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Yahoo
10 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Pope Leo XIV gets rock star's welcome at Catholic influencer festival
Vatican Youth Jubilee VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV on Tuesday received a rock star's welcome at the Vatican's festival of Catholic influencers — priests, nuns and ordinary faithful who use their social media presence to preach and teach the faith — as he urged them to ensure that human relations don't suffer with the spread of digital ecosystems and artificial intelligence. History's first American pope was mobbed by hundreds of influencers, their cellphones hoisted high to stream the encounter, when he arrived in St. Peter's Basilica after a special Mass. The pilgrims have descended on Rome for a special Holy Year celebration of so-called 'digital missionaries,' part of the Vatican's weeklong Jubilee for young people that culminates this weekend with a vigil and Mass in a vast field on Rome's outskirts. Leo thanked the young people for using their digital platforms to spread the faith, and he gamely posed for selfies. But he warned them about neglecting human relationships in their pursuit of clicks and followers, and cautioned them to not fall prey to fake news and the 'frivolity' of online encounters. 'It is not simply a matter of generating content, but of creating an encounter between hearts,' Leo said in a speech that showed his ease switching from Italian to Spanish to English. 'Be agents of communion, capable of breaking down the logic of division and polarization, of individualism and egocentrism.' 'It is up to us – to each one of you – to ensure that this culture remains human,' he said. 'Our mission – your mission – is to nurture a culture of Christian humanism, and to do so together' in what he called the only networks that really matter: of friendship, love and the 'network of God.' Warnings against going off-message For the past two days, the Vatican's message to the young influencers has been one of thanks for their social media evangelizing, but also a warning to not allow their posting to go off-message or to neglect the human dimension of all encounters. For Leo, the issue is particularly heartfelt since he has said that addressing the threat to humanity posed by AI will be a priority of his pontificate. The Rev. David McCallum, an American Jesuit who heads a leadership development program and presented Monday, held periodic breaks with instructions for those in the audience to actually speak with the person next to them, for up to 10 minutes at a time. Cardinal Antonio Tagle, the head of the Vatican's evangelization office, urged the influencers to avoid anything that smacks of false advertising, coercion or brainwashing in their posting, or to use their platform to make money. He noted that he himself had been victim of a fake video advertising arthritis medicine. 'Brothers and sisters, be discerning,' Tagle told the influencers in his homily at Tuesday's Mass. A mini World Youth Day in Rome Tuesday began with groups of influencers and young pilgrims passing through the basilica's Holy Door, a rite of passage for the estimated 32 million people participating in the Vatican's 2025 Holy Year celebrations. This week, downtown Rome swarmed with energetic masses of teenage Catholic scouts, church and Catholic school groups. It all had the vibe of a scaled-down World Youth Day, the once-every-three-year Catholic Woodstock festival that was inaugurated by St. John Paul II. The most recent one in Lisbon, Portugal went viral thanks to the Rev. Guilherme Peixoto, a village priest in northern Portugal who also happens to be a DJ. He's in Rome this week, though it's not clear if he will reprise his now-famous set that woke the young people up before Pope Francis' final Mass in Lisbon. In it, he spliced into the set both St. John Paul II's exhortation to young people to 'be not afraid' and Francis' appeal in Lisbon that the church has room for everyone, 'todos, todos, todos.' ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. Solve the daily Crossword
The Hill
11 minutes ago
- The Hill
Pope Leo XIV gets rock star's welcome at Catholic influencer festival
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV on Tuesday received a rock star's welcome at the Vatican's festival of Catholic influencers — priests, nuns and ordinary faithful who use their social media presence to preach and teach the faith — as he urged them to ensure that human relations don't suffer with the spread of digital ecosystems and artificial intelligence. History's first American pope was mobbed by hundreds of influencers, their cellphones hoisted high to stream the encounter, when he arrived in St. Peter's Basilica after a special Mass. The pilgrims have descended on Rome for a special Holy Year celebration of so-called 'digital missionaries,' part of the Vatican's weeklong Jubilee for young people that culminates this weekend with a vigil and Mass in a vast field on Rome's outskirts. Leo thanked the young people for using their digital platforms to spread the faith, and he gamely posed for selfies. But he warned them about neglecting human relationships in their pursuit of clicks and followers, and cautioned them to not fall prey to fake news and the 'frivolity' of online encounters. 'It is not simply a matter of generating content, but of creating an encounter between hearts,' Leo said in a speech that showed his ease switching from Italian to Spanish to English. 'Be agents of communion, capable of breaking down the logic of division and polarization, of individualism and egocentrism.' 'It is up to us – to each one of you – to ensure that this culture remains human,' he said. 'Our mission – your mission – is to nurture a culture of Christian humanism, and to do so together' in what he called the only networks that really matter: of friendship, love and the 'network of God.' Warnings against going off-message For the past two days, the Vatican's message to the young influencers has been one of thanks for their social media evangelizing, but also a warning to not allow their posting to go off-message or to neglect the human dimension of all encounters. For Leo, the issue is particularly heartfelt since he has said that addressing the threat to humanity posed by AI will be a priority of his pontificate. The Rev. David McCallum, an American Jesuit who heads a leadership development program and presented Monday, held periodic breaks with instructions for those in the audience to actually speak with the person next to them, for up to 10 minutes at a time. Cardinal Antonio Tagle, the head of the Vatican's evangelization office, urged the influencers to avoid anything that smacks of false advertising, coercion or brainwashing in their posting, or to use their platform to make money. He noted that he himself had been victim of a fake video advertising arthritis medicine. 'Brothers and sisters, be discerning,' Tagle told the influencers in his homily at Tuesday's Mass. A mini World Youth Day in Rome Tuesday began with groups of influencers and young pilgrims passing through the basilica's Holy Door, a rite of passage for the estimated 32 million people participating in the Vatican's 2025 Holy Year celebrations. This week, downtown Rome swarmed with energetic masses of teenage Catholic scouts, church and Catholic school groups. It all had the vibe of a scaled-down World Youth Day, the once-every-three-year Catholic Woodstock festival that was inaugurated by St. John Paul II. The most recent one in Lisbon, Portugal went viral thanks to the Rev. Guilherme Peixoto, a village priest in northern Portugal who also happens to be a DJ. He's in Rome this week, though it's not clear if he will reprise his now-famous set that woke the young people up before Pope Francis' final Mass in Lisbon. In it, he spliced into the set both St. John Paul II's exhortation to young people to 'be not afraid' and Francis' appeal in Lisbon that the church has room for everyone, 'todos, todos, todos.' ___
Associated Press
13 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Churches in once Catholic-dominated Quebec get new secular roles as restaurants, gyms and theaters
MONTREAL (AP) — On a Friday night, families danced under pink and purple neon lights to the beat of an African band playing where the altar used to stand at a Catholic church in Montreal. Notre-Dame-du-Perpetuel-Secours, built between 1914-1920, was renovated and repurposed in 2014, becoming Theatre Paradox. The concert hall has hosted meditation, Zumba lessons, even a fetish party that organizers touted as 'Montreal's most kinky, freaky and sexy Halloween event.' In the once Catholic-dominated province of Quebec, it's just one of many churches that have been deconsecrated and transformed into everything from gyms, restaurants and museums to luxury apartments, auction houses and a university reading room. For most of Quebec's history, the Catholic Church was the most powerful force in the French-speaking province, with a firm grip over schools, health care and politics. But its influence faded during the so-called Quiet Revolution of the 1960s, when the provincial government took control as part of a campaign to reduce the church's power. The rate of regular church attendance among Quebec's Catholics plunged from one of the highest in Canada to the one of the lowest. That happened to Notre-Dame-du-Perpetuel-Secours. Over the course of a century, thousands of worshippers filled its pews. But attendance had dwindled to a few when the event management company Groupe Paradoxe bought it in 2010, said its director, Gérald St-Georges. He believes that even in a deconsecrated secular setting, the former church continues what he describes as a sacred mission. Today, it offers training and paid work for young adults, including those with prior addiction issues and juvenile records, in theater and stage management to help them land jobs in the entertainment industry. 'When I started the project, I said to myself, 'That's the kind of work the church should do, not only Mass,'' said St-Georges, who is a Catholic. 'I practice my faith with what I do every day, helping people.' Wood from the pews was used to build a bar. On a recent summer day, concertgoers ordered cold beers in front of stained glass illuminated by neon lights under a silver disco ball that hung from its soaring ceilings. An opportunity to gather for believers and non-believers In the historic neighborhood of Old Montreal, tourists formed a snaking line outside the Gothic-style Notre-Dame Basilica — Montreal's still-active mother church that also hosts secular events — to attend a popular show that uses projectors and lasers to illuminate the building. Mateus Vassalo, a Brazilian tourist who visited the show with his family, said it's an incredible opportunity for believers and nonbelievers to gather in such a setting outside of worship services. 'You see people from other religions, Muslims, people who sometimes don't even believe in God, coming here to the church,' he said in Portuguese. 'Even if they come specifically for the show, they end up having a contact, and who knows, maybe there's a door for God to enter. There's curiosity. There's questioning.' Following Catholic values in a church turned restaurant Just a few miles north, in the neighborhood of Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, the sky is dotted with crosses atop church steeples, many of them unused or repurposed. For decades, factory and port workers worshipped at Saint-Mathias-Apotre Church. Today it's a restaurant that serves affordable meals daily for up to 600 residents. The manager of Le Chic Resto Pop also grew up Catholic and, like many of his staff, now identifies as religiously unaffiliated. But he still feels close to core values of Catholicism that he tries to extol at the nonprofit restaurant that keeps the original wooden doors and even the confessional booths. 'There's less faith, but the values are really much the same: It's values of respect, values of well-being, of wanting to help each other,' Marc-André Simard said during a lunch break, sitting near what used to be the altar. 'There's still space to be together, to have some sort of communion, but it's around food, not around faith.' 'I vote for you!' Marie-Frédérik Gagnon, one of the restaurant employees, said laughingly next to him. She also grew up Catholic but is now part of the so-called 'nones' — people who are religiously unaffiliated. Today, she values how Quebec grants people the right to live free from religious impositions, while protecting the right to religious freedom. 'In the restaurant, we have a bunch of people that are Spanish-speakers, that come from African countries, and they're still big believers, and everybody sits at the same tables. There's a big acceptance of all.' 'It's such a beautiful place,' she said. 'People are very calm and quiet when they come here. The environment, all the lights, all the open space, I think it's helping people to feel good. So it's nice to have the chance to work in an open-space environment like this.' ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
