Pope gets his own Twitter account to answer questions about faith

The Vatican said he would use a question and answer format in his first tweet, focusing on answering questions about faith – in 140 characters.

The Pope sent his first tweet last year from a Vatican account to launch the Holy See’s news information portal.

The Vatican’s communications adviser Greg Burke said @Pontifex was chosen for the Pope’s personal account because it not only means pope in Latin, but also bridge-builder, suggesting unity.

The Vatican has been increasing its presence in social media to try to spread the faith, particularly among the young. The Pope’s
messages will start on December 12.

Questions can be submitted to #askpontifex, and the Pope will probably respond to about three to five of those sent from around the world.

While the Pope will push the button himself on December 12, subsequent tweets will be sent by someone in the Vatican’s secretariat of state. They will, however, all be approved by the Pope, officials said. Currently a host of Twitter accounts use the Pope’s name, purporting to be his personal account. The @Pontifex account, however, is certified as the only official papal Twitter feed.