Pope Leo XIV is chastising priests for turning their calling into social media stardom.
During a meeting with priests of the Diocese of Rome, the Chicago-born pontiff told his clergymen not to fall for the trap of TikTok and other social media apps, and warned them not to conflate online popularity with real life, Vatican News reported.
He said that gaining “likes” and “followers” through “an illusion on the internet, on TikTok,” is not the same as being rooted in the real world.
“If we are not transmitting the message of Jesus Christ, perhaps we are mistaken, and we must reflect very carefully and humbly about who we are and what we are doing,” Pope Leo XIV said on Friday.
The pope’s comments come as rates of Catholicism have stabilized among Americans after a long period of decline, according to data from the Pew Research Center. Many Catholics point to so-called “celebrity priests”—spiritual leaders who have gained immense followings on social media—as part of the reason why.
Catholic priest influencer Father David Michael, for example, counts more than 1.2 million followers on Instagram, where he routinely posts comedic videos about his life as a priest and answers questions about the Catholic Church.
The pontiff, however, doesn’t seem to be all that amused. He had details of his personal life plastered on the internet after he was chosen as pope last year—particularly by his eldest brother, 74-year-old Louis Prevost, a self-described “MAGA type.”
Prevost gained notoriety for his Facebook reposts, which include a video of Rep. Nancy Pelosi from 1996 with the caption, “These f---ing liberals crying about tariffs is just unreal. Do they not know that there is a thing called video? Just listen to what this drunk c--t has to say in the mid90’s long before her husband had grindr dates.”
More: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/pope-slams-thirsty-priests-for-chasing-internet-followers/ar-AA1X9zKK?ocid=msedgntp&pc=U531&cvid=69a1f065a4ea48378d371f0ab5dd5d70&ei=13
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