Social networking sites such as Facebook have received a seal of approval from The Catholic Church – but with some caveats. Pope Benedict XVI has issued a proclamation called “Truth, Proclamation and Authenticity of Life in the Digital Age,” which praises the ability that social networks bring for people to create bonds with people all over the world.
“I would like then to invite Christians, confidently and with an informed and responsible creativity, to join the network of relationships which the digital era has made possible,” Pope Benedict XVI wrote in the proclamation.
However, the proclamation also cautioned against replacing real human contact with connections made online. Specifically, Pope Benedict XVI urged young people to be “authentic and faithful, and not give in to the illusion of constructing an artificial public profile for oneself” when using social networking sites, and that a person’s worth is not driven by the “popularity” of their online presence.
– Richard Manfredi
Read More:
newsfeed.time.com/2011/01/24/faithful-facebook-pope-benedict-blesses-social-networking
www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2376170,00.asp