Catholics are starting to get-it-dot-com

Did you see today's headline: "Pope goes digital to better connect with youth"  Here is a short excerpt from the article:

SYDNEY (Reuters) -..."The Pope will text daily messages of inspiration and hope during the six-day Sydney event while digital prayer walls will be erected at event sites and the church will set up a Catholic  social networking Web site akin to a Catholic Facebook."

Now that's what I am talking about! We, Catholics, are starting to get it.  Or as my former tech strategy guru professor at Kellogg used to say "dot get it dot com."  At the onset of the Internet revolution, he was a bit critical of old time executives who were slow to grasp the impact and benefits of the digital age.  Personally, I hold similar views of the Catholic church. Catholics are way behind in embracing the Internet and digital media as a way to evangelize.  There is a will, but the knowledge, time, and resources are thin.  Our Church leaders, priests and parish staff just aren't trained in digital media. Who expects them to be? So it is laity that must lead the way.  Thus my personal mission to help bring the Church kicking and screaming into the digital age.  At times it has felt like a quixotic crusade.

The good news is that there are a growing number of people out there doing good works using digital technology  Catholic-Tube, SQPN, MyCatholicVillage, and LifeTeen are just a few of my favorite Internet destinations. It's the laity driving these ventures. Some are non-profit, others are spreading the Gospel while trying to make a little coin.  I don't judge the model because we need more Catholic digital media. We must reach out to Catholics via their preferred method of communication. Today there are a myriad of fascinating new ways to connect Catholics and spread the Gospel. We can broadcast our faith via a text message or Twitter type cell phone applications, connect with the faithful on a social networking web site, and find spiritual enrichment on a video web sites like LoveToBeCatholic.com.

Web 2.0, broadband, wireless, and cell phones that are really multi-dimensional communication devices, are technology gifts that can help us broadcast faith.  So support Catholic digital media.  How?  Here I will shamelessly plug my web site www.LoveToBeCatholic.com. Upload videos to it. Bloggers, embed LoveToBeCatholic videos in your blogs rather using a secular web site like YouTube.  After all, our mission is to enrich the spiritual lives of Catholics worldwide.  Can YouTube make that claim?   OK, if my suggestion seems self serving, there are dozens of other Catholic web sites struggling to take hold as well.  Do a Google search, bookmark them, and spread the word.

Am I tilting at windmills?  I don't think so. Today's announcement from the Vatican is exciting news and a big leap forward!

Comments

[Jeff Miller]

The silly thing about the story is that he dis the same thing almost three years ago at the WYD in Germany.

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1676616,00.html

[Irenaeus]

The problem is, the media is the message/massage. Form and content can't be separated. I worry that with such a concern for modern media, Catholics will follow their Prot separated brethren down some dangerous acculturating roads.

[Tom]

Regarding: "The silly thing about the story is that he dis the same thing almost three years ago at the WYD in Germany."

Well, yes and no. They did us SMS back then. This year however, they are upping the ante - with virtual prayer walls, and a social networking web site like MySpace.

[Javier Plumey]

Mostly good stuff here. I agree with Irenaeus to a degree that while it's great to be using new media, we still need to focus on the content.

What's so good about using the internet if the message is watered down and wishy washy.

Don't get me wrong, I like all of the services that you mention, but I'm already starting to see a trend towards simplification thats alarming.

[Mike]

This is exciting news. We can all take advantage of these new media options to live out our call to share our Catholic faith with others...and not keep it hidden.