new media

Promote Catholicism Day & Silence

May 21, 2012 By Sarah Reinhard 1 Comment

Here’s something awesome: Promote Catholicism Day preceded by a day of silence.

Here’s the scoop:

World Communications Day 2012 is Sunday, May 20. The 2012 Catholic Media Promotion Day will follow on Wednesday, May 23 and Thursday, May 24.

On Wednesday, May 23*, we’re asking you to take a one-day break from posting on blogs, Facebook, Twitter, Google +, Pinterest, etc… and use that day to reflect on the Pope’s words about the role of silence in communication and evangelization.

Then, on Thursday, May 24, please share the fruit of that day of prayer and silence with everyone, by posting (here) your answer to the question: “What in Catholic Media has had an impact on me during the past year?”

I’m on it, folks! In fact, it can be no accident that this is happening on a week when I’m feeling especially frazzled.

Here’s to new media silence on Wednesday! Are you in?

Filed Under: blogging Tagged With: Catholic, new media

The Value of Face-to-Face

May 16, 2012 By Sarah Reinhard 2 Comments

I love how the internet and the media-that’s-not-really-”new”-anymore has opened many doors and windows in my life.

I’ve made friends who are not virtual in any way, though miles may separate us. We drink our coffee via Twitter, share joys via email, follow each other’s lives via blogs. We ask for sudden prayers through texts and even call from time to time to sob and pray out loud.

There is no doubt, to me, that the digital continent is a blessing in my life.

You can read the rest at the Catholic Writers Guild blog.

Filed Under: blogging, writing Tagged With: blogging, Catholic Writers Guild, in real life, new media

My Highest Recommendation for Jeff Young

December 21, 2011 By Sarah Reinhard 3 Comments

See this face? This is the face of a trustworthy man who has become like a brother to me.

[He is not, in fact, my brother, except through baptism. ]

You might know Jeff Young better as the Catholic Foodie. He and I have worked together for some time in that space (Mary in the Kitchen anyone?).

Well, he does far more than just cook. In fact, cooking might be more of the back burner of who Jeff is.

Recently, I asked him if he would help me with a project that (a) I was kind of lazy to attempt and (b) I thought would be pretty easy.

As it turns out, it was not an easy project. In fact, I might have broken my site if I had attempted it alone. (I don’t think I’m exaggerating here.)

(In the interest of full disclosure, this was the SECOND TIME I had asked Jeff to help me with something that meets both of those qualifications. I can’t believe he continues to act nice to me and even remain in contact with me. I owe him. BIG TIME. Times two.)

I write this as an all-out endorsement for Jeff and his work. I highly recommend him!

He’s professional and timely. Not too long ago, he helped me make some major changes to my email with very little stress and hassle on my end. Then he took on this other project, that involved nearly a full weekend, some prayer, and a bunch of technical mumbo-jumbo PHP and DNS and errors and server stuff.

Jeff’s the kind of guy who will have you smiling when the work is done, not only because of how well it was completed, but also because southern hospitality is just part of how Jeff does business.

Learn more about Jeff Young and his work at his site. He writes, he designs, he does media work. Oh, and he cooks. (But I don’t know how you get that without having him come to your actual house. If you figure that out, though, I am interested. VeryVERY interested.)

Thanks, Jeff, for saving the day. Again.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: Jeff Young, links, new media, recommendation

Showing Our Gratitude in Our Tweets

October 24, 2011 By Sarah Reinhard 6 Comments

By Maria Johnson

We’ve all heard it – The Internet is an insidious source of distraction and evil in contemporary society. It’s true!

I blame a certain little addiction to cute farm animals and shiny pink tractors as one of those distractions. Thanks to family and friends mocking me at every obnoxious status update, I had an intervention and am pleased to report I’ve been Farmville-free for 18 months.

Of course, I’m making light of it – or am I? Social media, whether it’s Facebook, Twitter, Google + or [insert your favorite distraction here], can be a powerful time suck. It can be a black hole that takes us away from our families and friends, makes us less productive, and does nothing, nothing to make us better people.

Thomas Jefferson said the same thing about reading novels in his essay “On the Dangers of Reading Fiction.” You could say everything is relative. He was agitated that people were spending time reading adventures and love stories instead of reading Scripture or learning about history or philosophy. He even went so far as to recommend authors that he believed were edifying. It’s a good thing he never encountered the likes of Facebook in his day. He’d probably have a stroke.

Jefferson’s point, however, is well-taken. How are we spending our time on the internet, especially since so many of us both work and play on-line? Are we using this medium in a way that builds us up in the Body of Christ, or tears us down?

It’s an important question, especially for those of us who are not just consumers of Catholic new media, but producers. And I have a little news flash for you, gentle reader: if you are Catholic and using Facebook and Twitter, you are a producer of Catholic new media.

Don’t run away. I didn’t mean to scare you with that reality check, suggesting that you need be a super-apologist or something. I don’t have a degree in theology, either.In fact, on any given day my ability to get it right is more often than not overshadowed by how often I get it wrong.

Just think about it, though. If we are Catholic and doing our best to live our lives in an authentically Christian way, then everything we do reflects that. Everything. Right down to what we tweet.

Are we building up the Body of Christ or tearing it down?

A little meme is going around on Twitter – perhaps you’ve seen it. It’s one of those hashtags that you add to the end of a tweet, #gratefultweet. Matt Swaim, who produces The Son Rise Morning Show on Cincinnati’s Sacred Heart Radio evidently got it started and Father Schnippel at Called By Name took off with it and added some ground rules.

It’s a simple game: your first tweet of the day states something for which you are grateful. Do it every day. God knows where a thankful heart will lead us.

He really does.

image credit: The College Startup

–

Maria Johnson is heavily involved in New Media, from her work with SQPN and as cohost of Catholic Weekend, to her tweeting as @bego and her blogging at Another Cup of Coffee. She’s been popping up at Patheos lately, too, most recently with a great piece about basketballs and nuns and movies.

Filed Under: Faith, guest post Tagged With: gratitude, Maria Johnson, new media, twitter

The Church and New Media

August 11, 2011 By Sarah Reinhard 1 Comment

There are some books that come my way and other books that I hunt down when I hear about them.

The Church and New Media: Blogging Converts, Online Activists, and Bishops Who Tweet was one that I asked (begged?) for.

Just last week, I had a chance to experience, once again, the effects of in real life meetings that began online.

In The Church and New Media, Brandon Vogt has collected some of the hot names in Catholic new media and tapped into their wisdom. The book explores blogging and podcasting, but also social media and parish applications of all of the above. There are conversion stories that were rooted in online searches and communities that have never met in person.

It’s a fast read, but one that I’ll be revisiting. Though Brandon’s role was as editor, in the introduction and conclusion he ties things up nicely.

It’s so easy to discount this new-fangled technology, to look at it as either the obsession of gadget lovers or the downfall of civilization. It has its dangers, to be sure, but in this excellent resource, we have a great starting point a way to continue to grow.

Sharing our faith has never been easier, though living it is just as hard as it ever was.

I can’t help but wonder, after reading this book, visiting the website, and reading other reviews, what the sequel will look like…

If you more, be sure to check out my interview last week with Brandon.

If you haven’t already, check out www.churchandnewmedia.com where you can learn more about Brandon’s book, find a list of contributors and endorsements, and explore the many special resources. You can also download a free sample from the book and purchase it in paperback or eBook form.

Filed Under: Books, Reviews Tagged With: Books, Brandon Vogt, Catholic, new media, Reviews

In Real Life

August 8, 2011 By Sarah Reinhard 7 Comments

A Mary Moment Monday post

You know what I love about my New Media relationships? I love when they become in real life, when the faces and voices become tangible and interactive and the subtleties of conversation happens while life pours down around us.

Pat Gohn and I

Over the years, I’ve been blessed to make a number of New Media friends, friends who are not virtual at all, who get Christmas cards and phone calls from us. It’s been a joy to meet people who I’ve gotten to know over the years, and last week’s Catholic Writers Conference Live and Catholic Marketing Network trade show was an opportunity to meet quite a few people I’ve become close to over the years.

I have a number of pictures of these fine folks holding my baby, and what you won’t see in the pictures is the jumping up and down that was happening in my heart.

Ellen Gable Hrkach and I

When I reflect on the Visitation, it makes perfect sense to me that Mary would drop everything and go to Elizabeth. Aside from the fact that Elizabeth was probably having a more difficult time with her pregnancy because of her age, there’s just something about BEING THERE, in real life, with someone else.

I’ve heard people argue that all this New Media stuff is a distraction from real life, but, for me, it has opened the door to many graces and blessings.

Lisa Hendey and I

Just as Mary rushed off to help Elizabeth, I feel like these events that bring us all together in real life offer an opportunity: to serve, to hug, to smile, to enjoy each other in the very best ways. I think Elizabeth must have been very blessed by Mary’s presence and generosity, and that’s just how I feel after a week around amazing people.

I’m thanking God for the gift of these friends and for the blessing of in real life meetings, short though they often are. I’m reflecting on how Mary must have cherished her time with Elizabeth and how I can bring what I’ve learned back into my everyday life.

Filed Under: Inspired by the Virgin Mary, Mary Moment Mondays Tagged With: in real life, Mary Moment Monday, new media, pictures, Virgin Mary

A Few Words with Brandon Vogt

August 6, 2011 By Sarah Reinhard 3 Comments

Brandon Vogt isn’t just an amazing guy who’s ten years my junior. (That makes him 11. In case you were wondering.) He’s not just a savvy Catholic with flying fingers on the keyboard and all the connections to make him someone to follow. (His most important work is as a husband and father, he assures me, and I salute him for that. I also acknowledge that he’s more like mid-20s than pre-teen.)

He’s also now officially an author, and his book is GREAT. He was gracious enough to answer some questions I tossed his way, and then patient enough to bear with me when I forgot to get my act together before my trip and post it. Enjoy!

Tell us a little about what inspired you to compile The Church and New Media: Blogging Converts, Online Activists, and Bishops Who Tweet.

Well, as I looked around the world of online Catholicism, I noticed a few things.First, the institutional Church–including parishes, dioceses, and the Vatican–was barely using new media. Second, plenty of individual Catholics were doing great things through blogs, social networks, podcasting, and interactive websites. Third, a number of Catholics understand the potential of new media, but don’t know where to begin. And if they do know the basics, they don’t know how to use new media faithfully and effectively.

So the book was written in response to that landscape. It familiarizes Catholics with the “digital continent” and provides examples, tips, and advice on how to engage it.

This project must have been a huge undertaking. How did it evolve–and even surprise you–from start to finish?

Putting the book together was fairly challenging. A book with one author is difficult enough, but one with twelve contributors, a Foreword author, an Afterword author, and a couple dozen sidebars–each including quotes from experts or Church documents–was a real logistical challenge. I really should’ve thanked GMail in the Acknowledgement section for without it I would have been swamped by the hundreds of emails pertaining to the book.

I think the most surprising thing, though, was that everyone I asked to participate gave me an enthusiastic ”Yes!” The contributors are some of the best teachers, writers, and activists within the Church, and many of them are personal heroes of mine. So I was blown away by their willingness to take part.

It’s kind of like writing a letter to the Olympic Dream Team, inviting them to shoot hoops with you in your driveway, and then one day hearing them ring your doorbell asking if you’re ready.

What was your favorite part of the book?

Oh, this is a really difficult question–it’s like deciding which of your children is your favorite! I loved every chapter for different reasons and I think different audiences will each appreciate different chapters.

For instance, Matt Warner and Scot Landry contributed chapters on using new media in parishes and dioceses. Both chapters will be hugely beneficial for those working in official Church communication positions. On the other hand, many other contributors wrote on the art of blogging which will be much more pertinent to individual Catholic bloggers.

So trying to decide on my favorite is like asking me if I prefer pizza for dinner or ice cream for dessert.

What part of your book do you think Mary and Jesus most enjoy or approve of?

Great question! Since Mary always points to the mission of her son–”do whatever he tells you”–and the mission of Jesus is the mission of the Church, I think the whole book would please both of them. For the whole book looks at how new media can serve this same mission: to evangelize, to form, to cultivate community, and to bring about justice.

Considering how surprising and startling both Jesus and Mary are, however, they would probably say their favorite part was the Acknowledgment section, for both are humble of heart.

What challenges do you see facing us as Catholics as New Media grows to be even more a part of how we communicate?

I think the two biggest challenges are actually opposites of each other. As in the rest of the spiritual life, the danger lies in embracing one of two extremes. For example, when it comes to sexuality, the two dangers are puritanism, a rejection of all things sexual or bodily, and indulgence, which is an overvaluing of sex and the body. Chastity is the healthy middle-ground.

With Catholics and new media, the two extremes are avoidance, which usually results from fear, and uncritical adoption, which considers new media to be God’s greatest gift to mankind. I think the wiser response is what I call “prudent engagement.” With caution and awareness of the new media’s danger, we can maximize its power while minimizing its problems.

In my Conclusion to the book I lay out twelve future trends in the Church and new media relationship–six positive and six negative– that help people approach new media with wisdom and prudence.

How do intend your book–and the accompanying website–to help readers as they use New Media?

The website, www.churchandnewmedia.com, will act as an organic extension of the book. It will enable individual Catholics, parishes, and dioceses to use new media effectively by providing extra content not found in the book. To that end we’ve got an active blog where we post relevant tips and articles, and a pretty robust Resources section that should help out a lot of people.

What projects are you working on next? Do you have anything coming as a result of this project?

In terms of new media, my big project is maintaining www.churchandnewmedia.com. The book is only the beginning of this Catholic new media conversation, one I hope we’ll see happening in more places and for many more years.

In terms of future book projects, I’m already working on another book dealing with one of the Church’s dirtiest topics:”social-justice”. Catholic social teaching was one of the most alluring things that drew me into the Church three years ago, yet I think the topic has been mostly ignored, misinterpreted, and hijacked. So I wanted to write a practical book that would illuminate Catholic social teaching through the lives of the saints. I want to show simple ways that we can live with justice and compassion by gazing on the blueprint laid out by the saints.