We have no Pope. The Chair of St. Peter is empty. On February 28, Pope Benedict XVI concluded his ministry as our Holy Father. He left his position of power and responsibility with humility and grace. He promised to give the rest of his life to prayer and solitude on behalf of the Church. The Cardinals will elect his successor in the coming weeks.
Category: Pope Benedict XVI
23 Posts
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Breaking News About Pope’s Resignation Takes Us All by Surprise
When I heard “Breaking News: Pope Benedict is resigning effective February 28,” I was stunned as was most of the world. The Pope made his announcement to a gathering of Vatican Cardinals in Rome on February 11 and it was confirmed by the Vatican Press Office. Because of the time of the announcement, morning newspapers in the U.S. did not have the story, but they quickly posted brief online reports…
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Pope Sees Social Networks as an Environment for Ministry
In recent years, the popes’ messages for World Communications Day have addressed in different ways the growing importance of the digital world in everyday life. The messages encourage engagement in social media for the “sake of the gospel” and urge pastors and those in pastoral ministry to be active ministers on the Internet. Pope Benedict’s message for 2013 stresses the importance of this engagement even more emphatically. He urges us…
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The Pope App Is Here
Last week was a good week for Catholic social media enthusiasts. On Wednesday, January 23, the Pontifical Council on Social Communications, released The Pope App for iPhones and iPads. The Android version will be ready in about a month. On Thursday, January 24, the Vatican published Pope Benedict’s Message for the 47th World Communications Day, “Social Networks: Portals of Truth and Faith; New Spaces for Evangelization.” The Vatican traditionally publishes this…
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Awaiting the Pope’s First Tweet
A few weeks ago the Vatican announced that Pope Benedict XVI now has his own Twitter profile and will be tweeting his own messages beginning at his weekly General Audience on Wednesday, December 12. His Twitter handle is @Pontifex. Before December 12th people can tweet questions to the Pope on issues of faith using #askpontifex. He will answer a few of these in his first tweets during his general audience…
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Who Are We on the Digital Continent?
In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI in an address to the participants in the Plenary Assembly of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, referred to the new world of emerging technologies as the “digital continent.” And in other documents, he refers to those who have been born into this digital world as the “digital generation.”