PLEASE READ FIRST :: AAA Notes, Tips, Options - Page 3

**Michelle Arnold** · #31 Apr 10, '08, 3:07 pm

CAF is an outreach project of Catholic Answers, a lay-run Catholic apostolate. Liberal and conservative are political terms and should be avoided, whenever possible, when indicating allegiance to the Church. CAF is a Catholic site. Period.

Maritsa · #32 Apr 16, '08, 5:48 pm

From a spouse who isn't fulfilling his or her obligations to a priest who is giving poor advice in the confessional to an employer who is acting unethically, it is not uncommon to see a thread by an anonymous poster that explains a problematic situation in his or her life and asks for advice on how to best address it.

It is equally common to see the person be told that posting about a problem with his or her spouse, priest, employer, family, friend, etc., is sinful and scandalous. Even if the facts are true and necessary for understanding the problem, the response is that posting about it at all is commiting the sin of gossip or detraction. Even if it is completely anonymous, the response is that it casts aspersions on all spouses or priests and is also scandalous.

Could you please comment on these accusations and any truth they contain? Is it sinful to post problems in one's life to look for advice from other Catholics?

**Michelle Arnold** · #33 Apr 17, '08, 11:45 am

I can only say that it depends on the post. Here are some questions posters might want to ask themselves before posting about personal problems they are experiencing with private individuals:

Is this necessary? (Can I get the answers I need from offline sources I can trust?)
Is this constructive? (Am I seeking to solve this problem or merely to rant about it?)
Will the person I am complaining about recognize himself in the post? (Is the information I am giving about the problem too specific?)
Am I as anonymous as I think I am? If not, will that "out" the person I am complaining about? (Can posters piece together who I am or where I am from, and thus who I am complaining about, by reading through my profile and posting history?)
Have I given every benefit of the doubt to the person about whom I am complaining? (Or am I painting his character only in black?)
Is the problem too intimate for public consumption? (Does it discuss highly-personal information that would embarrass a family member who should be able to rely upon my public discretion?)
Is it appropriate for the information to remain online for an extended period of time? (If the problem likely is temporary in nature, how will I feel about it remaining online potentially forever -- particularly since most discussion forums lack the time and resources to accommodate me in removing posts I no longer want online?)

After considering these questions, the poster must make an informed choice about whether or not it is prudent to post on the Internet about the problem he is experiencing. Anyone posting online should be highly cautious and prudent about the topics he chooses to discuss with strangers on the Internet.

Recommended reading:

Personally Identifiable Data by CAF

**Therese Martin** · #34 Jul 22, '08, 10:35 am

How to Ask a Question in the Ask an Apologist (AAA) Forum:

Quote:

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7.) Periodically check the AAA forum to see if your thread is selected and answered.

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