Pope Leo XIV admitted science and technology are influencing “the way we live in the world” in a speech yesterday to influencers and digital missionaries in Rome for a special 2025 Jubilee event specially organised for them. Source: Crux.
In the 21st century, the digital age has grown significantly, with millions of people listening to podcasts and watching videos on websites like YouTube and Facebook.
Many of them are speaking about Catholicism, and the Vatican invited many of them to Rome for the jubilee.
The Pope said the world needs peace “in these times marked by hostility and war” and this is the mission given to modern digital missionaries.
“You are here to renew your commitment to nourish Christian hope in social networks and online spaces,” Leo said.
“Peace needs to be sought, proclaimed, and shared everywhere, both in the places where we see the tragedy of war and in the empty hearts of those who have lost the meaning of life and the desire for introspection and the spiritual life.
“Perhaps, today more than ever, we need missionary disciples who convey the gift of the Risen Lord to the world.”
He said there was another challenge in the mission of modern internet influencers.
“Always look for the ‘suffering flesh of Christ’ in every brother and sister you encounter online. Today, we find ourselves in a new culture, deeply characterised and formed by technology. It is up to us – to each one of you – to ensure that this culture remains human,” Leo said.
“Science and technology influence the way we live in the world, even affecting how we understand ourselves and how we relate to God and others.
“But nothing that comes from man and his creativity should be used to undermine the dignity of others. Our mission – your mission – is to nurture a culture of Christian humanism, and to do so together.”
He warned the influencers their activities were not simply a matter of generating content, “but of creating an encounter between hearts”.
Leo called on them to establish networks “that liberate and save; networks that help us rediscover the beauty of looking into each other’s eyes; networks of truth”.
“In this way, every story of shared goodness will be a knot in a single, immense network: the network of networks, the network of God,” the Pope said.
FULL STORY
Pope Leo calls on ‘Digital Missionaries’ to have real friendships, and not focus on ‘followers’ (By Charles Colins, Crux)
