(Photograph: Gregorio Borgia/AP)
Every now and then a news story catches our attention, and we want to discuss (and by discuss I mean, we want to know what you think).
Earlier this year, Pope Francis called the Internet a gift—a gift from God to be exact.
Perhaps the gift is in its reach. The Internet makes communication a piece of cake, and that’s part of the Pope’s point. Last month in this article from the Associated Press, The Pope acknowledged the potential and a problematic aspect of the World Wide Web:
Francis said the Internet offers “immense possibilities” to encounter people from different cultural and traditional backgrounds and show solidarity with them. “This is something truly good, a gift from God,” he wrote. But he warned: “The desire for digital connectivity can have the effect of isolating us from our neighbors, from those closest to us.”
The question is, do we use the Internet for good? We use it in practical ways each and every day: directions, shopping, recipes, how-to-________ (you can fill in the blank there). And, chances are, we waste a lot of time online, proven by the fact that we all know “what the fox says.” Maybe the Internet is a gift from God?
When it comes to the possibilities, the opportunity to reach and converse with those in which we’d have no access to, I agree with Francis. E-mail, chat, Skype—the list goes on and on—make conversation possible and can be used for so much good.
In all honesty, I am not using the Internet to reach others with the intention of sharing my faith. I use it for my convenience. Truth be told, I’m wasting a lot of time. After all, I know what the fox says.
So do tell, is the Internet a blessing or a curse for you?
How do you engage online in a way that creates opportunities for you to share your faith?
How does the Internet benefit your ministry?
Amy Jacobs works with Threads as a marketing strategist and copywriter.
