‘Jesus is not a programme': Vatican embraces influencers to revive Catholic faith online
The 29-year-old nun, whose secular name is Albertine Debacker, is one of hundreds of Catholic influencers in Rome for a Vatican-organised social media summit this week.
The Vatican calls them 'digital missionaries' and—in an unprecedented move for the centuries-old institution—Pope Leo XIV led a mass dedicated to them at St Peter's Basilica, calling on them to create content for those who 'need to know the Lord'.
Long wary of social media, the Catholic Church now sees it as a vital tool to spread the faith amid dwindling church attendance.
For Sister Albertine, this is the ideal 'missionary terrain'.
Inside the Baroque basilica, she was one of a swarm of religious influencers who surrounded the new pope, live streaming the meeting on their smartphones within one of Christianity's most sacred spots.
She said it was highly symbolic that the Vatican organised the event bringing together its Instagramming-disciples.
'It tells us: 'it's important, go for it, we're with you and we'll search together how we can take this new evangelisation forward,' she told AFP.
The influencer summit was held as part of the Vatican's 'Jubilee of Youth', as young believers flooded Rome this week.
Pope Leo XIV speaks during a weekly general audience at St. Peter square in the Vatican on July 30, 2025. — AFP pic
'The great influencer is God'
Sister Albertine has 320,000 followers on Instagram and some of her TikTok videos get more than a million views.
She shares a mix of prayers with episodes from daily religious life, often from French abbeys.
'You feel alone and I suggest that we can pray together,' she said in one video, crossing herself.
But, as religious content spreads online in the social media and AI era, one of the reasons behind the Vatican's summit was for it to express its position on the trend.
'You are not only influencers, you are missionaries,' influential Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle—one of the few Vatican officials active on social media - told those attending mass.
The 'great influencer is God', he added.
'Jesus not a digital programme'
But Tagle also warned that 'Jesus is not a voice generated by a digital programme'.
Pope Leo called on his online followers to strike a balance at a time when society is 'hyperconnected' and 'bombarded with images, sometimes false or distorted'.
'It is not simply a matter of generating content, but of creating an encounter between hearts,' said the American pope, 69.
It is this balance that has been hard to strike, with some Catholic clerics themselves embracing a social media presence.
Father Giuseppe Fusari does not look like a regular priest: wearing tight shirts exposing his arm tattoos.
To his 63,000 followers on Instagram, he mixes content about Italian church architecture and preaching.
'Important we're online too'
Fusari told AFP there is no reason Catholic clerics should not embrace the world of online videos.
'Everyone uses social media, so it's important that we're there too,' said Fusari, who came to Rome for the influencer event from the northern city of Brescia.
Fusari said his goal was to reach as many people as possible online, sharing the 'word of God' with them.
This also takes the form of sharing videos of his chihuahua eating spaghetti.
But priests and nuns are not the only ones trying to attract people to the Church online, with regular believers spreading the faith too.
Francesca Parisi, a 31-year-old Italian teacher, joined the Catholic Church later in life.
She now has some 20,000 followers on TikTok, where she tries to make the Catholic faith look trendy.
Her target audience? People who have 'drifted away' from the church.
It's possible, she said, to lure them back through their smartphones.
'If God did it with me, rest assured, he can also do it with you.' — AFP
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Malay Mail
a day ago
- Malay Mail
‘Jesus is not a programme': Vatican embraces influencers to revive Catholic faith online
HOLY SEE, July 31 — Sister Albertine, a youthful French Catholic nun, stood outside the Vatican, phone in hand, ready to shoot more videos for her hundreds of thousands of followers online. The 29-year-old nun, whose secular name is Albertine Debacker, is one of hundreds of Catholic influencers in Rome for a Vatican-organised social media summit this week. The Vatican calls them 'digital missionaries' and—in an unprecedented move for the centuries-old institution—Pope Leo XIV led a mass dedicated to them at St Peter's Basilica, calling on them to create content for those who 'need to know the Lord'. Long wary of social media, the Catholic Church now sees it as a vital tool to spread the faith amid dwindling church attendance. For Sister Albertine, this is the ideal 'missionary terrain'. Inside the Baroque basilica, she was one of a swarm of religious influencers who surrounded the new pope, live streaming the meeting on their smartphones within one of Christianity's most sacred spots. She said it was highly symbolic that the Vatican organised the event bringing together its Instagramming-disciples. 'It tells us: 'it's important, go for it, we're with you and we'll search together how we can take this new evangelisation forward,' she told AFP. The influencer summit was held as part of the Vatican's 'Jubilee of Youth', as young believers flooded Rome this week. Pope Leo XIV speaks during a weekly general audience at St. Peter square in the Vatican on July 30, 2025. — AFP pic 'The great influencer is God' Sister Albertine has 320,000 followers on Instagram and some of her TikTok videos get more than a million views. She shares a mix of prayers with episodes from daily religious life, often from French abbeys. 'You feel alone and I suggest that we can pray together,' she said in one video, crossing herself. But, as religious content spreads online in the social media and AI era, one of the reasons behind the Vatican's summit was for it to express its position on the trend. 'You are not only influencers, you are missionaries,' influential Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle—one of the few Vatican officials active on social media - told those attending mass. The 'great influencer is God', he added. 'Jesus not a digital programme' But Tagle also warned that 'Jesus is not a voice generated by a digital programme'. Pope Leo called on his online followers to strike a balance at a time when society is 'hyperconnected' and 'bombarded with images, sometimes false or distorted'. 'It is not simply a matter of generating content, but of creating an encounter between hearts,' said the American pope, 69. It is this balance that has been hard to strike, with some Catholic clerics themselves embracing a social media presence. Father Giuseppe Fusari does not look like a regular priest: wearing tight shirts exposing his arm tattoos. To his 63,000 followers on Instagram, he mixes content about Italian church architecture and preaching. 'Important we're online too' Fusari told AFP there is no reason Catholic clerics should not embrace the world of online videos. 'Everyone uses social media, so it's important that we're there too,' said Fusari, who came to Rome for the influencer event from the northern city of Brescia. Fusari said his goal was to reach as many people as possible online, sharing the 'word of God' with them. This also takes the form of sharing videos of his chihuahua eating spaghetti. But priests and nuns are not the only ones trying to attract people to the Church online, with regular believers spreading the faith too. Francesca Parisi, a 31-year-old Italian teacher, joined the Catholic Church later in life. She now has some 20,000 followers on TikTok, where she tries to make the Catholic faith look trendy. Her target audience? People who have 'drifted away' from the church. It's possible, she said, to lure them back through their smartphones. 'If God did it with me, rest assured, he can also do it with you.' — AFP
New Straits Times
a day ago
- New Straits Times
Vatican embraces social media 'digital missionaries'
SISTER Albertine, a youthful French Catholic nun, stood outside the Vatican, phone in hand, ready to shoot more videos for her hundreds of thousands of followers online. The 29-year-old nun, whose secular name is Albertine Debacker, is one of hundreds of Catholic influencers in Rome for a Vatican-organised social media summit this week. The Vatican calls them "digital missionaries" and – in an unprecedented move for the centuries-old institution – Pope Leo XIV led a mass dedicated to them at St Peter's Basilica, calling on them to create content for those who "need to know the Lord." Long wary of social media, the Catholic Church now sees it as a vital tool to spread the faith amid dwindling church attendance. For Sister Albertine, this is the ideal "missionary terrain." Inside the Baroque basilica, she was one of a swarm of religious influencers who surrounded the new pope, live streaming the meeting on their smartphones within one of Christianity's most sacred spots. She said it was highly symbolic that the Vatican organised the event bringing together its Instagramming-disciples. "It tells us: 'it's important, go for it, we're with you and we'll search together how we can take this new evangelisation forward," she told AFP. The influencer summit was held as part of the Vatican's "Jubilee of Youth", as young believers flooded Rome this week. Sister Albertine has 320,000 followers on Instagram and some of her TikTok videos get more than a million views. She shares a mix of prayers with episodes from daily religious life, often from French abbeys. "You feel alone and I suggest that we can pray together," she said in one video, crossing herself. But, as religious content spreads online in the social media and AI era, one of the reasons behind the Vatican's summit was for it to express its position on the trend. "You are not only influencers, you are missionaries," influential Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle – one of the few Vatican officials active on social media - told those attending mass. The "great influencer is God", he added. But Tagle also warned that "Jesus is not a voice generated by a digital programme." Pope Leo called on his online followers to strike a balance at a time when society is "hyperconnected" and "bombarded with images, sometimes false or distorted." "It is not simply a matter of generating content, but of creating an encounter between hearts," said the American pope, 69. It is this balance that has been hard to strike, with some Catholic clerics themselves embracing a social media presence. Father Giuseppe Fusari does not look like a regular priest: wearing tight shirts exposing his arm tattoos. To his 63,000 followers on Instagram, he mixes content about Italian church architecture and preaching. Fusari told AFP there is no reason Catholic clerics should not embrace the world of online videos. "Everyone uses social media, so it's important that we're there too," said Fusari, who came to Rome for the influencer event from the northern city of Brescia. Fusari said his goal was to reach as many people as possible online, sharing the "word of God" with them. This also takes the form of sharing videos of his chihuahua eating spaghetti. But priests and nuns are not the only ones trying to attract people to the Church online, with regular believers spreading the faith too. Francesca Parisi, a 31-year-old Italian teacher, joined the Catholic Church later in life. She now has some 20,000 followers on TikTok, where she tries to make the Catholic faith look trendy. Her target audience? People who have "drifted away" from the church. It's possible, she said, to lure them back through their smartphones. "If God did it with me, rest assured, he can also do it with you."
Herald Malaysia
3 days ago
- Herald Malaysia
Cardinal Tagle at influencers jubilee: ‘Love cannot be generated by an algorithm'
Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle urged Catholic content creators gathered in Rome for the first-ever Jubilee of Digital Missionaries and Catholic Influencers to 'be discerning' in how they use their platforms, warning against the spiritual dangers of misinformation and manipulation online. Jul 30, 2025 Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization, presides over the Mass for the Jubilee of Digital Missionaries and Catholic Influencers on July 29, 2025, in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican. | Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA By Courtney Mares Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle urged Catholic content creators gathered in Rome for the first-ever Jubilee of Digital Missionaries and Catholic Influencers to 'be discerning' in how they use their platforms, warning against the spiritual dangers of misinformation and manipulation online. 'You are not only influencers, you are also missionaries,' Tagle said during a Mass in St. Peter's Basilica on July 29, addressing more than 1,700 Catholic creators from 75 countries who came to the Vatican for the two-day event coinciding with the Jubilee of Youth.'Dear digital missionaries and Catholic influencers: Jesus loves you. Do not doubt him. Accept him as the greatest influence on your life. And through you, may the person of Jesus influence many people, human and digital spaces, so that God's truth, justice, love, and peace may flow to the ends of the earth,' he said. Organized by the Dicastery for Evangelization and the Dicastery for Communication, the jubilee marked a historic first for the Catholic Church: a large-scale Vatican initiative aimed at those proclaiming the Gospel in the digital age. Clergy and laypeople alike, many of them young and active on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok, gathered to reflect on evangelization in the digital sphere. Pilgrims could be seen taking selfies under the dome of St. Peter's and exchanging social media handles in the colonnade. 'I've been meeting a lot of people who have content I follow and people who follow me,' 24-year-old American Sophie Chamblee from Indiana told CNA. Chamblee has more than 59,000 followers for her Instagram page, Playground Saints, where she shares cartoon stickers of the saints and posts humorous videos about imaginary conversations between the saints in heaven. 'Everybody here is after the same thing … so we all understand each other in ways that other people can't,' she said. In his homily, Tagle, pro-prefect for the Section for First Evangelization, shared a personal warning about the risks of digital manipulation: a deepfake video of him advertising arthritis medication recently circulated online. 'To influence consumers so that monetary profit may increase, some manufacturers resort to false advertising, even using famous personalities,' he said. 'I discovered videos generated by I don't know who, of me advertising medicine for arthritis.' Tagle, who was considered a papabile in the 2013 and 2025 conclaves, drew criticism ahead of the most recent papal election when a viral video showed him singing karaoke to John Lennon's 'Imagine.' His comments during the homily reflected on the moral complexities of navigating digital fame.'I pose this question: Will we let the water and blood of Jesus poured for love of us to be the true fluid of influence that will wash away all iniquity, falsehood, injustice, prejudice, manipulation, and violence?' Tagle asked the congregation. 'Let the love of God in Jesus and the Holy Spirit prevent various poisonous influences from flowing into human hearts.' Tagle also cautioned against mistaking technological connection for true Christian witness. 'God did not send to us a text message or an email, or a file document. Rather, God sent his Son,' he said. 'Love cannot be generated by an algorithm. Only a divine person with a human heart can love divinely and humanly, effecting profound and enduring change,' he added. As the Mass concluded, the pilgrims received a surprise visit from Pope Leo XIV, who entered St. Peter's to a sea of raised smartphones. Switching seamlessly between Italian, English, and Spanish, the pope emphasized the importance of authenticity and human dignity in digital evangelization. 'Science and technology influence the way we live in the world, even affecting how we understand ourselves and how we relate to God, how we relate to one another,' the pope said. '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. This is the beauty of the 'network' for all of us.' With artificial intelligence playing an increasingly dominant role in global communication, Pope Leo challenged influencers to examine their witness. 'This is a challenge that we must face: reflecting on the authenticity of our witness, on our ability to listen and speak, and on our capacity to understand and to be understood,' he said. 'We have a duty to work together to develop a way of thinking, to develop a language, of our time, that gives voice to love.' 'It is not simply a matter of generating content but of creating an encounter of hearts,' the pope said.--CNA
