Pope's First Tweet 12/12/12

Today on 12/12/12, the vicar of Christ on earth used the digital social media platform of this age, Twitter, to speak to the world. So appropriate that he chose this date to tweet, given he is a direct successor of the chief apostle of the Original Twelve, Saint Peter.

 "Dear friends, I am pleased to get in touch with you through Twitter. Thank you for your generous response. I bless all of you from my heart."

In a short time, the pope's followers on Twitter zoomed to one million. Hopefully with 1.5 billion Catholics in the world, we should see that number climb exponentially.

Similarly, Pope Pius XI was the first pope to broadcast live on radio in 1931. In the 1920's he invited Marconi to build a broadcast station of the grounds of the Vatican and Vatican Radio was launched. See here how the Vatican Radio was used over the years to bless mankind in times of war and pestilence. In their position as vicar of Christ, the popes realize the tremendous responsibility and possibilities of proclaiming the gospel through the latest form of social communication.

May God use every available means of social media in this digital age to expand the his kingdom to bring as many to Heaven as possible.  After reading Jesus of Nazareth by our Holy Father, I can imagine it is no small challenge to fit the thoughts of this theological genius into 140 characters or less!