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- 🛜 CyberCatholic Weekly: The Star of Bethlehem
🛜 CyberCatholic Weekly: The Star of Bethlehem
Lessons from the Epiphany for Online Safety
Jon Otano
January 07, 2025
Dear Catholic Families,
Welcome to this week's CyberCatholic newsletter! I’m excited to share this week’s tools and reflections to help protect your family online.
As always, if you have any questions, comments, or need help, please reach out at [email protected]
Let's dive in!
🌟 Living the Liturgical Season
“They were overjoyed at seeing the star, and on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their country by another way.”
Just as the Magi protected the Holy Family by heeding divine warnings, today's parents must protect their families from online threats that often arrive in disguise.
The story of the Epiphany teaches us timeless lessons about family protection that resonate deeply in our digital age.
What the Magi Teach Us About Digital Protection
The Magi's journey offers three crucial lessons for modern families:
Trust Your Warning Signs
The Magi received a warning in a dream about Herod's true intentions.
Today, our "warning dreams" come in different forms: perhaps it’s your conscience when seeing too-good-to-be-true offers, or noticing unusual email requests.
Just as the Magi acted decisively on their warning, we too must act when online danger signals appear.Choose Alternative Routes
When danger was detected, the Magi "departed for their country by another way."
In our digital lives, this means being ready to:Use alternative communication methods when usual channels seem compromised
Have backup plans for storing important family data
Know how to quickly change passwords and security settings when needed
Protect What's Precious
The Magi protected not just themselves, but the most precious infant Jesus.
Your family's digital life contains precious treasures too: photos, messages, financial information, and personal data.
These deserve protection and good stewardship.
The Magi used their wisdom to protect our Lord. Today's parents can teach digital wisdom by:
Questioning unusual online requests or offers
Listening to their conscience and intuition when something feels wrong
Knowing when to ask for and receive help
🧠 Inside the Mind of a Hacker
What Your Social Media Really Reveals
Remember those times we've all looked up someone on Facebook? Perhaps checking out a potential friend's profile or browsing through a relative's photos?
A Hacker's View of Your Posts
That innocent family photo after Sunday Mass? To a hacker, it's a treasure map:
Your parish location and weekly schedule
Your children's names (from those custom T-shirts)
Your home's neighborhood (from location tags)
Family relationships and connections (from your post's likes and comments)
Protecting Your Family's Dignity
Privacy is a human right. It’s something gifted to us by God, codified in many governments and international organizations, and modeled by Jesus.
He showed us the importance of going “to a desolate place” to pray alone with God (Mark 1:35). Human dignity requires that our privacy be respected.
Before posting, ask yourself:
Does this reveal more about my family than necessary?
Am I okay with this being shared to someone I don’t know?
Am I posting this for the right reasons?
Want to learn more? Read the full blog post here:
"Prudence is the virtue that disposes practical reason to discern our true good in every circumstance and to choose the right means of achieving it." - Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1806
🛠️ Featured Cyber Tool of the Week
Covenant Eyes: Digital Parenting With Confidence
“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.”
Just as Herod was seeking to destroy Jesus, the devil seeks to destroy children's innocence online through pornography.
But like the Magi who were warned in a dream and took a different route home to protect the Christ Child, we too can take wise precautions to protect our children's hearts and minds.
This week, we're featuring Covenant Eyes, a powerful ally for Catholic families seeking to create a safer online environment. This monitoring and filtering software goes beyond simple content blocking:
AI-powered scanning detects and blocks inappropriate images before they appear
Accountability partnerships allow parents to receive reports about online activity
Cross-device protection works on smartphones, tablets, and computers
Educational resources help families have important conversations about pornography and online safety
What sets Covenant Eyes apart is its foundation in Catholic teaching about human dignity and purity.
The name itself comes from Job 31:1: "I have made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully on a woman."
Get 30-Days Free with promo code CYBERCATH30 → [Link]
If you need help setting this up, just reply to this email or contact us at [email protected]
💻 Technology & Theology
Virtuous use of technology
“I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.”
The Jubilee Year 2025: Protecting Our Digital Pilgrimage
On Christmas Eve, Pope Francis opened the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica, launching the Jubilee Year of Hope.
As Pope Francis reminds us, this Jubilee Year arrives at a crucial moment in history. In his words, we are called to "fan the flame of hope" and help everyone "gain new strength and certainty by looking to the future with an open spirit, a trusting heart and far-sighted vision."
This Holy Year promises to be an extraordinary time of grace and spiritual renewal for the entire Church.
Secure Steps on Our Journey
Just as the Holy Door stands as a protected door to grace, we can create secure digital boundaries for our families during this special year.
You can implement your own "Digital Jubilee" by:
Refreshing your family's online safety practices
Creating new, strong passwords for important accounts
Setting healthy boundaries for screen time and digital engagement
Let's embrace this Jubilee Year by protecting both our spiritual and digital lives, ensuring our families can participate fully and safely in this time of grace.
The Jubilee Prayer
Father in heaven, may the faith you have given us in your son, Jesus Christ, our brother, and the flame of charity enkindled in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, reawaken in us the blessed hope for the coming of your Kingdom.
May your grace transform us into tireless cultivators of the seeds of the Gospel. May those seeds transform from within both humanity and the whole cosmos in the sure expectation of a new heaven and a new earth, when, with the powers of Evil vanquished, your glory will shine eternally.
May the grace of the Jubilee reawaken in us, Pilgrims of Hope, a yearning for the treasures of heaven. May that same grace spread the joy and peace of our Redeemer throughout the earth. To you our God, eternally blessed, be glory and praise for ever.
Amen
💭 Weekly Reflection
As we begin this Jubilee Year of Hope, what 'digital door' in your family's life needs to be opened, closed, or better protected? Take a moment this week to discuss this with your loved ones.
If you want to share your answer, hit “Reply” and let me know your thoughts!
In Christ,
Jon Otano
Founder, CyberCatholic
📫 Please share this newsletter with other Catholic families who would benefit from online safety: [Share Link]
“But far be it from me to glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.”