Digital Evangelization Highlights Shifting Catholic Authority
In July 2025, the Vatican held an unprecedented event: a global summit for Catholic influencers. This festival of digital evangelists drew both clergy and lay creators to Rome, aiming to explore the role of social media in spreading the faith. But while it celebrated Catholic content creators, the summit also revealed deep anxieties about Catholic digital identity in an era dominated by algorithms and online culture.
As hyperconnectivity and platform algorithms increasingly shape religious engagement, Church leaders are attempting to reassert their institutional voice. Vatican communications chief Paolo Ruffini opened the summit by warning influencers not to adopt the language of corporate branding, urging them to act as “missionary disciples” instead of digital celebrities.
Platforms Disrupt Traditional Religious Structures
Many influencers now operate far outside Church oversight. Some, like Katie Prejean McGrady, collaborate closely with Vatican media, but others—such as Joe Jarell or Sarah Stock—blend religious content with political ideologies or lifestyle branding. Because of algorithmic design, Catholic content often appears alongside wellness culture, Christian nationalism, or other online movements, diluting institutional messaging.
The result is a redefined authority structure: anyone with a phone can claim Catholic leadership. Algorithms, not bishops, now help determine who shapes the faith online. Scholars argue that the Church’s challenge mirrors that of other institutions in a hyperconnected age: traditional gatekeeping has eroded, replaced by engagement metrics and virality.
Tensions Between Faith and Influence
The summit spotlighted a paradox. The Church needs digital missionaries to reach global audiences, but many influencers survive only by producing content that gains likes and shares. Ruffini’s appeal to avoid chasing followers clashes with the digital economy’s core logic. For influencers, content creation is not just evangelization—it’s livelihood.
This tension is not new. Religious traditions have always coexisted with popular culture. But today, the process is accelerated, visible, and largely unmediated. As one scholar noted, authority now emerges from affect, aesthetic, and algorithm—not ordination or hierarchy.
Redefining Catholicism in a Platform Society
The Vatican’s influencer summit signals a broader transformation: institutional Catholicism is grappling with platform capitalism. As media shapes faith, the Church’s authority must now compete with decentralized voices and emotionally resonant content.
For younger or newly devout Catholics, the line between faith and content is blurring. And because the internet never switches off, Catholicism is being continuously remade—often far from Rome’s control.
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Social Media Influencers and the Rise of a Platform Catholicism
Photo by Marvin Meyer on Unsplash
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