Catholic News Service reports, the Missio app offers news and information in English, Spanish, Italian, German, French, Portuguese, Chinese and Arabic from Fides, the Vatican’s missionary news agency, and news.va. The news appears in the default language set on the mobile device. The app also includes homilies from Pope Francis, news from missions all over the globe, and videos from news.va & Catholic New Service.

“The app is a way for the church and our Holy Father to reach the growing number of the world’s people who have access to handheld mobile devices, a way to connect as the body of Christ,” said Father Andrew Small, national director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in the United States, who brought his iPad up to the pope for the launch. Father Small said social media helps the church call more people to be followers of Christ, “and if used properly the new media allow for a more intimate relationship between peoples and nations, fostering peace and mutual understanding.”

Missio App offers:

• Daily homilies from Pope Francis
• News Stories and Videos from Catholic News Service and news.va
• Easy Sharing by Facebook, Twitter, test message, e-mail, printing & copying
• Easy way to donate and help support the Pontifical Mission Societies

LINKS

• Links for Missio App on Google Play (Android) & iTunes (Apple) Apps
• Little iApps website

Screenshots:

A sampling of some of the contributors to Strange Notions:

• Fr. Robert Barron – Word On Fire Ministry, Catholicism Series
• Dr. Peter Kreeft – professor/author  of philosophy at Boston College
• Fr. Robert Spitzer – scientist & theologian, Magis Center for Reason & Faith
• Jimmy Akin – Catholic Answers senior apologist

I was honored that Brandon was able to answer a few of my questions by e-mail:

Brandon Vogt

1) How were you able to assemble so many prominent authors, theologians, and educators in one place.

Well thanks to be to God, I’ve become friends with many of them over the past years, and when the gears started chugging on Strange Notions I knew the site demanded content from the best-of-the-best. So I started asking around, and almost invariably, every person I asked to participate gave an enthusiastic, “Yes!”

2) The rules of engagement with the audience for this website are very clear, concise, and civil. What or who were your guides in making these great rules for the Areopagus.

I take my cue from Pope Benedict XVI, who mastered this mode of communication. His writings were remarkably clear, sharp, and charitable. The title of his last encyclical says it all: Caritas in Veritate, charity in truth. That’s what we’re shooting.

In terms of online models, I’ve always appreciated the guys at CalledToCommunion.com. The site is fascinating. In the quick-hit, 140-character world of social media they’ve somehow created a succesfful arena where people read and respond to thousand-word blog posts–complete with footnotes! Even more, the comboxes are filled with mutual respect and a sincere pursuit of truth. If I could pick one site for Strange Notions to emulate that would be it.

3) Great looking website. What platform was used, designer, other details in making the website.

The platform is WordPress, and the designer was John Flynn of Kickstart Media. He built my personal website, BrandonVogt.com, and I can’t recommend him highly enough. He’s extremely talented at creating beautiful, functional sites.

4) The promo video is well-made, what software used to make video. Did you make it yourself, or use a media company?

Cory Heimann at Likable Art was responsible for the outstanding video trailer. Cory’s one of the most gifted young filmmakers in or out of the Church as the Strange Notions video trailer affirms.

5) Since this website will fall under attack, what resources are used to avoid hackers and ways to deal with people who are problematic (blocking technology?)

Well, we’re primarily depending on St. Michael, St. Thomas, and Ven. Fulton Sheen (laughs). But seriously, right now we’re not as prepared as I’d like to be. Like almost any website, if someone really wanted to take down Strange Notions they could. We’ve got backups of the site and we do have some security measures in place but I honestly haven’t put that much thought into it.

6) How is this ministry supported with finances and manpower? Is this being planned as having a long-term presence, or just for the Year of Faith?

So far we’ve been operating on a shoestring budget. I’ve paid for everything using money I get for speaking, and John and Cory worked within my budget to stretch the dollars far. Though it does align with the Year of Faith, StrangeNotions.com is definitely a long-term project. I hope it helps Catholics and atheists find the Truth for decades to come.

Tip–you should follow Brandon on his social media if you want some of the best informative and entertaining news in Catholicism.

Brandon is a wonderful speaker for Catholic New Media, and we are honored he is a member of Catholic Web Services–please check out links below for more information:

LINKS

Strange Notions Website

BrandonVogt.com (blog and speaking engagements)

Church and New Media (great list of Catholic links that Brandon Vogt assembled)

The 43rd Annual Earth Day will be celebrated this April 22nd.  It began in 1970 with US Senator Gaylord Nelson who began a teach-in about environmental concerns, which has now grown to a movement with 193 participating countries.  In 2009, the United Nations designated April 22 as International Mother Earth Day.  Our new Pope Francis shares concerns for the new environment much like Saint Francis of Assisi and the Earth Day Movement.

“So this is the invitation which I address to everyone: Let us accept the grace of Christ’s Resurrection!  Let us be renewed by God’s mercy, let us be loved by Jesus, let us enable the power of his love to transform our lives too; and let us become agents of this mercy, channels through which God can water the earth, protect all creation and make justice and peace flourish.

Peace to the whole world, torn apart by violence linked to drug trafficking and by the iniquitous exploitation of natural resources! Peace to this our Earth!  May the risen Jesus bring comfort to the victims of natural disasters and make us responsible guardians of creation.”  

URBI ET ORBI MESSAGE OF POPE FRANCIS
EASTER 2013, Easter Sunday, 31 March 2013

The Catholic Climate Covenant has put together a great website with resources and information about care for God’s creation.  Consider taking the St. Francis Pledge - The St. Francis Pledge is a promise and a commitment by Catholic individuals, families, parishes, organizations and institutions to live our faith by protecting God’s Creation and advocating on behalf of people in poverty who face the harshest impacts of global climate change.

American Catholic offers a great Earth Day feature website with e-cards, stories about St. Francis and his work to care for creation.

My parish has recently started a community garden that has helped feed local families in need.  Many times there is an overabundance of vegetables that is quickly shared with the rest of the parish.  It has been a wonderful exercise in ecology and faith that I urge you to explore in your community.  My friend Sarah Reinhard also recommends a book called A Garden of Visible Prayer, and Sarah writes, This book is an opportunity for anyone who takes solace in the outdoors, who longs for dirt therapy, who finds peace in both the doing and the being of gardening. It is a book for those of us who like the work of gardening and seek a refuge outside in nature. It’s a handbook for making your prayer something you can see in the place and plants and setting of a garden area.

Here is a great Ted Talk about a man making a difference with urban gardening in Los Angeles (warning–some expletives):

Canticle of the Creatures

All praise be yours, My Lord,
through all that you have made.
And first my lord Brother Sun, who brings the day….

How beautiful is he, how radiant in all his splendor!
Of you, Most High, he bears the likeness.

All praise be yours, my Lord, through Sister Moon and Stars;
In the heavens you have made them, bright and precious and fair.

All praise be yours, my Lord, through Brothers Wind and Air….

All praise be yours, my Lord, through Sister Water,
So useful, lowly, precious and pure.

All praise be yours, my Lord, through Brother Fire,
through whom you brighten up the night….

All praise be yours, my Lord, through Sister Earth, our mother,
Who feeds us…and produces various fruits
With colored flowers and herbs….

Praise and bless my Lord, and give him thanks,
And serve him with great humility.

by St. Francis of Assisi

LINKS

Catholic Climate Covenant

St. Francis Pledge Bulletin Insert

Earth Day Network

Franciscan Action Network 

USCCB Environmental Justice Program

National Religious Partnership for the Environment

Great Earth Day Video:  Everything is Holy Now by Abbey of the Arts

Franciscan Spirituality

What is Franciscan Spirituality?  I am currently a candidate to become a member of the Secular Franciscan Order, and we follow The Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order. The SFO Rule has 26 rules developed by St. Francis of Assisi and last revised by Pope Paul VI (1978).   There is one rule that really explains Franciscan Spirituality:

Rule #4:  The rule and life of the Secular Franciscans is this: to observe the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ by following the example of St. Francis of Assisi who made Christ the inspiration and the center of his life with God and people. Christ, the gift of the Father’s love, is the way to him, the truth into which the Holy Spirit leads us, and the life which he has come to give abundantly. Secular Franciscans should devote themselves especially to careful reading of the gospel, going from gospel to life and life to gospel.

Pope Francis also has shown many of the traits of which Saint Francis was well known:  deep spirituality and faith, caring for the poor and disabled, care for creation, a spirit of joy and humor, and energy and mission to rebuild the church.  I have added more links at the bottom of this blog about Franciscan Spirituality.  I was so excited to see so much well produced media this week showing off the Pope in a positive light.

Catholic Vote produced a beautiful video showing the excitement of the Conclave of Cardinals and announcement of Pope Francis:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCKpuA9qdNc

Father Roderick Vonhogen of SQPN.com (Catholic Insider) gave incredible coverage with podcasts and videos from St. Peter’s Square and talking with fellow Catholics in the crowd.  Following is a video from Pope Francis’ first Angelus:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYtXt2VF2NE

Dominican Sisters showed their excitement at the announcement in this well made video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHXaYxfg1As

If hands could talk, this CNS video produced a lot of traffic showing congratulations from fellow cardinals after the Conclave:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWJmpRGwxfU

Fr. Robert Barron gave great coverage and commentary to NBC and Word On Fire with his wonderful knowledge of the Catholic Faith:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3siDO9m53Y

The Guardian offered a 360 degree interactive photo of St. Peter’s Square at the time of the announcement of Pope Francis.

Photo Link

Some of the most traffic produced was from a moving moment this morning when Pope Benedict got out of the Popemobile to bless a disabled man:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQ7N9lM1OMA

I also saw a lot of traffic related to the photo and blog story about Pope Francis being first Pope to bless a dog, reminding us of St. Francis’ love of animals and his story of the wolf of Gubbio:

Pope Francis blessing service dog

There was also a lot of traffic related to a video from Ukrainian Catholic Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk who talks about how Pope Francis will be ecumenical:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrmjoYj_BGU

The Religion Teacher Blog released a great lesson plan for the new papacy of Pope Francis

Catholic Social Media Explodes

It was an amazing week to follow The Conclave all the way to the Inaugural Mass.  I currently follow about 700 sources of media through Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, and many websites sharing these with our members at Catholic Web Services.  This conclave will go down in history as the first papal election that was covered by these new forms of social media.  During Pope Benedict XVI’s election these forms of media were emerging or did not exist.  Catholics were able to share many personal photos and videos of the event that were shared globally–really showing off the reach and diversity of The Universal Church.  Thanks to so many friends who shared their stories and thoughts about Pope Francis this week.  The comparison photo below really shows the difference in social media’s rise in the past 8 years.

Social Media popularity rises in 2013

I am glad to see that Pope Francis is continuing to use the @Pontifex Twitter account started by Pope Benedict XVI.  In just a few tweets he has surpassed 2 million followers (more than B16), and hoping that this is a sign of renewal in the church.  Both Pope JPII and B16 had written about embracing these new forms of media for evangelization, and catechesis, and I am hopeful that Pope Francis will be continuing and encouraging using Catholic New Media in service to the church.

Three Tweets from Pope Francis to Date:

1.  Dear friends, I thank you from my heart and I ask you to continue to pray for me. Pope Francis.
2.  Let us keep a place for Christ in our lives, let us care for one another and let us be loving custodians of creation.
3.  True power is service. The Pope must serve all people, especially the poor, the weak, the vulnerable.

Saint Francis of Assisi

Prayer of St. Francis sung by Sarah McLachlen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgPuqHd1hAE

God Bless Pope Francis, and we are praying that he has a fruitful and faithful pontificate, and we at Catholic Web Services join him in wanting to rebuild the church.  Pope Francis should be inspired by the words of St. Francis in his challenge ahead– “Start by doing by what’s necessary; then do by what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.”

Pax Et Bonum (Peace and All Good–a famous saying by St. Francis)

LINKS

Secular Franciscan Order – Mount LaVerna Fraternity – peaceandallgood.org

Blog from Mount LaVerna Fraternity on Pope Francis

Article from Washington Post explaining Franciscan and Jesuit Spirituality

Pope Francis’ First Homily

Pope Francis’ Homily at Inaugural Mass

NEWS

1) Conclave App from Verbum, is a FREE app that offers news feeds from many good Catholic on-line and print media, Twitter feed following the hashtags #conclave & #pope, list of Cardinals and how they are trending in Google, Catholic reference materials, and history of papacy and conclaves.  John wrote in his blog Call To Holiness about details of new App and links for both Apple and Android products.

2) Pope Alarm, from FOCUS, FREE service offers you the option to be notified by e-mail or text message when smoke goes up in the Sistine Chapel during The Conclave. Link for the Pope Alarm.

3) Word On Fire, Father Robert Barron will be reporting from Rome with updates about the Conclave.  One of the best spokespersons of the Catholic faith in America, and he will be on hand as official commentator for NBC News and MSNBC.  Link for Word On Fire.

First report from Father Barron in Rome:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2MxxPritqU

4) Catholic Insider, Father Roderick Vonhogen, with SQPN (Star Quest Production Network), will be offering podcasts with soundseeing and personal interviews with people around Rome during The Conclave.  This is like listening to an NPR-style production with an entertaining priest.  Link to Catholic Insider podcast.

5) CatholicTV, from Archdiocese of Boston, offering great coverage on internet and has mobile app available. Link for CatholicTV

6) EWTN, Eternal Word Television Network, offering wall to wall coverage of The Conclave with TV, Radio, and Internet, and a focus this year with mobile devices.  Link to EWTN.

7) News.va Official news from The Vatican.  This site came into being during Pope Benedict XVI that offers a central place for TV, radio, and internet news service from The Holy See.  Link to News.va

8) Aleteia (seekers of truth) A new website offering perspectives from many trusted Catholic news sources and social media.  Link to Aleteia

9) Catholic News Service – a visual reference for The Conclave of Cardinals.  Link to website for graphic.

PRAYER

Adopt a Cardinal from Jugend 2000 International (German Youth Group), assigns one of the Cardinals randomly for you to pray for during he Conclave.  Nearly 400,000 people have signed-up for the service.  Please consider joining to help pray to the Holy Spirit for guidance with choosing a new Pope.  Link for Adopt-A-Cardinal.

Twitter Campaign for Prayer for a New Pope–from The Knights of Columbus.  Here is a Catholic News Agency Story about the campaign.

ENTERTAINMENT

1) Fantasy Conclave from FlockNote, CatholicStudentMininstry, and eCatholic, you can enter to win Catholic prizes worth $300–you need to predict name of cardinal, duration of The Conclave, and the new name of The Pope.  Link for Fantasy Conclave

2) Buzz Meter from New Advent, this list of Cardinals is generated from how many searches on Google are made through Google Trends.  Link to New Advent’s Buzz Meter  (Please note this is very unscientific way of predicting the papacy).

3) Sistine Chapel – step into a high-definition 3-D version of the Sistine Chapel with Angelic Music.

Please let us know if you find any other useful resources for this conclave.  We are praying to the Holy Spirit to help guide The Conclave to find a worthy successor to lead the Roman Catholic Church–Amen!

First Tweet sent by Pope Benedict XVI on Dec. 12th, 2012, Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe the Patron Saint of the New Evangelization

Pope Benedict XVI released the 47th Annual World Communication Day message which is officially announced on May 12th, the Feast Day for Saint Francis de Sales (The Patron Saint of Jounalists).  This year’s message is “Social Networks: portals of truth and faith; new spaces for evangelization.”  The Pope is encouraging the faithful to use social networks (i.e. Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest) to engage people in conversation about our Catholic Faith.  The Pope has embraced these new technologies for The Year of Faith and for The New Evangelization, and wants you to join the worldwide conversation on the internet.  The Pope started his Twitter Account on December 12th, 2012, and currently has 1.4 million people following his Tweets.

Here is an excerpt of the proclaimation document:

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

As the 2013 World Communications Day draws near, I would like to offer you some reflections on an increasingly important reality regarding the way in which people today communicate among themselves. I wish to consider the development of digital social networks which are helping to create a new “agora”, an open public square in which people share ideas, information and opinions, and in which new relationships and forms of community can come into being.

These spaces, when engaged in a wise and balanced way, help to foster forms of dialogue and debate which, if conducted respectfully and with concern for privacy, responsibility and truthfulness, can reinforce the bonds of unity between individuals and effectively promote the harmony of the human family. The exchange of information can become true communication, links ripen into friendships, and connections facilitate communion. If the networks are called to realize this great potential, the people involved in them must make an effort to be authentic since, in these spaces, it is not only ideas and information that are shared, but ultimately our very selves…

…I pray that God’s Spirit will accompany you and enlighten you always, and I cordially impart my blessing to all of you, that you may be true heralds and witnesses of the Gospel. “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to the whole creation” (Mk 16:15). (link below for entire message)

World Communication Day began with Pope Paul VI in 1967 with the reforms made by Vatican II.  The previous theme for World Communications Day was SILENCE.  I think silence is an important message that accompanies the current message .  It is very important that people find a healthy balance in using social media in their lives.  Too many people are spending too much time using Facebook and Twitter, and also need to find a healthy balance to include Face-Time (personal time) with family and friends, and silent time for prayer and contemplation (time with God).  There are many demands of our time in this modern age, but social networks can be very beneficial if used wisely.  Blessed James Alberione preached that media are gifts of God, and to use them in service to the church.  I think it is great that Pope Bendict is showing us all how to use the internet in service to the Church.

I would also like to recommend a great book that I have recently read called Infinate Bandwidth: Encountering Christ in the Media (Emmaus Road Publishing, 2010) by author Eugene Gan.  Dr. Gan is currently as associate professor of interactive media & communications at Franciscan University of Steubenville.  He bases his book on the many writings from World Communications Days and the Pontifical Council for Communications to form his model: St. Peter’s Seven Media Keys.  These seven keys are used to help people form good morals in looking at modern media through Christ’s eyes. This is a must read book for people working in Catholic New Media, and for the consumers of new media.  With each key, he asks the reader to pray for a virtue, research the topic, ask questions, integrate in your life, and pass it on to others.

St. Peter’s Seven Media Keys:

1) Balance, pray for the cardinal virtue of temperance

2) Attitude Awareness, pray for the cardinal virtue of prudence

3) The Dignity of the Human Person, pray for the cardinal virtue of justice

4) Truth-Filled, pray for the cardinal virtue of fortitude

5) Inspiring, pray for the theological virtue of hope

6) Skillfully Developed, pray for the theological virtue of faith

7) Motivated by and Relevant to Experience, pray for the theological virtue of charity

With the announcement of World Communications Day, Pope Benedict also release his new App called The Pope App.  This App is available on iTunes for FREE for Apple products, and will soon be available for Android products in the coming weeks.  This app is a wonderfully made app that offers great communications with Pope Benedict XVI and the news from the Vatican–features included:

• Live video broadcast of Angelus and Announcements (even has countdown to next event)
• Calendar of Pope’s Events
• Listing of the Pope’s speeches and messages
• News from the Vatican powered by News.va, Vatican Radio, and L’Osservatore Romano
• Images Library from Vatican Events
• Video Archive of Vatican Events
• LIVE webcams of St. Peter’s Square, Blessed John Paul II’s Tomb, and Castel Gondolfo
• Pope’s Twitter Feed

LINKS

MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE BENEDICT XVIFOR THE 47th WORLD COMMUNICATIONS DAY:

“Social Networks: portals of truth and faith; new spaces for evangelization.”

The Pope App (iTunes)

Infinate Bandwidth by Eugene Gan (Amazon)

Father Robert Barron has just released a preview of a great addition to his Catholicism Series.  Father Robert Barron spent last Summer traveling to England, Australia, and New Zealand to explore the Catholic faith and the New Evangelization.  He again explores the lives of saints, holy sites, and famous Catholics, but also speaks to many lay people both young and old about what their faith means to them.  This is a more personal journey for the viewer, and Fr. Barron helps relate the Gospel message in this modern age to the common man.  The production quality is excellent, as he used the same production crew from his previous series, and it again showcases the truth, beauty, and goodness of our Catholic Faith.

This Summer I attended the Catholic New Media Conference in Arlington, TX, and got to see some more footage from this video and was very impressed.  I was honored to meet many of the fantastic Word On Fire Staff who work very hard to make project a success.  Word On Fire also reported to me that they are working on a children’s version of the Catholicism Series–will keep you posted on any updates.

Blogger, Elizabeth Scalia (“The Anchoress”), got to interview Fr. Steve Grunow about Catholicism:  The New Evangelization and wrote at Patheos in her blog.

It is hoped that this video will help lead Catholics who no longer practice their faith, back to being active in their faith.  This offers a great opportunity for parishes to invite those back to see what they are missing.  We had success at our parish by promoting the showing of Catholicism through mass media, social media, and having an inviting coffeehouse to welcome into our parish community.  I hope to do this again and have even more success.

Ambassador Program

I would encourage you or someone from your parish to become an Ambassador for Word On Fire.  You can easily join for FREE by sending in a form signed by your pastor that you are a “Catholic in good standing”, from the WOF Ambassador website.  By being an Ambassador, you get supports and information to help in promoting a showing at your parish (or in community), and get a discount on all their products.  It has been a real joy to work with their staff as they are a tremendous support and will answer all questions posed.

Here is the new preview of Catholicism: The New Evangelization:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwInY93oaLo

 LINKS:

Word On Fire Ministry

Catholicism Series

Ambassador Program

• Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday/Shrove Tuesday) February 12th
• Ash Wednesday February 13th
• Palm Sunday March 24th
• Holy Thursday March 28th
• Good Friday March 29th
• Holy Saturday March 30th
• Easter Sunday March 31st

There are many great resources for media and links to share with your parish, school, or ministry on these subjects: MARDI GRAS We would like to welcome a new member to Catholic Web Services, Jeff Young, who produces the popular blog & podcast The Catholic Foodie: Where Food Meets Faith.  Jeff is from New Orleans, the hometown of Mardi Gras, where food is king, and he offers fantastic recipes and mixes it with his Catholic Faith.  Jeff uses WordPress for his website and offers other useful links and resources at Catholic Foodie.  One of my favorite traditions of Mardi Gras is having a King Cake, which is served at parties from the time of the Epiphany until Mardi Gras.  A small baby Jesus is inserted into the cake before icing, and the person who gets the slice with baby Jesus is required to bake the cake for the next party.  Jeff offers a delicious recipe for his version of the King Cake: The Catholic Foodie’s Mardi Gras King Cake Recipe

King Cake with Baby Jesus

Here is a great video to share about the Catholic origens of Mardi Gras, Carnival, Fat Tuesday, Lent, and Ash Wednesday:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9XM0bsjLMw

  LENT A number of great websites offer resources to share with your parish or students to learn about the Lenten Season. Busted Halo, is a great resource for young adults and is producing some excellent content to share: Blog about origens of the pretzel with Lent Blog about 25 Great things to do for Lent (Fasting, Prayer, & Almsgiving) Busted Halo’s Fast/Pray/Give Lenten Calendar 2013–coming soon Two minute video explaining the meaning of Ash Wednesday & Lent:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3L3c23MfC0

Catholic Cuisine – Dust Cake (kids activity) before Ash Wednesday CatholicMom.com offers a huge page of Resources for mothers, children, & family for Lent Life Teen offers 25 ideas about what to give up for Lent Word On Fire–Fr. Barron comments on Lent in this informative video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vm3JK7JYAKs

You may also want to consider Fr. Barron’s DVD on the Seven Deadly Sins for a study group for Lent AmericanCatholic.org offers many resources for Lent including videos, blogs, e-cards, and a weekly Lenten retreat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKKynzxuJRs

Easter There are many resources available to help in celebrating the 50 days of the Easter Season.  Busted Halo suggests 5 ways to celebrate Easter. Catholic Online offers a page full of Resources to share for both Lent & Easter CatholicMom.com’s many bloggers offer a number of good Resources for Easter   We at Catholic Web Services wish you all a very holy season of Lent, and hope this blog helped you with some ideas for your website.  Your comments are welcome!   Here is Busted Halo’s Holy Week in Two Minutes:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HugMM_3FfnI

Lent 4.5 has many great resources for living a simple life during Lent.

Here is also an interesting Ecological Stations of the Cross based on St. Francis’ Canticle of the Creatures

Take a look as some key mobiles statistics:
• Over 15% of all desktop site traffic is from mobile devices
• There will be one mobile device for every person on earth by 2015 (source: Cisco, 2012)
• By 2013 more people will use their mobile phones than PC’s to get online
• Web traffic from mobile devices increased 110% in North America over the past year and
148% globally (source: Quantcast)
• Adding a mobile friendly site results in an overall traffic increase of 18% (source: Nielsen)
• 81% of users prefer mobile sites to apps for researching products while 90% prefer purchasing from mobile sites than apps (source: Adobe, 2012)
• Visibility is lost by denying vistors a good mobile experience – If a mobile user gets a bad
experience when they visit a website, 61% off them probably won’t go back and 40% go to another site (source: Gomez)

Our GoMobi mobile sites work with your current website as well, and can be configured to match bu updating images, color scheme, etc.

Some Key Features of a good mobile-optimized website :

• Works on all mobile devices – One site that works on over 9,000 mobile devices
• Increases traffic with improved ranking /visibility on search engines with advanced SEO
• Serves a global marketplace – the business can create their site in any of eight languages with one click.
• Improves conversion rates of visitors into customers; with features such Call Us, Find Us, Tell-A-Friend, QR Codes etc.,
• Increases Revenue through features like Coupons, Reservations and mCommerce
• Ease of set up and editing – the goMobi Control Panel minimizes set up time and maintenance by automatically leveraging content from source web site
• Easy to prioritize the content and features
• Reach an extended market – available in 30+ languages with our site translation feature
• Desktop redirection code automatically generated with one click to provide seamless experience for customers.
• Site layout and design flexibility with additional options such as uploading custom icons to each feature, customizing site templates and adding background images
• Live interactive site preview which allows you to see all aspects of your site as you are creating it
• Automatically updates content from Twitter, Facebook, event calendars, desktop site, review
sites and more

We would love to help your parish improve your mobile communication and publishing!  Email us at info@catholicws.com 

First Tweet sent by Pope Benedict XVI on Dec. 12th, 2012, Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe the Patron Saint of the New Evangelization

We applaud Pope Benedict XVI for joining Twitter and engaging the on-line world in a greater conversation.  He has made significant progress in a short time on Twitter:

• Pope Benedict now has over 1.2 Million Followers on Twitter (as of 12/21/12)
• He has surpassed Justin Beiber in the number of retweets.
• He has surpassed Joel Olsteen as the most followed Christian on the internet.