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hello. thank you for joining us on mosaic. my guest is samantha yee. she is a

native of san francisco and grew up in redwood city. she's 24 years old. we just met and i'm so overwhelmed by your resume. what is your maniactivity is. you're a write, editor, a professional digital entrepreneur. you're a student at uc berkeley. can you give me a picture of what you're doing? >> first, and foremost, i'm a student at uc berkeley. i'm working on research recording james -- and i do social media for catholic companies and organizations. i speak to youth groups, college centers. i am kind of all over the place. i write blog posts for various companies. i advise people on how to use instagram and

pinterest. >> on social media with people. but you're an excellent writer. looking at your web page. it says, hi, i'm sam, i write for catholics from foggy, san francisco. when i click threw and look at these, i'm discovering a world that is not known to me too well which is young catholic professional writers and marketers that are on the internet doing what they do in the service of their catholic faith. >> yes. >> you seemed to be involved with all of these people. you're working for them? >> yes. it's interesting to be able to use my catholic faith to work with all of these different companies. some of the ones with that are listed on my site are the living person, one secret mission, the

catholic woman. i've worked with pal campaign and just love prince and net ministries. there are a different groups of catholics that i've been able to work with through the internet because of the gifts that i have. >> i've seen your published poems on some of the sites. and i'm sure there is lots of nonbyline material. you are a professional writer and editor and you're paying your tuition and rent at uc berkeley. you're a catholic evangelist or speaker. in a typical day, you mentioned last friday was -- i said how do you spend a day. tell me again about last friday. >> last friday, i woke up at 6:00 a.m. and took the bart from berkeley to san francisco to meet with says of 1 billion

stories at 7:30 a.m. for coffee. >> 1 billion stories is? >> he runs a company that makes videos and tells the stories of the one billion catholics in the world. he uses both video, instagram. i think he's moving into pod cost as well to really just help people understand the faith through the eyes of the people that are living it. so we had a little chat. right after that this i had to take bart back to berkeley for my classes. immediately following my classes, in the morning, i had to take amtrak, that is a train, from berkeley to san francisco, which was a two-hour long ride because i was speaking at the women's center in sacramento to the college students there to talk and

share my testimony while they had praising worship. after that, i got to talk to a group of catholic mommy bloggers. >> mommy bloggers are what? moms at home and working on the internet and giving their creative endeavors there? >> yes, it is a group of catholic mom and talk about their children. it is funny because there is a stereotype that there is a catholic mom with five children and they take care kids to daily mass. it is cool to she how they're living their faith at home in a different way than i am. >> speaker supporting each other. one thinks the internet of going to your favorite places and staying in your little circle. as i look at

what you touch through your internets presence, there is organic network of catholics that are doing various things. i notice the photographic or video thing called one secret mission. >> yes. >> and they had a video of what they do. what is their practice what do they do with their photographers? >> they create this stock photo collection for catholics, whether that is for churches or various ministries to use on social media or in other capacities. so that we have a resource for the faith in photography. >> i have not heard of the secret mission. >> you have a video. and you wrote the script for their

video. i don't have it right here. here it is. you combine artery and theology. you wrote this. you are an artist. you see things different. you see a ordinary sunset, you see a masterpiece. you bring beauty to an otherwise dark world because you're an artist that is what you do. you were made in the likenness, the creator and the creative. the creating speaks to who you are. he passed the spark to you. very simple and very effective to me. i believe pretty much reach out to you when they see your writing to come and help to work and give talks to youth and so on? >> yes. i feel like i don't promote myself. might have my personal social media accounts. but i still get on get tons of

e-mails. i think i have an essence of commuting. >> i think so too. we'll take a small break and come back with samantha yee and communications today.

our guest today is samantha yee, a san francisco native and writer and editor. we begin with a little bio. i did not ask you about your upbringing. >> i have three younger brothers. i was born in san francisco. i grew up in the bay area. i don't know what else you want to know. >> you went to high school at. >> notre dame in belmont. and all girls' catholic high school. >> your mother works for the

church in a parish in an occupation. >> both my parents work for the church. any father works for the archdiocese in san francisco. my mother works in the parish. i group up in the world where you serve the church. >> you lapsed from your faith when you were young in college and then found what you call a reversion to. how did that come about? >> when i first started college at cal, i was at the place where a lot of young people are at, they're just trying too figure out who they are and how they fit into the world. for me, i didn't think faith-base was a part of that. i just grew up in the church. to me, i had seen a lot of the politics and drama behind the scenes. so i didn't think that was going to be part of my life. i remember telling people in high school

that there is no way i'm going to being catholic as an adult. but going in with that mindset into cal, i tended to look for happiness and purpose in all the wrong places and things that were only temporary. i finally found a solid place, a solid place, place of my identity through my catholic faith. i entered up reverting because i win the top a conference in san diego. >> the catholic college in ohio. >> yes. they started the conferences for high schoolers. i was no longer a high-schooler at that point p but a credit a lot of my reversion to because i was exposed to it and showed my testimony. because of that, i started to see how the pieces

fitted together and how god had worked in my life. but i was connected to you the holy people that were living the faith and that was not something i had seen before. we would go to in and out and talk about browns and we would talk about who are these young people? >> i think you have to go 21 in a bar for that. you developed an adult set of friend. but you wanted to write since the age of five and had been doing so. i know you have testimonials. i've seen a couple of your poems. those are striking as well. so you seem to have all the tools as a writer. you mentioned addder racing. you told me that holy was a spiritual time for you?

>> yes. this holy week i had the opportunity to play mary in the living stations of the cross. we were basically walking from pier 39 to the square in san francisco. i was dressed as mary. and here was this guy carrying the cross and that was a powerful experience and to take on the role of mary and see the crucifix agency in her eyes. >> can i ask you to read the poem that you wrote? >> yes. testimony is called a sword-pierced heart. it was published on friday by the university of notre dame. my sweet boy, the view of my vine. how would i know that a sword

would pierce this heart of min. in your moments of ware, i was there. your blood, sweat and tears in the garden on that dark night reminded me that i bred and sweat for you her under the star light. it echoed a young mother is wails, for love, i would willingly suffer, but to watch you, that is far tougher. the king of jews they said and placed a crown of thorns on your head. i remember when i first carried you, you wrapped your hand around my finger. my greatest joy and sorrow too. as you carry the cross up to a hilly plain, i long to hold you in my arms again. you lay naked on a piece of wood. they later called good. my sweet boy, your blood

turned to wine. how could i have known when i was told that a sword would pierce this heart of mine. how did i know when you would learn to crawl, that would be the salvation of us all. >> that is really nice. that really speaks to the reader. that is terrific. >> the connection between the sorrowful mysteries and the birth of jesus. >> that is fantastic. you've written instagram posts and other things for catholic groups that want a presence on the internet, you offer your services. many people want to communicate, but don't know how to write, edit or script, and you do. you have high art in you as well. can you tell me what your academic research is about? >> oh, yeah. so my area of expertise is biblical and

medieval poetry, looking at the christian mystics in the song of song oz. but right now i'm working on a research project that takes james joyce, he's an awesome irish poet and writer and looks at the role of writer as sort of a catholic priest and the active writing fiction as a sacred. >> and james joyce. >> yes. interesting fella. we'll be back more with samantha yee and digital catholicism.

welcome back. we're talking about the internet and the young people. i ride the bart every day. and everyone is glued to their mobile device. i often wonder what they're doing. and having met you, it is possible that some of the people are looking at their catholic messages and sending messages back and forth. but i want to talk to you about the state of the internet and the state of young people. if we say it, that is where the young people live today, if you want to reach them for good, that is where you reach them and you want to reach them for good. and we hear they're addicted at the time internet and alone with their favorite materials. what is your view of this tool

and this universal tool, as you say it. >> the word catholic means universal. i think social media is a way to expand the church and connect me with people all over the world. i like to view social media a place of encounter and to meet people where they're at and to have one-on-one interactions with them, but to share my heart and vulnerable and them be the same. if you think about anything that is consistent that young people do today, they are on social media over day, for several hours at a time. that is where they live that is where they are. >> studies have said, the young people are not reading anymore. they're not picking up a book. they're not good at reading. in a lame man's interprets sort of expect, if you're looking at copy or content,

you're reading every day. do you find -- you find that you have to make things simple? >> i don't down myself down. as an academic and scholar, i tend to use big words a lot. i don't tone that down. people are reading it because sometimes they'll comment on specific parts of the things that i've said, about my own life or my insights on maybe a gospel reading. so i know they're reading it. i don't think that we have anything to worry about with the young people. they are still taking in good information and they're still thinking about how they can contribute to the world. they want to do good in the world. we so that so strongly. >> let me ask you this, newspapers tell me that the practice of religious is diminishing among young people. what is your view of all of

that? you seem to be part of an active core of solid catholic people? >> i think there is a whole world on the internet that people don't know about. there are a ton of catholic administrations and ministries that are working to build community online and in person. one of the ones that i love is blessed is she. they work with women. they have reflections on the daily mass readings and in person lunch chats. >> this is based physically somewhere? >> all over. you can take their blessed sheep lunches and take them anywhere and their bible studies and take them anywhere. it is using the tool of the internet to connect people. >> you've opened me up to several new things. i saw a

blog called the catholic woman. so now a get the newsletter for the catholic women and i know something about catholic women that i didn't know before. >> you are donating your services to some of these people. >> some. >> but you're also a professional. where would you see yourself being ten years? would you be a teacher? an academic? evangelist? >> i have no idea. wherever god can use my talents. i would love to work with people in real life and real ministry. i love the boots on the ground type tough work that happens usually on a parish level. i think you really work with these people and work with children and teams and young adults and see them progress and grow in the faith. but i also just love the writing part

of it. i love media communications. i think that is really how connections are being formed nowadays in my life. there are so many friends i've made through instagram and so many jobs that i got through instagram. it is insane to think about. >> for old buddies like me, would you assure us that the kids are not wasting their time on the internet? >> the kids are all right. with anything, you have to be prudent and exercise self-control. anything can become an addition and be bad for you. but there are a lot of good thing that can come out of social media from my own experience alone. there are several people that have reached out to me and told me that reading my facebook and instagram posts are the reason they went to mass again. >> and you're modest about that. you're conveying to

people something beyond you and they're responding to it? >> there is something way bigger than me. even people that don't subscribe to my religious believes acknowledge there is something good, wholesome and true about what i'm doing and they are attracted to that and want to be part of that. >> thank you for joining us. good luck with your academic work. wherever you end up, it will be a blessed spot because you're there. seriously. >> thank you very much. >> thank you. thank you for joining us on mosaic. we'll see you next time.

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