Wikis+-+What+Does+the+Church+Have+to+Say

Assignment #2
Expected time to complete this assignment: 30 minutes

Read the entire statement from the USCCB Communications Committee report to the 2011 Fall General Assembly. It's not very long.

Social media: Friend or Foe, Google or Hornswoggle? []

While you are reading, be aware of words of phrases that might apply to our topic of wikis. Now post a short reflection about what impressed you the most in the USCCB statement. If you would like to reference or other Church documents or statements, please do. If you can create a hyperlink to the document, even better!

Example: I was impressed that the bishops recognize the evangelization opportunity created by social media. That could apply to wikis, too. If wikis allow ANYONE to contribute, maybe I could set up a wiki for two Catholic schools to collaborate in a project. I think my junior high students might enjoy that. I have been searching for a project where they can articulate their faith in a new way. -posted by Claudia

Bishop Herzog’s presentation opened my eyes to the necessity of all involved in parish ministry to become familiar and fluent in the use of social media. That statistics are staggering: more than 500 million active users on Facebook-and that was three years ago. I am quite certain there are at least several million more!
 * POST YOUR REFLECTIONS HERE: **
 * Mary Fran Cassidy **

The analogy of social media to a new continent was also staggering. The sentence that struck home is “If the church is not on their mobile device, it doesn’t exist. The Church does not have to change its teachings to reach young people, but we must deliver it to them in a new way.” Bishop Herzog went on to say “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, whose who are growing up in this new culture. This is a new form of pastoral ministry.”

How are we to evangelize the natives of this new land? As the missionaries of old, we must “go there”! We need to learn their language and set foot (hand) on their soil (devices/websites/facebooks/blogs).

The message is the same. The media isn’t! This is taking “the media and the message” to a whole new realm, but one which those involved in spreading the message must not only enter, but also participate actively, thus influencing and helping to create “a whole new world”, but helping to assure that it is one in which the reign of God is at hand.

What most impressed me in Bishop Herzog’s speech was the plea, “…to respect the culture of these Twitterers and Facebookers, and to engage on their terms to bring Christ into their “brave new world. Respect and engage are the key words. When another’s culture is treated with respect and openness, what is being offered is more likely to be received. Engagement allows one to take inside oneself what is offered and be changed.
 * Brenda Tibbits **

The USCCB statement is clear, direct and helpful. Ignoring social media or treating it as a "passing fad" is not only short-sighted, it is dangerous. Ignoring social media or pretending it is not important is tantamount to writing off a growing number of members and seekers. As the bishop notes, if we are not part of that communications shift, the Church is not going to be visible or present to many. By engaging with people through social media, we are not changing the teaching message of the Church; rather, we are delivering that message in new ways. Social media is not a panacea--like all forms of communications it is limited and imperfect and does not reach everyone. We will still need to communicate in a variety of ways, including print, telephone and email.
 * Susan McGurgan **

(Claire Hamilton) Bishop Herzog, in his presentation to the USCCB Communication Committee, made a forceful argument that we must embrace the world of social media and learn to use its tools to promote our ultimate mission, bringing Christ's message to the world, in the most effective and efficent way possible. To do otherwise is to ignore a major shift in how and where people are communicating with each other, ultimately causing our message to become virtually invisible to those with whom we wish to interact and bring to conversion. The points he made when discussing the challenges to evangelization using social media were what most impressed me as impacting on what we must keep in mind when constructing and maintaining a wiki. He maintained that: 1) When a participant expresses an opinion, only to have it challenged, he expects a ready response and "conversation", indicating that a wiki must be maintained regularly. 2) While one may invest in the use of social media to get one's message out, one cannot ignore "legacy" communication outlets (newspapers, radio, tv, and books) since both baby boomers, a significant portion of today's audience, and most financial donors to the Church still rely on them. 3) While it is relatively easy to create a wiki, one still need training and direction to operate the site effectively and efficently. In Bishop Herzog's words: "We digital imigrants need lessons on the digital culture, just as we expect missionaries to learn the cultures of people they are evangelizing."

(Karen Burford) Bishop Herzog's statement impressed me over all, as a kind of wake-up call to the Church. I sent the link to this statement to the rest of the parish staff as a good starting point for discussion. I think one of the reasons we are behind in the use of technology is fear. This article shows that we should be more afraid of NOT using it! It is the way people communicate. Even email is outdated, which is the number one way we communicate with our parishioners. At my daughter’s college orientation, the president said, “You know, kids are only using email because we make them, not because that’s the way they communicate.” At the time, that statement was a shock to me. But my young adult children and their friends absolutely see email as antiquated. I am finding that many of my PSR parents are not checking their email as often as they did just a few years ago. As Bishop Herzog stated, //On the Digital Continent, “if you build it, they will come” does not hold true.// //It takes careful strategizing and planning to make social media an effective// //and efficient communication tool, not only for your communications department,// //but for all of the church’s ministries. We digital immigrants need lessons on the// //digital culture, just as we expect missionaries to learn the cultures of the people// //they are evangelizing.// All church staff needs to become educated and have constant training in social media and digital communication.

Regarding wikis, one of my personal fears is moderating: deciding what is acceptable and unacceptable, cyber bullying, etc. I don’t like debating! I have to get over this fear and embrace the positives of the collaboration made possible by wikis. One way I can overcome this fear is to require absolute transparency. To be approved to join any “wikispace” we create as a parish, people will need to use their real first and last names and be verified as parishioners, PSR catechists, Bible Study participants, etc. before being welcomed into the wiki. Maybe after I get used to that, I will be brave enough to open things up to the public! (Karen Burford)

"Social media is proving itself to be a force with which to be reckoned." "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 think that says it all... The article included the statistics (from 2010) to back up the enormity of the speed of this paradigm shift (TV: 13 years to reach 50 million; iPod: 9 months for 1 billion apps downloaded). I was caught off-guard by Benedict XVI's statement calling the world of social media a "Digital Continent, with natives, immigrants, and even missionaries." Had never really considered that the new social media really does create a new 'continent' as it were. As a member of this DDBC class, I consider myself to be a recent 'immigrant' but hope to soon become acclimated to the language and the culture. Pat R


 * T **** he article from Bishop Herzog was very good. I found two things that stood out to me. One was the need of meeting our young adults where they are. It is very true that when I need information I go to Google or websites, or my email. Young adults do not go to the mass communication sites, but more to social media tools. I love the premise-for young adults, If it doesn't exist on their phone, it doesn't exist or it isn't important. What a challenge to get our church on all their phones! However, with that said, it is also important to remember that you still have a wide demographics in your parish who do not get excited about our newest technology. These new tools are wonderful but their will be parishioners who reject them or still prefer to communicate the"old-fashioned" way and most likely they are the bigger contributors to your parish so it is best to keep it all in a good balance. But how wonderful to know are Bishops are trying to keep on top of the latest Social Media struggles and keep us informed! Terri K **

"The Church does not have to change its teachings to reach young people, but we must deliver them in a new way." In fact, I think the Church's message is more important than ever on the "Digital Continent." If we don't make an effort to put that message out there, nobody else will. And if this is where young adults are looking for information we need to be present. Wiki addresses this statement very well. It is a platform where the Church's teachings can be available, but in a new way. The article continues to state: "Anyone can create a blog and everyone's opinion is valid." What a wonderful way to learn what young adults are struggling with and searching for. We can look at this as an opportunity to get the "inside scoop" and share the message of the Church in ways we can directly address these struggles. (Patti Gehred)

First of all I am happy to report that Bishop Herzog's speech was an easy read but contained some hard and fast information for those of us in ministry about the Digital Continent we need to be a active particpants. I think those of us involved in the Faith Formation of children realize the "old ways" are not creating "burning hearts" with our students. I truly see that the lecture and text book methods of catechesis can't compete with how the children are learning in their school classrooms. We need to adapt and educate ourselves, our catechists and our pastors. Our Catholic school and parish put in WiFi access but for the religious education program it was useless-we had no computers to use as the school's are state funded and we aren't allowed to use them. Many of our parish catechists aren't computer literate or educators by profession which means starting at square one. Perhaps create a wiki that shows catechist how to incorparte social media into their lessons and pay close attention to the meaning of all the new terminology. I am thrilled to see that the bishops realize we have to change how the Gospel message is disseminated but it comes down to education and having access to the tools of social media. Alison

I was very impressed with the opinions that were displayed by the USCCB. It was very clear in stating that the audience that we are missing in the Church is present on social media, it's like I always say, we can't keep doing what we've always done and expect new people to come to us. We need to do what the audience we are looking for is doing, we need to go to them and make them interested in us. We are currently setting up a wiki for our parish and our twinning parish to track miles walked for exercise (through our Health Ministry) and we are "walking" to our twinning parish as a summer health ministry awareness project. The wiki will better allow us to track the miles of those who wish to participate in this awareness project. Everyone can enter their individual progress toward our group goal of just under 800 miles. - posted by Kristen R

This quote, "Social media is proving itself to be a force with which to be reckoned. If, not the church may be facing as great a challenge as that of the Protestant Reformation" was, to me, the underground of the message that was verbalized through the USCCB speech. Indeed, if one considers the ramifications of the reformation in history and the consequences to the church it is quite earth shattering as it speaks to meeting the people, culture and social mileau in the here and now. As the speech noted, this can be daunting because it places the church's message "out there" in the middle of a society that speaks a different language and espouses a different value. In our diocese, social media has been used as a "weapon" to mobilize the community to protest an action taken by our Bishop. What this has done is create a great mistrust and dislike of social media to the point that I need to downplay the work I am doing in this class. I think this is something that we need to look at...how do we "market" our message authentically in a way that fosters communication that is respectful in an area such as this? -posted by Michelle L

I liked where they reminded them of what happened the last time the Catholic Church was slow to respond to new technology - the printing press. There are things we can take are time on such as teaching and truth but in how we communicate is not one of them. They are also aware that this does take time to do and it needs to be considered a part of the working hours. Being reminded that you cannot just build it and expect them to come in this type of world, it needs to be promoted. This is something I am still working on with my parents and youth. How can I get the parish and faith formation into their cell phones that most seem to use much more than computers? - Kim Adamson

" It takes careful strategizing and planning to make social media an effective and efficient communication tool" stood out for me as most often the buzz is "how fast can we get this up, running and in the people's hands"? More often than not, parish life and programs run a lot quicker than normal. This statement from Bishop Herzog helps me to put an urgency into the process of learning first, planning and then implementing this type of ministry. Part of our planning here will have to include doing some kind of poll to find out 1.) how many parishioners have some type of receiver, ie: computer, ipad, smartphone 2.) what social media sites do they look at and use, and 3.) who in the parish or on staff can help keep it running. Lots of good stuff to look forward to. - Ed Reising

I am delighted to read that Bishop Herzog encourages not only diocesan staff but fellow bishops as well to welcome this new form of communication especially with digital natives and the unchurched. Based on his statements I believe those of us who minister in all fields in the vineyard need to not only learn about social media but keep up with it each day. If we are not responding and communicating each day the digital community will not come back to our resources. - Elizabeth Girton

Bishop Herzog’s statistics about the use of social media were impressive. This should help us see the need for involvement and the use of these technologies in today’s world to spread the Good News. I particularly was interested in the part about culture and the “Digital Continent.” I had never considered us missionaries who become enculturated before now. But it does make sense. The message of the Church always remains the same, but the new technologies – including wikis—have created a whole new wonderful (and sometimes scary) world of application, transmission, and evangelization. Ann Andriacco

=
It is exciting to see that the USCCB are recognizing (and embracing) the Digital World as a paradigm shift. The one statement that stands out for me is “i//f you build it, they will come - does not hold true”.// Digital sights can be created but we must understand the audience we are trying to reach. The message must be written and delivered in a language and format with which the audience can understand, relate and connect with. For example: Younger children of the digital age are used to watching bright, lively, entertaining shows that have messages. kayk======

What struck me most was comparing social media to the printing press. "// And I don’t think I have to remind you of what happened when the Catholic //// Church was slow to adapt to that new technology. By the time we decided to //// seriously promote that common folk should read the Bible, the Protestant //// Reformation was well underway." // I can download the Bible in under 2 minutes. This article was written 3 years ago ... what are we waiting for? The Reformation has already begun. Perhaps the Church needs to just get going and find the faithful where they are, instead of trying to lure them back into the pews ... What if we ... as Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI (who was the first Pope to tweet at age 85!!) said, " ... //engage on their terms to bring Christ into their 'brave new world.// " This is coming from a man who attracted 700,000 followers in one hour. One hour. In the article, it said that " // There are more than 500 million active users on Facebook." // Yikes! We need to speak (and tweet and post and snapchat) the Truth now, today in bright, colorful messages (as kayk eloquently posted). What would YOU say to 700,000 people to get retweeted, or get 500,000,000 viewers to like? As Blessed (soon to be saint) John Paul II said, "Do not let your hearts be troubled". media type="custom" key="23435752"

Yesterday (or was it Friday? The days of this weekend are running together for me) I learned of Pope Francis' encyclical,//Lumen Fidei// through Twitter, then, later that same day of the upcoming canonizations of Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II. Had I listened to traditional news programs only, I still would not know of the encyclical or John XXIII's canonization. Our news clearly was only publicizing John Paul II's canonization (not sure why that was. Perhaps they felt John XXIII was forgotten or unknown by so many). I found my experience of this very telling given our topic this week and the reading for this assignment. For those of us in Church work, we MUST be comfortable with social media and use it to bring news, information and clarity to others. This does not mean we should be giving up "traditional" forms of communication but we need to become comfortable with this new culture. Many of you have already commented on some of the things that struck me from the reading so I'll comment on this: "//Anyone can create a blog; everyone’s opinion is valid. And if a//  // question or contradiction is posted, the digital natives expect a response and //  // something resembling a conversation. 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." //

Our Church is accustomed to being the authority. The Church declares something and everyone obeys. Since Vatican II (and probably earlier) the Church has struggled with people not obeying; I think they really don't know how to "handle" them. I think the Church is uncomfortable with "everyone's opinion is valid" and the expectation of the conversation. However, I would contradict with the idea that in the context of social media, everyone's opinion is valid - meaning we, as Church, can express our teachings and explain our teachings in a non-threatening way so that it is given a chance. By this I mean, when offered in a way that is not forced, people will consider the teaching, reflect upon it, perhaps do more research and learn just how true and beautiful the Church teachings are. We've experienced this in our diocese when working with young adults coming to the Church for marriage. They know to what the Church says "NO" : living together, contraception, etc BUT they have no idea WHY. They've never been told the teaching behind the "rules." Once they hear them and are given a chance to question them and understand them, they come to understand the Church's stand on these issues. I see great promise and possibilities for social media in this area. Wikis would be great tools for presenting the teachings and allowing for a conversation to develop. As questions and concerns arise, a list of resources and experts on the teachings could be provided. Of course, these tools would need monitored (we all know there are people out there who are just blatantly anti-Catholic) but a Wiki could be a wonderful way to gently evangelize and catechize those who are truly seeking to know and understand. These digital natives may never be reached any other way. (Michelle Tomshack)

I really like this article. It was easy to read, but it was also very difficult to hear. This was commented on others as well, but I'll add to it, because I agree it was probably the most hard-hitting statement:

//I am here today to suggest that you should not allow yourselves to be fooled// //by its appearance. Social media is proving itself to be a force with which to be// //reckoned. If not, the church may be facing as great a challenge as that of the //// Protestant Reformation. //

He makes a great case that we are already in the midst of a monumental cultural change and we must adapt. I really like Michelle's comments above. Our culture today has little respect for authority in itself, because everyone's opinion is valid. While everyone's opinion is not equally valid, we have to share the objective truth within the boundaries of that widely accepted very subjective cultural foundation. So, like Michelle says, at least part of the answer to the BIshop's challenge could be to enter the social media world, present the truth in a way that invites feedback and opinion, so that people can work with it and, in the Spirit's time, come to understand that the Church does have it right after all. But if we just tell them we're right, we all know where that attitude is getting us. (Bob Wurzelbacher)

Bishop Herzog said a few things that needed to be said without being heavy handed or judgmental of those who may not be on board with using Social Media. The Facebook example of USCCB likes and possible shares are compelling reasons to step up and use the tools at our disposal. As far as relationship to Wikis, I think #2 from pg 2: "the opportunity for immediate dialogue and conversation that transcends geographical and other physical barriers" is one reason why Wikis can be useful. In general, after reading the presentation, I'd like to get it into the hands of people in our diocese and parishes so we can better understnad why we need to particpate in Social Media. (Deanna Bartalini)

The points that Bishop Herzog made that relate most to this lesson on Wiki's for me were the ones re: why the growth of social media "1) low threshold of investment both in terms of knowledge and finances, especially given reach; 2) the opportunity for immediate dialogue and conversation that transcends geographical & other physical boundaries and 3) the speed in universal adaption." These are certainly characteristics of some of the benefits we've been discussing about wiki's! Also his comment re: The Church does not have to change its teachings to reach young people, but we must deliver it to them in a new way." is critical. Church teaching is Church teaching. Truth is truth. Just because someone posts something on a wiki or a blog does not mean it is "true". However, we should not avoid these technologies because of the potential for people to distort the truth. The broader issue Pope Francis & Benedict have spoken about re: cultural acceptance of relativism vs. truth cannot be ignored. We need to proclaim the truth and this includes using the vehicles of social media to do it. The other is re: leadership. The Vatican/USCCB needs to set forth the vision, overarching strategy & guiding principles for the Church's engagement in the Digital Continent to get everyone on the same "page"/set the high level frame and maximize resources/minimize redundancies, enabling the shepherds & laity to locally meet people where they are at to bring the Good News to them. - (Cara Stolarczyk)

As Bishop Herzog quoted, social media has grown in part because of “a low threshold of investment, both in user knowledge and finances, especially given its reach”. As a Church, aren’t we always trying to get the message out to the largest group for the least financial investment? It seems only natural that we take advantage of this opportunity to spread the Good News!

I was also struck when Bishop Herzog referred to our youth and said, “If the church is not on their mobile device, it doesn’t exist. The Church does not have to change its teachings to reach young people, but we must deliver it to them in a new way.” I am the parent of two teenagers and I see how their computers and phone are their lifelines to the world. It is essential to meet them where they are most comfortable. As any parent of a teenager will tell you, if you want to communicate with your teen you need to text them. They don’t respond if you call, or if their friends call, but you can engage them in an immediate conversation via text. I’ve had many friends who prefer to be digitally challenged, eventually come to the realization that there is no alternative but to get on board and learn the digital culture to stay in touch with their kids. (Patti Kamper)

The point I found most compelling of Bishop Herzog’s presentation is that he reminds us that not only do those in ministry need to embrace the “Digital Continent,” but they need “to understand the culture” of those using it. Who are they? How do we engage with these “digital users” so we can meet them where __they are.__ Parish staff members need to “think, live and embrace life on the Digital Continent.”

To reach the “digital culture”, which Digital Discipleship is attempting, most church staffs and ministry leaders will need training. Each parish and dioceses need to develop plans on how to effectively incorporate social media and technology into their communication methods.

With reference to wikis, the points listed above can be applied to wiki usage. As our staff becomes more confident with their technological knowledge, we can use a wiki to develop a parish communications plan! -posted by Laura S.

I am very grateful for DDBC the more I journey through this course. Bishop Herzog’s speech enlightened my understanding and the need not only how to learn SN, but how to engage in this new communication media -- “to think, live and embrace life on the Digital Continent.” I have personally avoided using social media because I have felt uncomfortable with the whole concept. However, attending the recent NACMP conference and going to the DDBC Boot Camp, I can see the wisdom of entering into this culture and becoming proficient with using its tools to evangelize and catechize the message of God’s love for us. And, referring to the Bishop’s concluding comments, recently, a couple of us requested updates of our diocesan website pages; however, since we have limited staff and resources we have to wait because we may have to wait awhile. (J. Fye)

There were several things I found striking in the document. I love the comparison of social media as a 'digital continent' and had never quite thought of it that way. It's a very fitting metaphor. I was impressed when the Pope first tweeted and am encouraged that the document speaks of Pope Benedict XVI's encouragement of priests to not only respect the culture but engage it as well. The point that "the Church doesn't have to change its teachings it has to change how they are delivered" is just as meaningful as the comment that priests, employees, etc. must also respond in social media to challenges and dialogue with users. I think this is where my parish currently falls short. We're putting the message out there but there is no response to questions or challenges. My parish seems to be in the "if you build it they will come" mode rather than the full understanding of the need to engage. I look forward to sharing this document with our Communications folks.

~Tara D.

One of the things I love about our Church is that it is willing to confront current issues and trends. Similar to the timeliness of the issues addressed in Catholic Social Teaching documents, today the Church is recognizing the necessity of embracing the new digital world and it's human implications. Bishop Herzog gently admonishes the clergy and laity to make serious efforts to embrace the many dimensions and magnitude of social media. He stresses that the world of Twitter, Facebook and. . . . . is a world that __needs__ pastoral ministering. This is a paradigm shift for ministry but we do not have to change our message - just the way we deliver it! So we must become enculturated with the new vehicles and language of the social media in order to be effective evangelizers.

Our Church also recognizes that our communications with the Digital Continent must be ethical. In //Ethics in Communications// (Para. 21, Pontifical Council for Social Communications, 2000), the Council states: " . . .the fundamental ethical principle is this: The human person and the human community are the end and measure of the use of the media of social communication; communication should be by persons to persons for the integral development of persons". Always cognizant of the human connection, we must remember the reason WHY we choose to engage in social media: to bring the transforming message of the Gospel to those who, otherwise, may not be accessing traditional Church communications. Anne Marie

I think it is very good that the committee recognizes that staff need to be properly trained in social media in order to meet the "natives" in their own domain. Tools used in the wrong way aren't helpful to anyone. It's important to learn how to use the tools of social media so that your time isn't waisted and you can benefit those you use social media to minister to. I think the same can be said of wikis. You need to know how to use them or you leave room for error, miscommunication, and poor use of resources. --Sarah P.

 ==== “It’s learning how to think, live and embrace life on the Digital Continent.” Social media encompasses new ways of thinking, a new vocabulary, new cultural expectations, assumptions for sharing information, and so forth. Social media users expect to create and interact with “content” not just “receive” content. Whereas social media is the communication tool of preference among many youth and young adults, digital immigrants who did not grow up with social media often find it challenging. As is true when learning any new culture, patience, perseverance, and openness to learning how to use these tools are essential. If we expect to minister among young adults and youth it is necessary to meet them where they are and they are on social media platforms. While social media has its challenges and limitations, it also offers opportunities for evangelization, faith sharing, and dialogue about our Catholic faith. What an opportunity for the Church to step out and lead, to listen to and engage others in meaningful, civil dialogue, and spread the Good News in ways that invite participation, dialogue, collaboration, and faith sharing. Jan Von Handorf ====

I was very impressed with Bishop Herzog's analogy of the digital world as another continent and the awareness that most of us who currently work in the area of faith formation, whether children or adults, are immigrants to this continent. It reminded me that one of the lessons which the Church learned through early mistakes in missionary endeavors is that you don't enter a new culture and impose your own culture on it, but rather you you adapt not your substance, but your style to the new culture.

With the very little knowledge I currently have of Wikis, I am already thinking of ways they can be used to create and work with committees, for such things as - planning parish events, establishing curriculum for offerings. As an Adult Faith coordinator, I'm really excited about trying a Wiki for a "book discussion", hence, combining my native culture of print media with the one I am trying to get a passport for, digital media. Pat McMahon

Marty McClain Bishop Herzog tells it exactly the way it is with regard to the power of evangelization via socail media. Not only is the USCCB posting four time a day, but the Vatican is posting multiple time a day. I also follow Bishop Coyne from Indianapolis and Cardinal Dolan from New York. I read and share their posts frequently. It is wonderful to see my high school students share these posts (or articles, etc.) in the manner that Bishop Herzog describes. Recently, I have had several conversations with my 70 year old father who wants the Church to do more. He complains that you never see the Church speaking through TV or the news media anymore. I had to tell him that our secular news media outlets rarely is ever promote anything Catholic, let alone Christian...unless of course it's bad news or perceived as controversial. I told him that the only reliable source for all things Catholic is through Catholic websites and Catholic socail media pages. This phenomena makes evangelization though social media all the more important.

The thought of reaching hundreds of thousands of people because of the inherent networking of social media is mind-boggling. Facebook is a great medium to reach those in their late 20's and later. Reaching younger people is harder. I am the parent of 2 teens and one twenty-year old. Just when I think I have a handle on how they are interacting with their friends, it changes. It went from MySpace to Facebook to Twitter, Instagram and SnapChat. Setting up the media, using it to reach out, monitoring it and staying up on the latest technology is definitely a big job. As for wikis, I love the interaction part of it but I worry about making sure it is used constructively and not as a "club" to hit others with. ~ Loretta Nazario

I loved the USCCB document - unlike many from that direction it was short, simple and to the point! Now, if only we can get those ideas implemented in our parishes and regions. My own experience (and I will be honest here - that experience only extends over four years, so I' not so sure how valid it is!) is that IF and WHEN parish staffers want to make changes, all too often those changes are derailed either by other staffers or business managers, or even worse, pastors themselves. So, I'm very glad that our bishop sees this need and is acting upon it... my question though, is how do we move that on down the line? Especially with the upcoming emphasis upon the New Evangelizatioon in the Cincinnati archdiocese, the use of these tools would appear to be essential!

I also liked that the document notes: " You may also be happy to hear that they don’t need you to learn how to use Twitter or Facebook. They do need a vision and leadership from you. Is this something that is important to you? Is it a tool that they should be using...."

Especially as someone who tends very much to be about vision, leadership and big picture planning, I say "Great Questions!" Sue Sack

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Bishop Herzog’s article on Social Media and its demand of us to learn and use Social Media for evangelization. Before I started DDBC my only exposure was having a Facebook account which I set up to see postings of pictures from my family. This class has been eye opening for me with many surprises for learning and scratching my head. None the less, the point many already have expressed is the sentence “Social media is proving itself to be a force with which to be reckoned.” My own clarity is growing so that more training needs to be made available for parish staff members in social media and its use so that we are not ignoring the obvious reality. In some respects being behind in the class work has an advantage – I get to learn while reading all the previous postings. thank you, Susan Bellotti I agree with Susan, who defined her use of "crowdsourcing" with her last sentence that she got to learn while reading all the previous postings. As the webmaster and social media leader at our large parish, one of Bishop Herzog’s statements really struck a chord. He said the powers that be do need a vision or leadership from you. … Is it a tool that they should be using to reach young people and others who are unchurched? Do you want them to be developing ways to integrate social media into communication and evangelization planning? Fundraising? How much attention? Just how do you want to use it? I ask the senior staff who do they want to reach? Are we trying to reach the unchurched? Keep the folks we have? After reading “Rebuilt” by Father Michael White, as directed by the business manager, focusing on the unchurched seems to be an important mission that we miss out on, at least at our parish. Then, how many hours per week, who will team with me, where is the “editorial board” making the decisions on postings? This is where my local focus will go. Thank you Bishop Herzog for posing the questions succinctly. (Terri Moser)

I found Bishop Herzog's comments very revealing and open to the possibilities that social media brings to the Church. However, also revealing was the comment at the end of the document (talk) that showed the disconnect between many in leadership (bishops, pastors, etc.) to the use of, and commitment to social media ministry as evidenced by the comments regarding those staff members seeking leadership and guidance from the Bishops. Without guidance from leadership, not just policies and guidelines from Diocesan attorneys and IT "pros", and without a sincere commitment from leadership through resources and support, then social media ministry will go the way of so many programs and initiatives that get started with good intention that end up suffering because of lack of ongoing support, resources, and follow through.
 * Dave Gruber**

We must define our audiences and utilize the proper social media strategies to reach those audiences. Wikis I can see being great for smaller groups (RCIA, Book Clubs, etc.), where Blogs would seem to be ideal for larger, broader audiences. Facebook and Twitter are not enough. There has to be a purpose and process to this. As one who spent over twenty years in fields such as industrial sales engineering as well as advertising and public relations, you can have the greatest product or ad out there, but if you are not presenting it to the right audience at the right moment, then the success of the product or ad becomes questionable at best.

Think of it this way; I used to call on major manufacturers as well as small, "mom & pop" machine shops and fabricators and everything in between. Most were oriented toward metalworking, however I did call on some specialty woodworking customers that made wood educational products for developmentally disabled students. During one new product push for an exciting new tool for aluminum milling, we were supposed to report daily to the owner every customer we talked to about this new product. He couldn't understand why I did not present the product to two customers one day. I had to remind them that these two customers made specialty wood products primarily, and while I had left information for them on the product for aluminum, that amounted to less than 5% of the total consumable machining that they did. I had no intention on wasting my customer's valuable time presenting products that did not apply to his usage.

While I know this may seem off-beat, that is how I see many approaches to social media ministry and social media marketing. One approach is to just have a blanket presence, get it out there to anybody and everybody. But anyone with any marketing background knows how much more effective target marketing is. However sometimes our target audiences are not where we are communicating. So a complete and concise strategy must be implemented. To have that, leadership MUST be onboard, resources must be made available including adequate equipment, budgets, and personnel; and there must be a coherent overall vision and strategy that utilizes the broad catch-all blitz strategy (i.e. Facebook, Twitter, and Google+) as well as more clearly defined target audiences.

The message of the Gospel is clear and concise, but how we communicate that whether from the pulpit or through social media utilizing Blogs, Wikis, and other Web 2.0 tools must be constantly and clearly communicated according to the needs of the audience. One thing I learned many years ago when I began as a volunteer RCIA catechist just a year or two after converting is that we must meet people where THEY are and guide them to the altar and font, not just plug them into a program. The same applies to our people when reaching out to spread the Good News through Social Media Ministry and other online tools.

bschwabk: "// And I don’t think I have to remind you of what happened when the Catholic //// Church was slow to adapt to that new technology. By the time we decided to //// seriously promote that common folk should read the Bible, the Protestant //// Reformation was well underway." // Learning from our mistakes is one of the greatest lessons of all times. Bishop H. is correct that many young people do not read newspapers and/or magazines but that older people do. He recognizes that the Church cannot drop print and focus solely on digital communication. Bridging the gap in communication preferences requires the Church, and its members, to utilize a combination of methods. Print communication by the Church, as well as Internet communication, it going strong and digital communication must be as strong, if not stronger as we continue the journey.

Teresa Phillips I have always said, it doesn't matter what you say, it matters what they hear. This is true of our social media users. If we don't say 'it' and in a way they can 'hear' it, we are no more than a ghost town. It is wonderful to hear this from a bishop... and that all it costs is 'staff time', since sometimes I feel people think I'm playing when I'm on FB. I haven't embraced Twitter yet, but I'm sure it would be the same. It is a powerful tool and I'm glad taht is starting to be recognized by those in higher postions in the church.

Barb Blanco The points presented by Bishop Ben Herzog were very promising. Personally relating to the use of social media within my own parish, and the hesitation to move forward more readily, is an issue many parishes are dealing with. In the face of rapid movement, change and vulnerability that social media poses, the Catholic Church is once again challenged to "move it or lose it," so to speak. The promotion of the Bible was one such thorn in our side. The digital age or "Digital Continent" as Bishop Ben says, is in no uncertain terms a new language we must all learn and adapt if we hope to reach our youth and ensure our preservation. I was pleased to feel the assuredness in his statement that, "//The Church does not have to change its teachings to reach young// // people, but we must deliver it to them in a new way." // When faced with change or uncertainty veterans in the faith may fear that the Church's teaching will be watered-down, but in fact this new language we speak of serves as a new platform that can reach far more people in much less time, and time is of the essence. Moving forward in faith and recognizing that God has made available these new tools to promote the Gospel message should squash any fear or hesitation. The next step should be embracing this new realm and joining digital missionaries in their work.

Tom Harrmann The reading of the talk given by Bishop Herzog to the Bishops got me very excited. I realize it was give about 4 years ago, but I am just now climbing on board hoping to catch the "last train out of the station". He facts and figures about being the 3rd largest continent in the world is jaw dropping. My hope is that as the pews are in the process of emptying we can present an attractive, informative teaching presence on the web through the various social media sites.


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