Bishop Ronald Herzog of the diocese of Alexandria, Louisiana delivered a message to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops today. He is a member of the USCCB Communications Committee.
The USCCB website quotes him in part as follows:
“Although social media has been around for less than 10 years, it doesn’t have the makings of a fad…. We’re being told that it is causing as fundamental a shift in communication patterns and behavior as the printing press did 500 years ago….We can choose not to enter into that cultural mindset, but we do so at great peril to the Church’s credibility and approachability in the minds of the natives, those who are growing up in this new culture. This is a new form of pastoral ministry.”
I agree.
As meager as this weblog may be, it is an attempt on my part to extend my diaconal ministry beyond the borders of parish and diocese. It is a ministry of the word, and hopefully serves as a source of information for all readers having an interest in the Catholic faith.
One of the limitations I find in keeping this blog active is I really do not know who is reading it or the responses the vast majority of you have to its contents. One can get a more immediate read on the hearer when one is teaching or preaching in a real time setting and in visual contact with the audience.
Maintaining a blog as a ministry to the Church is time consuming and at times fatiguing. You have to develop your sources of information, digest what they have to offer, and then make a prudent judgment as to its suitability for the purposes of your blog.
I always welcome feedback from my readers. I have only on one occasion had to edit or refuse to post a comment from individual readers. I encourage dialogue and challenge.
2 Responses to Evangelization via the Internet