“You young people have in a special way the task of witnessing today to the faith; the commitment to bring the Gospel of Christ - the Way, the Truth and the Life - into the third Christian Millennium, to build a new civilization - a civilization of love, of justice and of peace.”

- Pope John Paul II, Santiago de Compostela, August 1989

Inspired by John Paul II’s message of love and commitment from 1989, youth volunteers and several tech-savvy priests have come together for the incredible purpose of bringing “the Gospel of Christ…into the third Christian Millennium.” Under Archbishop George Pell’s blessing, Xt3.com was thoroughly thought out, volunteers were recruited to keep ‘faithbook‘ running, and even a priest was recruited to answer the predictable numerous Catholic questions.

What is Xt3? I spent several hours pondering this slightly cryptic URL. Xt3’s FAQ’s have a simple explanation for the short, but sweet call sign: “Xt3 represents Christ (Xt) in the 3rd Millennium.”

Some however, may benefit from a brief history lesson on Christian symbols. Several early Christian symbols came from when Greek was the language of the hour, including , ‘chi rho’ which one of the symbols for Christ; , ΙΧΘΥΕ or “icthus” which means fish and also contains the beginning letters for the phrase “Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Savior.” Both of these symbols contain the individual Greek letter Χ, “chi”, which begins the Greek word Christos (Χριστóς), “anointed.” It seems then that Xt is utilizing the “chi”, perhaps adding a cross and adding on the 3 to represent the third Millennium for good measure. Call me silly and round-about, but that is how I finally figured out the Xt3 URL.

Xt3, though, is more than just a cool name. It is a social network designed to link users around the world and provide them with the chance of a lifetime - World Youth Day. With WYD less than a month away, Xt3 administrators are helping users connect pilgrims around the world who are going to to Sydney. Site administrator James Van Schie hopes Xt3 connects people before the big event:

Somebody in Mexico could log on, create a profile, find there’s a group from the Sydney Archdiocese where they’ll be coming, connect with that group, start introducing themselves, exchange ideas and talk about what the event’s going to hold for them.

For those who cannot attend, Xt3 is an amazing opportunity to connect with pilgrims who have attended past WYDs or who are attending the 2008 event and “virtually attend.” Pilgrims can connect with online friends who are unable to attend and communicate their experiences via videos and pictures. One site volunteer hopes Xt3 will be able to provide footage of various talks and events for individuals unable to attend.

Personally, I was introduced to Xt3 just a few days ago, but obviously I am hooked. Much like Facebook in the social network sense, Xt3 allows you to meet new people around the world, share photos and videos, join groups and basically “hang-out” online. What is vastly different about Xt3 - what has drawn me and and keeps me coming back - is the purpose of Xt3 as well as the feeling of wellbeing and safety. Now, I’m not trying to make Xt3 sound “granny” or anything. What I mean is Xt3 is safe for people of all ages, traditions and religions. Just look at the beginning of their ‘Terms and Conditions’ policy to grasp the idea:

As a Catholic site we encourage debate and dialogue from all traditions, while requesting that you respect our Catholic ethos. We would ask you to treat all members with charity and respect, and for this reason personal attacks will not be tolerated. Please do not join this site to promote beliefs or practices that oppose the Catholic faith.

Any content that is vulgar, sexually-explicit, discriminatory, blasphemous, hateful, threatening, satanic or violating any laws will be removed. Similarly any messages that harass, insult, belittle, bully or threaten another member will be removed.

The point of Xt3 is to meet “safe” people, people you can trust! Many of these people are attending WYD; they are looking to meet people prior to their journey to Sydney. Naturally they want to meet people they feel comfortable sharing their personal stories and pilgrimage experiences with. The internet can be a terribly frightening place, but Xt3 offers a safe-haven for Catholics as well as peoples of differing faiths and traditions to come together and share their hopes and prayers as they “build a new civilization.”

Others are joining so they can utilize the “Ask a Priest” feature on the site. This section offers a dedicated priest, Father John Flynn, who is there to answer questions ranging from Sacraments to sex, science to social justice, and everything in between. Father gives clear, concrete answers with ample textual backup. Many times he also gives extra sources for his answers that are also extremely helpful to the questioner.

“Ask a Priest” is also a group discussion that is open to the floor. From the discussions I have read have it is clear that different views are not quashed, which should allay any fears that the site only allows the most devout Catholics to participate. Father Flynn is present to answer questions and offer the Church guidance along the way, but many of the discussions are lay driven.

Perhaps JPII may not have envisioned the mammoth, smooth-running social network that is Xt3.com, but I wouldn’t doubt that our beloved “Extreme Papa” - God rest his soul - is smiling down on this awesome achievement!