Social media stretches the boundaries of older generations in interesting ways. Right now I have what I thought was a ‘personal’ page on Facebook. However, the line between personal and public is becoming blurred. For many of the younger people using social media their life is an open book. The distinction between personal and private; family and work isn’t always there. In his book Grown up Digital, Don Tapscott makes this point repeatedly, warning that at some point the digital generation may regret being so free with their personal information.
But social media is about conversations and relationships. You get to know someone as you share information. I have established some good relationships on Facebook with people who at first only knew me professionally. My life is richer for that experience. I must admit that at one time I was rankled at receiving ‘business’ messages in my Facebook inbox. (Part of that was fearing that if it didn’t appear in my business e-mail I would forget about it!) Now, although I’m not sure I would want all that kind of communication on Facebook, it doesn’t bother me as much.
This relates to a question I’ve always wrestled with regarding institutional social media and personal social media. Can the Church as an institution have a viable presence in the social media world when the nature of the media is so personal? If we need to put a ‘face’ to the Church so we can use the medium, whose face do we use? Our message is Jesus, who suffered, died and rose from the dead to reconcile God and fallen humanity. But the message needs a messenger and that’s every Christian not simply an institution. The essence of the Christian gospel is relationships, both between God and humanity and between people.
Is there a challenge here, or is it just me still trying to wrap my mind around the nature of social media?
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3 comments:
Social media is something I'm admittedly a user of. I didn't grow up on it, like so many have, and thus I never put my full address or telephone number out on it like some of my friends have (The most specific I get to is usually "Edmonton, AB").
As far as the Church and Social Media goes: I've noticed that, on facebook, you have the option of putting out what your personal spiritual beliefs are, and I have actually joined the facebook group that you run on there as well. I think Facebook is one of the better forms of social media for the Church, simply by the way it is set up. its things like Myspace and others that are poorly set up for the Church: The church has to have a special page, and people have to add it as a 'friend', etc.
I think the hardest thing for the church, in terms of reaching the young people who utilize these forms of media, is probably overcoming the image of the church being an old "impersonal' organization. I think what we lose in todays society is just how personal the Christian belief is. I'm not saying that you have to think like "Christianity isn't a religion, its a personal lifestyle" which isn't entirely untrue (we should certainly live as God wants us to, to the best of our abilities, no matter how imperfectly that is the point is to TRY) but Christianity is a religion, and for some reason people feel that this makes it somehow 'impersonal', when I think that the fact its a spiritual belief makes it VERY personal, it shapes how you perceive the world, other people, their actions, and Heaven knows what else!
I'm not certain how social media will effect the Church overall, but I think we can't look at it to much as an 'image' issue. The only 'image' problem the Church has comes from the billions of misconceptions, lies, and problems that the Church has faced over the centuries which are still being shoved down our throats by Media Moguls today.
I am not sure social media will 'affect' the church, but I think it is another tool the church can use to keep people connected.
As far as Christianity being a religion, it is a religion but the basis of the religion is an intimate relationship with a loving, merciful, yet just God. I like to see Christianity in the light of 'being' not 'doing.' Our acts of 'doing' spring from who we are in Christ, rather than trying to satisfy a vengeful God. Social media can certainly spur us to 'good works' as we encourage each other.
It will definitely be interesting to see how things pan out within the next few years.
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