Does Social Media Drown Out God? Or Does It Draw You Closer?

Social media is drowning out God.  Young people need to find silence away from the constant “noise” of social media in order to encounter Him.

That’s the warning from Archbishop Salvatore Fisichella, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelization.  Speaking to youth at Invocation 2014, a British discernment retreat for young people on July 4-6, the archbishop said:

“Today there is so much noise, with social media, we don’t understand the value of silence….  We go away from it, from ourselves.  In silence though, we encounter ourselves, and God.  There is a desire for silence, desire for spirituality, [amid] the problems of society.  If we take time in silence we find the answer to this desire.”

Archbishop Fisichella spoke of a lack of formation as a special challenge which will be addressed at the synod on marriage and the family.  According to The Tablet, the archbishop said:

“You hear of children coming to make their communion and they don’t know how to make the sign of the cross.  This is an issue we face, a challenge.  This is something we have to change, it is at the root of faith in the family.  It is the same with education and our schools.  These are the ways faith is passed on, how we evangelize.  It is a challenge, and a question we will look at, at the synod.”

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So here’s my question to you:

Does your presence on-line enhance your spiritual growth?

Or does it detract and keep you from more meaningful activities, like prayer, attendance at Mass, and charitable works?

If the latter, what are you going to do about it?