The Pope has recommended that all young believers embrace social networking. Presumably other religions can send each other postcards or something.

Some organisations may be sceptical of social networking sites, and not least of all because they have been accused of being rife with scammers and paeodophiles, but this hasn't bothered the Pope and the Catholic church.

Perhaps it is a case of better the devil you know, if you will excuse the pun.

Social networking can bring young people together, said the head of the Catholic church, and should be used to spread the word of the Gospel in a way that is open, responsible and respectful of others.

"As with every other fruit of human ingenuity, the new communications technologies must be placed at the service of the integral good of the individual and of the whole of humanity," said His Holiness.

"If used wisely, they can contribute to the satisfaction of the desire for meaning, truth and unity which remain the most profound aspirations of each human being."

He neglected to mention that you can also poke things online without fear of catching a sexually transmitted disease, and can enjoy a certain level of anonymity in doing so.

24 Jan 2011