“Cor Orans” offers direction
The new Vatican document “Cor Orans” has caused a bit of a stir concerning use of the new media.
One headline affirmed that the Vatican gave the “OK” to social media. But in my opinion, the new document seems to offer mostly caution about the use of the internet.
Issued April 1, the document, issued by the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, covers many issues concerning the contemplative life, and only mentions the new media in passing.
Nevertheless, it is good wisdom on this topic for active religious as well as contemplative communities. Quoting Vultum Dei Quaerere, the Apostolic Exhortation on Women’s Contemplative Life, it states,
Recollection and silence are of great importance for the contemplative life as “the necessary space for listening and pondering His Word and the prerequisite for that gaze of faith that enables us to welcome God’s presence in our own life and in that of the sisters […] and in the events of today’s world.”
The next paragraph is,
These means must therefore be used with sobriety and discretion, not only with regard to the contents but also to the quantity of information and the type of communication, “that they may be at the service of formation for the contemplative life and necessary communication, and do not become occasions for wasting time or escaping from the demands of fraternal life in community, nor should they prove harmful for your vocation, or become an obstacle to your life wholly dedicated to contemplation.”
In our work here at Vocation Promotion with vocation directors using social media, I often wonder how much time they should spend learning and using the new media. Most religious with a basic knowledge of computers and the internet can easily post images to Facebook and other social media. They can even set up newsletter software with some sophistication.
But I wonder how much time the average vocation director should spend in learning and doing the more advanced tasks, such as setting up an advertising campaign, a vocations quiz, integrating new names with automatic newsletter sending, setting up retreat signup pages, and so on. Such involvement is at a very high level. We here at Vocation Promotion do all of these tasks. Let me tell you, there is a lot of trial and error to get it right.
This level of activity in my opinion, is best left up to experts such as us.
Would you like to get the names of new vocation prospects delivered to your inbox every month? Then contact us today.
To learn more about our two vocation promotion programs, go to the Vocation Lead Generation Program, and the more involved Come & See Vocation Promotion Program.
Read also the section of Cor Orans that deals with communication.
