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Daily Feed How To Write Good Catholic Articles OnlineWhat is a Catholic article?For the purpose of popularly defining it, and taking into consideration the internet media in which it will be published, a Catholic article is one that can interest its reader to be more informed of the Catholic faith, and eventually, through its inspiring spirit, be led to adhere to what it teaches and apply it to one's life. For pastoral purposes, a good Catholic article is one that aims towards simplicity in content, and seeks to be helpful in providing a direction in life for those who wish to know more about it in the Catholic Church. Writing a Catholic article in simple manner and purity of style Writing Catholic articles in simple manner and purity of style writing with the intention to share the gift of the Catholic faith to others. It is good to write in a style that does not veer too much towards politicking and politicizing, as this can be offensive to certain political groups of people. If one were to stick to prayer and spirituality, as has been the tradition of Catholic writers in the Church, then the articles which will be produced in this manner can apply to many cultural contexts and would be acceptable to more groups of people. Let the spirit of writing these Catholic articles on the Net be a call to help build bridges and links that will create a stronger Catholic culture and one that seeks to be at peace with all on the Net. What would be the content and material of a good Catholic article? Anyone can write about the Catholic Church and her concern in relation to the propagation of the Gospel: such as the protection of the Christian family, the sacraments and all things related to Catholicism such as the parochial system, the religious tradition, the classic creeds, moral codes, forms of prayer and worship, the culture of life, the call to peace in the world, and the efforts towards Christian unity, ecumenism and interreligious dialogue. Since the Internet media has a very strong influence on everyone who have access to it, the use of words in Catholic articles must involve a lot of prudence and discretion. The call to a responsible use of the media is stressed very much by the teaching authority of the Church. Those who use the Net and have much access to it belong to a very information-rich society. It is thus important that we take care not to be proud of what we know when relating with those who do not have as much access to the Net as many are. There are those who are close to the people and may have the opportunity to transfer their knowledge to them. It is also to these such people to whom the Net will be useful because they can translate the information they obtain from the Net and make it more understandable to the people who as yet do not know much about it. It is good to serve the interests of those who wish to learn about the technology of the Net and also use it for evangelization purposes. What means can be obtained to write Catholic articles? First, it is advisable to have a personal copy of the Catechism - whether as a CD or as an eBook or as a printed book. This will guide the writer with the basics of the Catholic faith. Second, it is also advisable for the writer to take hold of copies of the following documents: The 36th World Communications Day Message, The Church and Internet, Ethics in Internet and the Vatican II documents. These four can be searched in the Vatican website at www.vatican.va. Third, it is good to have many translations of the Bible on hand: the New American Bible, the Revised Standard Version, the Jerusalem Bible, and the Good News Bible. Fourth, it is also good to read two or three of the spiritual classics. You can choose two or three of the fourteen listed here:
Finally, read as many current and present Catholic articles online. However, be very selective. Choose only the ones that will upbuild and strengthen the Catholic faith. Some of these articles may inspire you to write something also along the same line. Where shall one write the articles? There are two ways by which this can be done. You can create your own web page and place the article there with all the necessary coding. Or if you do not as yet know html, javascript, and the other basic coding languages of the Web, you can shelve this for the meantime and just start a blog or web log for the meantime. This does not need any coding language. You can write just simple text and the blog host will do the rest for you. Eventually though, as you advance in your knowledge on the Net, learning html can help you build your own web site where you can write your own articles in a paid web hosting account. |