How Internet helps bring Catholic community together: Stories by Semalt
With the Internet taking in more and more aspects of our everyday life: shopping, working, leisure, learning, etc, one may think that digital era hasn't been kind to Catholic communities. However, the truth is quite the opposite.
Although many religious leaders have been worried about the sense of community being lost in the spreading popularity of the Internet, Sister Catherine Wybourne, the @Digitalnun on Twitter, who serves as a prioress in the Oxfordshire Holy Trinity Monastery, ensures that the web space enables people, who search for eternal answers find the community, where they will be loved and accepted by Lord faster.
Sister Catherine Wybourne states that it is important for religious leaders to be aware of web innovations and know how to work with them. It brings more transparency into the dealings between them and their flock, as well as allows them to reach to fellow Catholics from every part of the world.
It is hard to deny the benefits and opportunities the Internet provides when it comes to exploring experience, learning more about religious beliefs through sites, email correspondence, chat rooms and social media groups. Although the critique warning about the deception of online technologies is still present, many communities embrace the chance of better perception of faith-related issues
Semalt, a European digital marketing agency agrees, that more and more sites dedicated to Catholic communities and spreading the word of God appear on the Internet.
One goal, many ways
The duty of online market agency is to provide a spotlight for any online projects and make them acknowledged by their target audience. Helping Catholic web sources reach out to Catholics online has also become a part of Semalt duties.
Semalt agrees with the last research performed by the Associate Professor of Texas A&M University, Heidi A.Campbell, in which she stated, that the Catholic Church is currently one of the most engaged in the web spaces. There are websites, social media groups, YouTube channels, blogs and other types of online media, which are run and supported by Catholic users.
According to Semalt, they have been performing various tasks for Catholic customers, who wanted to meet other community members or share their stories. From building a presentable and informative site for fellow online-browsing Catholics to creating short introduction videos, the company's team helped many Catholic communities go online and become visible to the prospective new members in need of assistance and guidance.
Semalt observed numerous Catholic communities finding each other through the Internet for experience exchange, the organization of charity events, sharing blessings on Catholic holidays and improving their general relationship. This way of online interaction allows omitting the "walls", which used to be there when the Internet hadn't been introduced to the world.
Catholic web communities are present in abundance on the Internet using the opportunities provided by World Wide Web to bring people together, build a connection between individuals, spread love and understanding to the faithful, who need them. In this case, the change the Internet has investigated is a positive one. Communicating online puts people on equal terms between each other, allows them to become listeners and enter a dialogue, which shapes up the community.
However, it is important to remember the main concern of those, who oppose Catholic communities using the Internet and acknowledge that in no way the Internet can replace personal interaction within the community. Pro-online Catholics never fail to confirm: the Internet is a way to strengthen the faith, not substitute it, and it is indeed a pleasing fact that there are many online companies ready to support them in their initiative.