Vatican chastises bishops, pastors for divisive social media posts: 'Digital tribalism'

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Pope Francis met with an envoy of the Russian Orthodox Church Wednesday in Vatican City. (Associated Press)

The Vatican released guidance for Catholic engagement with social media on Monday, condemning "[d]igital tribalism" and calling on Church leaders to be more "reflective" in their social media posts according to a report.

The Vatican advised Church leaders to be especially careful on "polemical" and "superficial" social media posts. 

"The problem of polemical and superficial, and thus divisive, communication is particularly worrying when it comes from Church leadership: bishops, pastors, and prominent lay leaders," it said.

Despite the guidance being directed at all Church leaders, the Reuters report suggested that the Vatican was likely responding to "fierce" attacks on the Pope from "far-right" commentators and "conservative Catholic bishops." 

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Pope Francis and the Catholic Church has come under increasing scrutiny in American politics, with major political leaders like President Joe Biden and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi identifying as Catholics.  (Stefano Costantino/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

The term "conservative" or "right-wing" appears nowhere in the Vatican's original document, titled, "Towards Full Presence. A Pastoral Reflection on Engagement with Social Media." 

Fox News Digital has reached out to the Vatican for additional comment but has yet to receive a response.  

The missive also encouraged Christians to be careful of "digital traps" online that are designed to play on people's emotions. 

"The Christian style should be reflective, not reactive, on social media. Therefore, we should all be careful not to fall into the digital traps hidden in content that is intentionally designed to sow conflict among users by causing outrage or emotional reactions," the document explained. 

The directive acknowledged that, "[u]nfortunately, broken relationships, conflicts, and divisions are not foreign to the Church. For example, when groups that present themselves as 'Catholic' use their social media presence to foster division, they are not behaving like a Christian community should."

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Biden has been criticized for citing both U.S. Catholic bishops and Pope Francis in defense of federally funded abortions, despite both the bishops' and the pontiff's consistent and vocal opposition to the practice. (SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

Pope Francis and the Catholic Church have come under increasing scrutiny in American politics, especially since prominent political leaders like President Joe Biden and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi identify as Catholics but hold views contrary to traditional Church teaching, for example on abortion. 

Biden has been criticized for citing both U.S. Catholic bishops and Pope Francis in defense of federally funded abortions, despite both the bishops' and the pontiff's consistent and vocal opposition to the practice.

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Fox News' Timothy H.J. Nerozzi contributed to this report.