People Are Searching

Recently I stumbled across something interesting (old news for those who keep up to date better than me): a list of the top questions posed on Google in 2014.

It seems many people are searching for things that technology alone can't tackle, as the top questions prove.

According to Google, "It seems love does make the world go round. This year, 'What is love' topped the question charts with 5x more searches than 'What is science.' But when it comes to puckering up, we like a bit of guidance and searched 'how to kiss' more times than any other activity, including 'how to survive.'"

Other Google findings:

• "Of all the world's seasons and celebrations, we have the most trouble remembering 'When is Easter,' closely followed by 'When is Halloween,' with searches steadily increasing the closer each holiday gets."
• "If you have a poor sense of direction, you’re among friends. 'Where am I' topped the world’s most asked 'where' questions, closely followed by 'Where is Sochi.'" (site of the 2014 Olympics).
• "We want to feel wanted, especially when it comes to social media. In 2014, we were 2x more likely to search 'Who unfollowed me' as 'Who called me.'"
• "In moments of existential crisis, we looked to the Internet for answers, with 'What is life' and 'Who am I' featuring high on our list of questions."

It seems that many people are searching for much more than encyclopedia knowledge or contemporary songs. They are looking for answers to profound questions: What is love?  What is life? Who am I?

They want to be loved and to belong. While looking for their geographical location, they may have been searching metaphysically, too: Where am I?

To me, the most Googled questions show an opportunity for evangelization. Long before Google, Jesus and His Church has had the answers. People are searching, and we can be the engine directing them to the right place.

We need to take seriously our mandate from Christ, and our parish's mission: "Go and Make Disciples!"

Inspired by the Year of Faith, Susan Szalewski began writing weekly columns for us. Although that year is over, we liked them so well that we asked her to keep writing. Thankfully, she said yes. So watch for these on Thursdays and see the Year of Faith Blog here.