When it comes to finding information on vital issues like abortion, same-sex \u201cmarriage,\u201d and faith, the mainstream media simply can\u2019t be trusted, the incoming archbishop of Philadelphia told a group of youth in Spain last week.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing uninformed about the world and its problems and issues is a sin against our vocation as disciple,\u201d Archbishop Charles Chaput told his audience during a special World Youth Day session in Madrid.<\/p>\n
An estimated 2 million teens and young adults gathered in Madrid for the event — which include\u00a0an outdoor mass\u00a0with Pope Benedict XIV as well as small sessions with a variety of\u00a0church leaders.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In his session at a local auditorium, Chaput told about 10,000 youth that\u00a0today’s Christian believer is faced with a unique challenge in finding accurate sources of information on key issues.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the United States, our battles over abortion, family life, same-sex marriage, and other sensitive issues have led to ferocious public smears and legal threats,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd with relatively few exceptions, the mass media tend to cover these disputed issues with a combination of ignorance, laziness, and bias against traditional Christian belief.\u201d<\/p>\n
The archbishop\u00a0told the youthful crowd\u00a0that Christians \u201cmake a very serious mistake\u201d if they\u00a0rely on\u00a0such outlets\u00a0as the New York Times, Newsweek,<\/em> CNN and MSNBC, \u201cfor reliable news about religion.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThese news media simply don\u2019t provide trustworthy information about religious faith,\u201d he said. \u201cThese are secular operations focused on making a profit \u2026 They have very little sympathy for the Catholic faith, and quite a lot of aggressive skepticism toward any religious community that claims to preach and teach God\u2019s truth.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cArchbishop Chaput is a breath of fresh air,\u201d responded L. Brent Bozell III, president of the Washington, D.C.-based Media Research Center. He told LifeSiteNews reporter Jeremy Kryn, \u201cThe secular media don\u2019t believe in God, and even less in the Catholic Church. Thirty years ago Robert Lichter undertook a survey of the news media and the numbers were stunning: 50 percent\u00a0didn\u2019t believe in God, 86 percent\u00a0seldom or never attended church or synagogue, 2 percent\u00a0were practicing Catholics.<\/p>\n “That was thirty years ago. The numbers are unquestionably worse today.\u201d<\/p>\n Archbishop Chaput also told his audience that banning religious communities from taking an active role in civic life imposes \u201ca kind of unofficial state atheism,\u201d and that \u201cforcing religious faith out of a nation\u2019s public square \u2026 does not serve democracy.\u201d<\/p>\n Religious freedom means being able to worship as one chooses and \u201cincludes the right of religious believers, leaders, and communities to take part vigorously in a nation\u2019s public life,\u201d said the archbishop. He reminded the young people that given the crucial battles over abortion, family life, and homosexual \u201cmarriage\u201d in the United States, they need to prepare themselves to be \u201ccapable defenders\u201d of their faith.<\/p>\n