Extension Center, spoke about some practical instruments that citizens have at their disposal. He stressed the role of the media in civic formation and urged that these channels be used by citizens to express their point of view in society.

Soraya Marciano Silva, a federal attorney, Laudo Arthur, a lawyer, and Angelo Patricio Stachine, district attorney for São Paulo, filled out the round table and, as in the previous session, responded to questions from the public.