Pope Francis took a 21st century view on the story of Jesus as he described the Virgin Mary as the “first influencer”.

The Pope was speaking on World Youth Day, a big rally for young Catholics, in Panama when he made the comments, which were later posted on his official Twitter account.

With her âyesâ, Mary became the most influential woman in history. Without social networks, she became the first âinfluencerâ: the âinfluencerâ of God. #Panama2019 — Pope Francis (@Pontifex) January 27, 2019

In his speech, the Pope added: “Are you willing to say ‘yes’? Are you willing to be an influencer like Mary?”

The tweet caused some amusement among people on Twitter who were unimpressed by the Pope’s efforts to connect with young people.

Wait am I really the first to post this? pic.twitter.com/0b7Zsw0v3j — Conor OâSullivan (@conor610) January 27, 2019

His attempts to appeal to young people via the language of social media came just a few days after the Pope launched his own app aimed at connecting Catholics through prayer.

Click To Pray is effectively a social network prayer app, and the Pope launched his own profile on the platform during the Sunday Angelus prayer in St Peter’s Square last weekend.

PA Media