The annual Catholic Social Media Summit (CSMS) will be held online this November due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The year’s CSMS is a series of weekend conferences within the whole month and organizers decided to hold it virtually.

With the theme “Transform,” it is inspired by Pope Francis’ message for the 54th World Communications Day that calls for a kind of storytelling that “transforms life”.

“Content matters because it holds stories that activates, connects and most importantly, transforms,” organizers said.

“We also recognize the need to galvanize a new generation of Catholic communicators and social media personalities to respond to the ever-shifting context of post-Covid new normal,” they added.

It is also the last of the three-year campaign dubbed as “ACT” or activate, connect and transform, which culminates in 2021 for the 500th anniversary of Christianity in the Philippines.

Now on its 9th year, all topics and talks aim to update the participants about the latest trends in online evangelization, especially in the midst of the health crisis.

Among this year’s speakers are Archbishop Socrates Villegas, Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara, Bishop Marcelino Antonio Maralit, Bishop Midyphil Billones, Fr. Jerry Orbos, and Fr. Luciano Felloni.

Also giving talks include journalists Christian Esguerra of ABS-CBN News, Felipe Salvosa of Press One, EWTN host Dale Ahlquist, and couple Eric and Giny Dooley of Catholify.

CSMS is organized by YouthPinoy, a group of young “online missionaries”, in collaboration with Areopagus Communications and the Media Office of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines.

First held in 2012, the summit’s previous speakers include Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Bishop Paul Tighe from the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Social Communications, and Sean Patrick Lovett of Vatican Radio.

For more information and to register, click here.