Give me some truth

It appears that Archbishop Mercieca is grossly misinformed about the nature of the internet and its true powers. I was shocked and dismayed to read today that he preached a dire warning about the ills of the internet, without exhibiting any idea of the incredible power it has to enable individuals to raise their voices above the humdrum of mainstream noise and mediocrity.

I mean no personal disrespect to Mons. Mercieca. I met the man face-to-face in December 1999 and he was very generous in giving me some of his time to record a message to be webcast on the MaltaMedia Online Network in marking the millennium. I don't believe that he had used the internet much at that time.

Yes, the woes of the internet are well known. We have a tsunami of porn. And countless hours are wasted online in practices abhorred by the Catholic Church and other right-wing conservatives. (Not to mention spam!) However, the internet also brings much joy to many. It also promises to break the hierarchical nature of the mass media. It decentralizes old powers like nothing else before it.

After reading the report on this morning sermon, if I didn't know any better I'd say that His Grace has no concern for the truth. Then again, truth is so relative. I wonder if he agrees with that. I doubt it.

In decrying the dark side of the internet without much regard for the liberating aspects of the Net, the Archbishop chose to convey to his audience that there's still hope for old media to retain their sense of power over the masses. It's interesting to note that his audience this morning was made mostly out of old-fashioned journalists, who are little more than mouthpieces for Malta's main political parties; bastions of relative truths.

For the sake of the Catholic Church in Malta, let's pray that the new archbishop (will he be appointed this year?) believes that the Internet is better that Mons. Mercieca declared it to be this morning.