Think about it.... all over the world people are trying to reach as many people as possible. As of 2009, there are well over 6 billion people on the earth. How do we take the message of Christ to as many of these people as possible? How about simply reaching as many of the 1.147 billion Catholics as possible? And still even easier, how to reach the 61 million American Catholics? Everyday thousands and thousands of our fellow Catholics are getting sucked into the secularism of the world. How do we free them from the bonds of world's ideology? Also, how do we spread the message of the Catholic faith to those that God is calling to His Church? Did you know that 1.8 billion people in this world are regular internet users? And how about the increasing 163 million people within our own country? These are issues that the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI has talked about. He has called the Catholic Church to take the internet by storm and use it for the New Evangelization. It's time for us to take back our society by reaching as many people as possible about the Fullness of Truth! "Just how do I do this?" you say. Glad you asked!
First of all, you have to be creative. The majority of people are on the internet to consume information. They read articles that grab their attention. A person that finds a title appealing will normally go through to read the article even if it's something they disagree with. That's the power of simply a great title. Throw some personal experiences in the mix, and they might actually enjoy the article.
Second of all, teach about the facts. Like the late Archbishop Fulton Sheen stated, "There are not over a 100 people in the U.S. that hate the Catholic Church, there are millions however, who hate what they wrongly believe to be the Catholic Church, which is, of course, quite a different thing." We have to make sure as an evangelistic people by nature, that we spread the Truth of the Catholic Church. We have to be sure and answer any questions that people have of the Church. We have to STAND UP to the lies and half-truths made up about the Catholic Church. But, this indicates we have to know a toot about what we're talking about. I encourage everyone to learn about your faith and how to defend it. There are a lot of apologetics websites and books out there, so there is absolutely NO excuse not to learn about your faith!
Finally, teach with boldness. We cannot be a society that tip-toes around the facts! St. Paul touched possibly the most people in the New Testament because of his no-nonsense persona. I am not saying to be insensitive to others feelings and emotions, but let the truth shine through in a non-threatening way. More than likely, you will appeal more to a person by an unwavering stance on an issue. Remember, "For that person must not suppose that a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways, will receive anything from the Lord." James 1:8 Do not waver on the stance of the Church, and do not flinch in proclaiming the words of Holy Mother Church!
I believe with an interesting, true and bold outreach on the internet, we can reach just about anyone that we set out to. The average lay person can stand up and start using their internet time to change the world! Don't believe me, look at what the opposite has done. Over 40 millions of Americans are addicted to internet porn. It's no wonder our society has such an increasing amount of moral decay. If such an evil can penetrate the world, don't you think the light of Christ can shine through the darkest corners of the internet? Let's be a people of stature and stand up and change this problem. Let's stand up and put our minds to work.
Please if you have any suggestions on how to live out our call to evangelization on the internet, feel free to leave comments.
In Jesus through Mary,
John Sena
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