Saturday, May 8, 2010

Giving the Internet a "Soul?!" No, Really: This Makes Sense

I'm generally a bit cautious when I hear or read about someone wanting to give something inanimate a "soul." Part of that's based on theological considerations; part on having been exposed to 'soulful' people and ideas over the decades.

This time, the idea makes sense - as a metaphor. And, since the "soul" reference came from Pope Benedict XVI - here's a link: "Pope asks Bloggers to Give Internet a Soul," Vatican Radio (April 24, 2010).

I'm printing out the whole article for reference, and repeating headings for the ten points here. This is Danielle Bean's work, BTW.
  1. Be who you are.
    • Pretense
  2. Cultivate silence.
    • (Comments optional)
  3. Use your name.
    • Your real name
  4. Treat people like people.
    • Even celebrities
  5. Examine your motives
    • When in doubt, be quiet
  6. Let God in.
    • No kidding: read this
  7. Turn it off.
    • Or, 'get a life'
  8. Don't defend yourself.
    • This is a sort of 'judo' strategy
  9. Pause.
    • 24 hour cooldown period advocated
      • I agree: in principle
  10. Be positive.
    • Not "Christian Pollyannas"
    • Don't
      • Preach
      • Argue
      • Demand
    • Do
      • Share Christ and His message
About that last, "share Christ and His message:" I suppose that could include using a Bible bot to post sound bites from the Bible at set intervals. I'd rather write - and read - something a bit less automated.

The printer's done now: I plan to re-read that article tomorrow.

More:

A tip of the hat to elizabethfoss, on Twitter, for the heads-up on this article.

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What's That Doing in a Nice Catholic Blog?

From time to time, a service that I use will display links to - odd - services and retailers.

I block a few of the more obvious dubious advertisers.

For example: psychic anything, numerology, mediums, and related practices are on the no-no list for Catholics. It has to do with the Church's stand on divination. I try to block those ads.

Sometime regrettable advertisements get through, anyway.

Bottom line? What that service displays reflects the local culture's norms, - not Catholic teaching.