Fr. Kocik on: CatholiCon Expo 2011

At the World Communications Day in 1990, Blessed John Paul II said the Church must use "the full potential of the computer age" — this, at a time when the Internet, as we know it, barely existed. Two years later, the Pontifical Council for Social Relations issued Aetatis Novae, which defined communication as an act of self-giving love and stated that the Church must communicate her message "in a manner suited to each age." In John Paul's 2005 apostolic letter on what has come to be called, simply, the New Media (websites, podcasts, blogs, social networking, and whatever tomorrow may bring), the pope noted that new technologies create previously unimagined opportunities in service of the Church's mission.

CatholicUnderground is one among many, many initiatives that bear out the Church's high hopes. This August 26-28 in Houston, Texas, it will host CatholiCon Expo 2011, an opportunity for Catholic bloggers, podcasters and others engaged in the bits-and-bytes of spreading the Gospel to meet one another, worship together, and share ideas about advancing the Lordship of Christ in the "digital continent." While CatholiCon is not a liturgical conference, special attention will be paid to the role of the Sacred Liturgy in conveying the truth and beauty of the Faith. CatholiCon will include Solemn Vespers, and Mass in both the "ordinary" and "extraordinary" forms. The keynote speaker will be Fr. Z, who, I suppose, is no stranger to NLM readers.

A final word: CatholiCon is rather inexpensive: just $35 to attend the expo itself and, optionally, $200 for two nights in a four-star hotel.