#CNMC11

This past weekend I had the opportunity to attend the Catholic New Media Conference in Kansas City, KS - sponsored by SQPN - Star Quest Production Network. In my mind "celebrity" bloggers were going to be there - people who I'd had contact with, but had never met. Suffice it to say, I was a ball of nerves going in!

At the conference, I was able to meet and "rub elbows" with some of the biggest names in Catholic New Media - Fr. Roderick Vonhagen was buzzing about all weekend, offering the opening remarks after concelebrating Mass Saturday morning (the feast of St. Therese of Lisieux) with Archbishop Coyne from Indianapolis. Fr. Jay Finelli, AKA iPadre from the Twitter/podcasting world, was easy to pick out all weekend in his cassock, assisting Archbishop Naumann with Liturgy of the Hours and offering Mass on Sunday morning. Author/bloggers Lisa Hendey and Brandon Vogt were on hand to sign their recent publications and to talk the biz with anyone and everyone. Jeff Geerling, Pat Gohn, and Matthew Warner gave talks and chatted with attendees during breaks. Sr. Anne Flanagan, AKA the Nunblogger, and Sean-Patrick Lovett from Vatican Radio (like legit, fresh off the plane from Italy) gave keynote addresses. The list goes on and on! I was in a state of awe all weekend.

This was the best photo I could get from my seat during the panel session -- it's everyone who had a role in the conference, right there on one stage! At the podium is Sean-Patrick Lovett, then down the line it's Matthew Warner, some guy I don't know (sorry guy!), Jeff Geerling, Brandon Vogt, Lisa Hendey, another guy I don't know (sorry other guy!), Fr. Roderick, Pat Gohn, and Sr. Anne Flanagan.

The conference couldn't have come at a better time for me. Prior to leaving for Kansas City, I had been in a rut of sorts, trying to manage everything on my "to do" lists while staying motivated to write. Not having classes that force you to think toward the end goal (that is, the dissertation) makes it very easy to put off getting the job done. I've been super busy with teaching and volunteer work - and after the slight blow of a harder-than-expected comps defense, my writing gauge was definitely on E. Couple that with being in an environment where very few people actually understand what and why I'm studying what I study and you get a not-so-pleasant state of being. God answered my prayers of needing that extra boost to get into the main stages of my dissertation proposal through this conference - where Fr. Roderick announced in his opening remarks: "Our faith has to do with every dimension of human existence." That, my friends, was the key to the rest of the weekend, and it was what I needed to hear in order to get the job done. The word catholic means universal - and our faith really does have to do with every dimension of our existence. 

The fruits of this conference will likely shine through my work for quite some time. I hope to take the theme of this conference - John Paul II's "Be not afraid" - and continue on the path that I know God set out for me. Yes, we're charting into the unknown, the great abyss that is new media... and it's a playground where the Church hasn't really set foot, hasn't really decided how She's going to take it. We're on the cusp of something great here though... we just have to "be not afraid" (JPII) and "cast our nets wide" (B16).

Until next time friends...

+JMJ+