In just a few minutes, an unprecedented meeting of Catholic bloggers and Vatican officials will take place mere feet from yesterday's beatification. The Vatican has welcomed 150 bloggers from around the world to meet and dialogue about the relationship between religion and new media, both sides hoping to gain insights on how to bring the Church into the digital age.
I'm here in the meeting hall right now, and I've already talked with a blogging priest from Indonesia, a Spanish Jesuit podcaster, and a handful of clerics working with the Pontifical Council of Social Communications.
The meeting is somewhat organized, with a couple of panel discussions featuring five panelists and one host each. The first panel will include bloggers representing five different languages: English, Italian, French, Spanish, and Polish. The second panel will feature five people involved in communication strategies directly for the Church.
You can watch the whole meeting live over at SQPN.
I'm hooked up with an Internet connection during the conference, so I'll be providing live updates throughout. Stay tuned!
