¹  When I came to you, my friends, to preach God’s secret truth, I did not use big words and great learning. ²  For while I was with you, I made up my mind to forget everything except Jesus Christ and especially his death on the cross. ³  So when I came to you, I was weak and trembled all over with fear, ⁴  and my teaching and message were not delivered with skillful words of human wisdom, but with convincing proof of the power of God’s Spirit. ⁵  Your faith, then, does not rest on human wisdom but on God’s power. 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 (TEV)

It is, therefore, an inherent right of the Church to have at its disposal and to employ any of these media insofar as they are necessary or useful for the instruction of Christians and all its efforts for the welfare of souls. It is the duty of Pastors to instruct and guide the faithful so that they, with the help of these same media, may further the salvation and perfection of themselves and of the entire human family. In addition, the laity especially must strive to instill a human and Christian spirit into these media, so that they may fully measure up to the great expectations of mankind and to God’s design.

Yesterday I watched the some of the Patriots press conferences.  It started with the coach, then moved to Tom Brady, then Danny Amendola. They were absolutely hilarious, because the reporters kept asking the same questions over and over again, hoping to get a different answer, some great admission about the state of Tom Brady’s hand, and whether he will play Sunday or not. 

As they answered them, the press got more and more frustrated, even to the point of asking the Coach if the decision to play Tom Brady will be a game time decision.  The coach shrugged his shoulders and said, “It’s Friday,” meaning how will he know if it will be a game time decision, if it isn’t game time.  Brady and Amendola both gave similar answers, though you could tell they hadn’t quite perfected the flat affect of the Coach.

As I was thinking about that, I thought about the church.  We get as distracted as the press corps did, as we create this moral crusade and that moral crusade, and even crusades against moral crusades!  Yesterday I saw some ministers argue about who spoke at a pro-life event with such hostility that they looked like they would take each others life!

We need to learn from the Coach, and from St Paul, and in regards to the media, to a document written 50 years ago during  Vatican II.   We need to know, and present Christ, our hope,to use what we’ve been given in social media for the welfare of souls.  (Or to use another phrase, the cure of souls)  To see people know God’s mercy, to receive the forgiveness of their sin, to be cleansed of all unrighteousness, to be reconciled to God. 

Reconciliation, the  revealing of God’s mercy and forgiveness is our job, much as winning football games is the Coach’s job.  It is the word we preach, it is the sacrament we administer.  It is the reason we do what we do, and the reason we can do what we do!

To help people have faith in God, to help them depend on His mercy, to count on His love for them.  That changes everything, it is at that point, when it is revealed, that the victory happens, when the party, even including heaven begins.

This is what we do, this is what we are called to be, walking with God, sharing in His mission. Whether in real life or in social media.

Lord have mercy on us, and walk with us, as we do our job…. AMEN!

Catholic Church. “Decree on the Media of Social Communications: Inter Mirifica.” Vatican II Documents. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2011. Print.