Influencer priest told to stop flexing his muscles online
Italian known as ‘A Priest in the Gym’ insists he is trying revive interest in Catholic Church after criticism for promoting supplements
A handsome Italian priest has been admonished by his superiors for posting physical fitness routines and promoting vitamin supplements on social media.
Father Alberto Ravagnani, 32, who has 276,000 followers on Instagram, says he is trying to connect with young people and help to revive interest in the Catholic Church.
Father Ravagnani, from Milan, said it was vital that the Church engages with teenagers and young adults and that social media is the best way of reaching them.
His parish church, San Gottardo al Corso, is close to the Navigli, an area of canals, bars and restaurants known for its nightlife.
On his YouTube channel, he calls himself Un Prete in Palestra, “A Priest in the Gym”, and says exercise benefits him physically, mentally and spiritually.
He obtained sponsorship from a vitamin company, Bond Supplements, for some of his online content and plans to use the proceeds for “pastoral activities”.
‘You need to be saintly, but also healthy’
In one video, he tells his followers: “Praying is not enough, guys! You need to be saintly, but also healthy. Supplements help me to stay strong and carry out my mission.”
He says he is not looking to become “Superman or Jesus Christ” but says supplements help him stay physically fit and mentally sharp.
However, the archbishop of Milan, Mario Delpini, is not impressed. His staff have told Father Ravagnani that his effusive online presence, which includes videos of him working out in gym kit, is not “appropriate”, according to La Repubblica newspaper.
He has been told by his superiors that he should ditch the singlets and shorts and go back to wearing his dog collar.
‘The world has corrupted you’
It is fine for the priest to try to connect with Gen Z but he should do so “without overdoing it and without straying into the world of paid content on social media”, they told him.
Some parishioners have been critical as well. One told the priest in an online message that “showing off your muscles means that the world has corrupted you.”
The criticism of Father Ravagnani comes as priests look to social media to broaden the appeal of the church to younger generations, much to the chagrin of conservatives.
A growing number of photogenic priests are using Instagram, TikTok and Facebook to spread the Gospel and tempt people back to the pews on Sundays.
Some of them look more like male models or fitness instructors than men of the cloth.
Father Ambrogio Mazzai, for instance, shares photos of himself biking in the mountains and playing the guitar with his 460,000 followers on Instagram and TikTok.
Father Giuseppe Fusari, a 58-year-old who has been dubbed “the bodybuilder priest”, has 60,000 followers on Instagram.
Another prelate, Father Cosimo Schena from Brindisi in the southern region of Puglia, says his congregation doubled after he started using Facebook and TikTok.
In July, around 1,000 influencers and digital missionaries from around the world gathered in Rome to discuss how social media can help the Church attract the faithful.
Father Ravagnani first rose to prominence during the pandemic, posting photos and videos which soon attracted a large following.
“Just as Christian missionaries have to learn the languages and customs of the places they are sent to, so the missionary Church today needs to know the language and social media culture of young people so as to be able to talk to them and evangelise,” he said.
The late Pope Francis was quick to embrace social media when he was elected pontiff in 2013, amassing millions of followers in multiple languages on Twitter and other platforms.
His successor, Pope Leo XIV, has nearly 19 million followers on his English language Twitter account and 14 million on Instagram.
[Source: Daily Telegraph]
