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PHILADELPHIA - You can connect with lots of people on Twitter, Facebook, blogs and texts.
Now, it seems, with the pope's blessing, you can use all these media to make the ultimate connection.
On Jan. 24, the feast day of St. Francis de Sales - patron saint of journalists - Pope Benedict XVI issued a message titled "Truth, Proclamation, and Authenticity of Life in the Digital Age." He gave his blessing to the Facebook-Twitterverse, and invited Christians "to join the network of relationships, which the digital era has made possible." Pretty hip. (Note: The pope has his own social-media site, Pope2You,)
So do other clergy use social media in their duties?
They sure do. A quick survey of priests, ministers, rabbis, and one imam made clear that social media were made for religion, in which connection and community are key.
"I love Facebook," said Pastor Andrena Ingram of St. Michael's Lutheran Church in Mount Airy. "You just reach everybody and anybody." Like many religious congregations, St. Michael's has a robust website - "When people come to visit us from out of town, very often it's because they saw the website." On Facebook, Ingram posts news and announcements, and coordinates a youth group. She...