The Internet can be a great source of information about the Catholic Faith, but one needs to be extremely careful when surfing the web. There are many ?Catholic? sites out there which distort the teachings of the Catholic Church. These distortions cover both ends of the spectrum, totally liberal and totally conservative. How can you decide which sites are authentically Catholic?
One of the reasons that the Catholic Truth was founded was to guide people to truly Catholic sites on the Internet. Our Links page recommends several Catholic websites that have been verified to be loyal to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church. We will be enhancing this page in the upcoming weeks in order to provide you with more guidance and resources.
Another site that does a terrific job with their reviews of Catholic websites is Catholic Culture (www.catholicculture.org). They painstakingly verify sites for fidelity to the Church and provide appropriate ratings. This service is invaluable when attempting to determine if a site contains authentic Catholic teaching.
When encountering a Catholic website, some positive guidelines to look for are: references from official Papal documents, the Catechism of the Catholic Church and official Vatican sources. Also, quotes from the Saints and the Fathers of the Church are usually a good sign. Mention of EWTN, Catholic Answers or Catholics United For The Faith are also a positive thing. Beware of sites that criticize Church authority, cite unapproved apparitions or downplay the infallible teaching of Church Councils such as Vatican II. Also, remember to pray to the Holy Spirit for guidance as you attempt to learn more about the Catholic Faith. If you feel uneasy about a site, it could possibly be the Holy Spirit warning you that something isn?t right. Don?t ignore this warning!
Finally, feel free to email us at thecatholictruth@yahoo.com if you have any questions about a particular website. We’ll research it and let you know whether it can be trusted to assist you in your journey toward Christ.
