A Tweeting, Blogging, Podcasting Bishop

A common reaction people have after seeing the subtitle of my book is, “Bishops who tweet?! Are there really any bishops on Twitter?” Much to their surprise I explain that there’s about a dozen who actively tweet and the contingent is steadily growing.

Yet one Catholic bishop stands out among those who have embraced new media: Bishop Christopher Coyne (@bishopcoyne). In addition to being an auxiliary bishop, Coyne was recently named apostolic administrator for the Archdiocese of Indianapolis by Pope Benedict XVI. All of those responsibilities, however, don’t prevent him from connecting with his flock.

Bishop Coyne uses the full new media gamut to teach and dialogue with people all across the world. Every morning he tweets reflections on the day’s Mass readings and posts daily notes and links on Facebook. His blog, Let Us Walk Together, provides a behind-the-sacristy look at the life of a Catholic bishop. And his weekly podcast extends his thoughts to the “digital continent” bringing them, in his words, “where no bishop has gone before.”

One of Bishop Coyne’s latest projects is a compelling 3-part podcast discussing the revised translation of the Mass. He describes the series as a “mystagogical conversation”, an allusion to the reflective period Catholic converts go through following Baptism and Confirmation. Since we’ve used the new translation for a month, the Church now has ample experience to reflect on. Bishop Coyne is a gifted theologian, and in this series he offers some truly brilliant insights.

Here’a short video interview I did with Bishop Coyne at the recent Catholic New Media Conference where he explains why new media is so powerful:

For more from Bishop Coyne, be sure to follow him through Twitter, Facebook, his blog, and his podcast.