BBC College of Journalism Blog - A vigorous and robust discussion about journalism from every perspective.

By Claudia Costa.

Shortly after his election, Pope Benedict XVI, was seen as more interested in his theological and philosophical studies than people's everyday concerns, as theologian Hans Küng underlined in the Italian newspaper La Repubblica last April.

But last week, to mark the 45^th World Day of Social Communications, the Vatican finally landed in the era of new media, and acknowledged the opportunities offered by social networks and content sharing sites. In a speech released on the Holy See website, the Pope said:

"The new technologies allow people to meet each other beyond the confines of space and of their own culture, creating in this way an entirely new world of potential friendships.

This is a great opportunity, but it also requires greater attention to and awareness of possible risks".

The Pope is now accessible via the Vatican's own video channel on Youtube, Facebook and Ipad and iPhone apps, all listed in the Pope's portal Pope2you (left). 

Last week a further application was launched, aimed at bringing believers closer to their spirituality: customers can purchase Confession (below), a Roman Catholic App to "prayerfully prepare for and participate in the Rite of Penance".

Confession received formal approval from Bishop Kevin C. Rhodes of the Diocese of Fort Wayne - South Bend, in the first known imprimatur to be given for an iPhone or iPad app, and is available for $1.99 from iTunes.

For those already using an older version of Confession, there's news that Version 1.0.1 includes some techie improvements such as "fixed prayers not displaying on iPad prayer tab."

Claudia Costa is an Italian freelance journalist, currently studying for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism and Newswriting at the London School of Journalism.

A longer version of this blog appears on the European Journalism Centre website.