The World Is Watching

I'm a big fan of Jen over at Conversion Diary (former Et Tu?), and she has an article at InsideCatholic.com that is a must read. It is appropriate on so many levels to what we do here.

Certainly we're called to be kind and charitable in every area of our lives; but when we make public statements as Catholics it's all the more important to prayerfully consider every word we say and to speak in a way that not only defends the truths of our belief system, but shows its fruits as well. This is especially important to remember when controversial issues arise on Catholic Web sites. Ironically, we are probably most tempted to react in anger or sarcasm when discussing issues within Catholic circles, since those topics often verge into the territory of the sacred. (Anyone have any strong opinions about breastfeeding during Mass, the proper use of NFP, or what constitutes appropriate liturgical music?) When these kinds of discussions break out and all the people actively participating seem to be Catholic, it's easy to slip into thinking of it as a closed-door meeting at the local parish, a family spat among Catholics. Yet with the Internet, nothing could be further from the truth.

Every single one of our online discussions takes place in an open-air forum with people from all backgrounds all across the world as witnesses. Even the smallest blogs and the most obscure comment threads are at least occasionally read by people who know nothing of Catholicism outside of the discussion. When these people read our words, for better or worse they think, "This is what followers of Christ are like."