As Catholics lose numbers in Australia, enter the ‘reluctant’ influencer priest

Father Sam French talks about his role as a reluctant influencer in Australia where Catholics numbers are decreasing Credit AP video shot by Albert Lecoanet Meet Australia s influencer priest Father Sam French has a growing fan base on a social media which he uses to connect with young people In between his priestly duties in the parish of Manly near Sydney French uploads short funny videos and more serious posts about his faith which attract thousands of views I consider myself a bit of a reluctant influencer you might say or kind of the Jonah of social media explains French For French being present on social media is merely a way of keeping up with the world we live in and a useful tool to reach out to a younger audience Slightly over million Australians identify as Catholic according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics ABS Census figures for a total population of over million The ABS facts shows that membership has steadily decreased over the years with the latest figures showing a decline from of the population in to in and in And the figures are even worse when it comes to youth engagement Related Pew Analysis of Americans regularly get news from a social media influencer In the Census revealed that about of Australian Catholics were years and older whereas in that number was In French s parish of Manly-Freshwater the numbers are similar There were close to Catholics for a total population of per cent of the total population with a median age of French says he as of now has over followers on Instagram about on Tik Tok and to on his YouTube channel where he posts his homilies With the death of Pope Francis all attention is now turning to who the next leader of the Catholic Church will be In Australia majority people would like someone who follows in the footsteps of Francis Preaching to the masse in the digital age AP video shot by Albert Lecoanet The post As Catholics lose numbers in Australia enter the reluctant influencer priest appeared first on MinnPost