In September, an internet surfer did some research (in French) on the Google search engine and typed in this sentence: “Of what use can earthworms be?” And this research led him to a page on the Custody’s website about Pope Benedict XVI’s trip! According to the latest news, the Holy Father has not written an encyclical on earthworms, but the search engine functions on the basis of key words, and the third choice among the most pertinent responses (sic!) indicated the following in French: “Custodia Terrae Sanctae – Pope Benedict XVI vers [meaning towards, to but also worms] the Holy Land [Terre, meaning both land and earth]…”
Thus, even though it was clear that our article would not discuss earthworms, our surfer let himself be tempted and came to visit us. We don’t know how much time he spent on the website nor how many pages he visited [1], nor what he got out of his reading, but the simple fact that he ventured to our website confirmed for us once again the importance of this medium to make the Holy Land and the Custody’s activities known to whoever is interested, wherever they come from. That is why we do not relinquish our efforts.
The Custody’s website was put online already in 1996, which almost makes it one of the most senior members on the screen [2], and it has never stopped being enriched. In February 2008, it got a different look, but the diversity in its contents was only accessible by means of many clicks with the mouse. By giving a web portal for the Custody, the visitors will from now on have much easier access to the great amount of information as well as to the ensemble of websites directly linked to the Custody. In the same sense, technical changes should accelerate the time needed to access the pages.
Within the next few months, the Custody will have 38 internet websites
The main website, custodia.org, can then be consulted in seven languages, and certain texts are already available in German, Russian, Maltese, and Chinese, while awaiting Korean and Japanese.
Perhaps you have already visited the one or other sanctuary website. Sixteen are already online; but they are all being renovated and nine new sanctuaries such as Naim, Tabgha (the Primacy of Saint Peter), Magdala, Jaffa, Saint John of Acre, etc. are to be added. All in all, the Custody will present 25 sanctuaries. There again, an effort will be made (little by little) to translate pages into ten languages.
This effort to have translations aims at testifying to the fact that the Custody is not the jealous guardian of a treasure, but that on the contrary, it wants to share this treasure with the largest possible number of people and that it keeps in mind the thousands of people who cannot come on pilgrimage. Thus it brings them a little of the Holy Land, the biblical land, the land of history and the place where a living local Christian community is and intends to remain.
In addition to the websites on the sanctuaries, the web portal gives you access with one click to ten other websites.
The website of the Christian Information Center at Jaffa Gate gives practical information on the Franciscan sanctuaries. It is also a trove of information for getting to know the coordinates and visiting hours of the main sanctuaries of the other Christian churches in the country.
Four internet websites give you information on the Custody’s academic and scientific activities, while the Magnificat Institute website testifies to the vitality of the conservatory of music, where the same love of music unites Jews, Christians and Muslims.
The Franciscan Multimedia Center website in turn gives information on its activities in providing video material.
Two Casa Nova websites inform you on their abilities to welcome overnight guests.
A Christian encyclopedia in Arabic gathers together texts or translations of historical, biblical, and ecclesial, etc. documents and writings.
And if you want to support the Custody and its works, two websites can help you to become a benefactor of the Holy Land.
It is appropriate to join this communication from the Custody in the Holy Land with the websites Terrasanta.net and Edizioni (both in Italian and English) that have been set up by the Custody’s publisher in Milan (Italy), and the website that presents the Firmans, which was set up by the George S. Blumenthal Foundation in collaboration with Friar Narcyz Klimas, who is in charge of the Custody archives.
The Custody’s internet communication also includes some ten websites set up by Holy Land commissions all over the world. Some of the friars also have a blog.
Our internet websites participate fully in the Custody’s vocation: the Custody was entrusted with maintaining the holy places and with welcoming pilgrims. It gives access to a historical, scientific and religious heritage and makes it possible to share in the reality of Christian life in the Holy Land, which it also presents by means of pictures with some 10,000 photographs online.
It was only right to make this whole wealth more available. That is why the website has become a web portal through which one can pass in order to enter the Custody’s fascinating universe. If you share our love for the Holy Land, don’t hesitate to make the Custody’s website known, to link it with your internet websites and to put it in your blogs. Thanks to your help, the more we can be found on the screen, the more the message of the Holy Land, the fifth gospel, will be known, heard, and we can be sure also loved!
Mab
[1] Our statistics as of February 2008 indicate that a visitor remains on the website for an average of 3’45” and consults on average 3.75 pages. About 1,500,000 pages were looked at by some 400,000 visitors in a little more than 1½ years. The website includes close to 6000 pages
[2] In 1996, 10,000,000 computers were connected to the World Wide Web (www), which can be translated as “a large global spider’s web”; 200,000,000 in 1999, and at present there are probably some 600,000,000. We must salute the inspired intuition of the Friars who then went to work: Friars Eugenio Alliata and John Abela, aided by Mr. Michael Olteanu.
Thus, even though it was clear that our article would not discuss earthworms, our surfer let himself be tempted and came to visit us. We don’t know how much time he spent on the website nor how many pages he visited [1], nor what he got out of his reading, but the simple fact that he ventured to our website confirmed for us once again the importance of this medium to make the Holy Land and the Custody’s activities known to whoever is interested, wherever they come from. That is why we do not relinquish our efforts.
The Custody’s website was put online already in 1996, which almost makes it one of the most senior members on the screen [2], and it has never stopped being enriched. In February 2008, it got a different look, but the diversity in its contents was only accessible by means of many clicks with the mouse. By giving a web portal for the Custody, the visitors will from now on have much easier access to the great amount of information as well as to the ensemble of websites directly linked to the Custody. In the same sense, technical changes should accelerate the time needed to access the pages.
Within the next few months, the Custody will have 38 internet websites
The main website, custodia.org, can then be consulted in seven languages, and certain texts are already available in German, Russian, Maltese, and Chinese, while awaiting Korean and Japanese.
Perhaps you have already visited the one or other sanctuary website. Sixteen are already online; but they are all being renovated and nine new sanctuaries such as Naim, Tabgha (the Primacy of Saint Peter), Magdala, Jaffa, Saint John of Acre, etc. are to be added. All in all, the Custody will present 25 sanctuaries. There again, an effort will be made (little by little) to translate pages into ten languages.
This effort to have translations aims at testifying to the fact that the Custody is not the jealous guardian of a treasure, but that on the contrary, it wants to share this treasure with the largest possible number of people and that it keeps in mind the thousands of people who cannot come on pilgrimage. Thus it brings them a little of the Holy Land, the biblical land, the land of history and the place where a living local Christian community is and intends to remain.
In addition to the websites on the sanctuaries, the web portal gives you access with one click to ten other websites.
The website of the Christian Information Center at Jaffa Gate gives practical information on the Franciscan sanctuaries. It is also a trove of information for getting to know the coordinates and visiting hours of the main sanctuaries of the other Christian churches in the country.
Four internet websites give you information on the Custody’s academic and scientific activities, while the Magnificat Institute website testifies to the vitality of the conservatory of music, where the same love of music unites Jews, Christians and Muslims.
The Franciscan Multimedia Center website in turn gives information on its activities in providing video material.
Two Casa Nova websites inform you on their abilities to welcome overnight guests.
A Christian encyclopedia in Arabic gathers together texts or translations of historical, biblical, and ecclesial, etc. documents and writings.
And if you want to support the Custody and its works, two websites can help you to become a benefactor of the Holy Land.
It is appropriate to join this communication from the Custody in the Holy Land with the websites Terrasanta.net and Edizioni (both in Italian and English) that have been set up by the Custody’s publisher in Milan (Italy), and the website that presents the Firmans, which was set up by the George S. Blumenthal Foundation in collaboration with Friar Narcyz Klimas, who is in charge of the Custody archives.
The Custody’s internet communication also includes some ten websites set up by Holy Land commissions all over the world. Some of the friars also have a blog.
Our internet websites participate fully in the Custody’s vocation: the Custody was entrusted with maintaining the holy places and with welcoming pilgrims. It gives access to a historical, scientific and religious heritage and makes it possible to share in the reality of Christian life in the Holy Land, which it also presents by means of pictures with some 10,000 photographs online.
It was only right to make this whole wealth more available. That is why the website has become a web portal through which one can pass in order to enter the Custody’s fascinating universe. If you share our love for the Holy Land, don’t hesitate to make the Custody’s website known, to link it with your internet websites and to put it in your blogs. Thanks to your help, the more we can be found on the screen, the more the message of the Holy Land, the fifth gospel, will be known, heard, and we can be sure also loved!
Mab
[1] Our statistics as of February 2008 indicate that a visitor remains on the website for an average of 3’45” and consults on average 3.75 pages. About 1,500,000 pages were looked at by some 400,000 visitors in a little more than 1½ years. The website includes close to 6000 pages
[2] In 1996, 10,000,000 computers were connected to the World Wide Web (www), which can be translated as “a large global spider’s web”; 200,000,000 in 1999, and at present there are probably some 600,000,000. We must salute the inspired intuition of the Friars who then went to work: Friars Eugenio Alliata and John Abela, aided by Mr. Michael Olteanu.