Pope tells the Priesthood to blog for God

Yesterday, I read a couple of articles about Pope Benedict XVI telling priests to use the new media of blogs and video podcasting to spread the word of God.

And I laughed. I know that it was wrong to laugh, but I am still not sure that the Pope understands the internet and how it works.

For instance, Pope Benedict XVI said that "Priests present in the world of digital communications should be less notable for their media savvy than for their priestly heart."

I can make a prediction here. Any Priest that succeeds at following that advice is only going to spread the word to those who already believe. I am sorry if I offend, but those in spiritual traditions need to be as media-saavy as the hucksters on the internet.

I understand what the Pope was trying to say. He wants the Priesthood to focus on being spiritual healers first and foremost; but if they want to make any headway against those they feel are in error, they need to be as media-saavy as the hucksters are, if not better.

Recently, I have spent some time on trying to figure out the tricks of successful bloggers. It is something that I think all leaders of the younger esoteric groups are doing. Wicca and the newer Golden Dawn groups embraced the internet wholeheartedly years ago. We do not need to be told that this is were we need to reach people if we want our traditions to grow.

What the Pope said is an ideal, one that I wish would actually result in those groups that were working in the Light could use. But I know too much about history and how the new media works to believe that it is useful advice if a group wants to spread its message and increase its membership.