Pope Wants Priests to Become Web Savvy

By Dena Cassella Published January 26, 2010

Vatican City might be getting a little more technical. In his message to the Catholic Church in preparation for this year’s World Day for Social Communications, Pope Benedict XVI asked the Catholic ministry to use today’s latest technologies to reach out and preach. The pope announced that the theme for 2010’s World Day, which will be on May 16, will be “The Priest and Pastoral Ministry in a Digital World: New Media at the Service of the Word.” The pope admitted yesterday that as the social culture changes, the church must also change to keep up with the times.

“Priests present in the world of digital communications should be less notable for their media savvy than for their priestly heart, their closeness to Christ,” said Pope Benedict. “This will not only enliven their pastoral outreach, but also will give a ‘soul’ to the fabric of communications that makes up the Web.”

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The pope says new forms of preaching and using technology to start a dialogue with a new generation of practitioners has already begun. Both the pope and the Vatican have their own Web sites, many priests are getting linked onto Facebook to communicate with their parishioners, and there is even an iPhone app that keeps you updated on news from the Catholic Church.

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