This video gives a lot of great reasons why we shouldn't use social media:
It's not that we shouldn't use social media. It's just that there are some reasons why we shouldn't. There are lots of other good reasons why we should, though. And the good outweigh the bad - by far. But it's good to be honest about both the good and the bad in the process.
Sometimes we in the Church can get a bit idealistic (as opposed to practical) to the point that we only accept perfect solutions. We focus only on what is wrong with a particular solution. Or the potential problems it could create. Or all of the drawbacks it has. And we forget about not only all of the benefits, but we ignore the present drawbacks of the status quo. So we sit around doing nothing about it while we wait for the perfect solution to arrive. It's a convenient excuse to avoid uncomfortable changes, but it's also why we end up so far behind in some areas.
This video also highlights, however, how easy it is for us to get swept away by the avalanche of meaningless things on the internet, or to give in to the temptation of being satisfied by mere indicators (fans, followers, numbers, stats, etc.) instead of the accomplishment of real goals.
In the end, the main point I want to make is that not all of those things in the video above are bad. Some are fun and entertaining - which can be very good things. I, for one, love bacon. Lots of bacon. And there are some hilarious made up stats. Like the fact that 82.7% of statistics are made up on the spot.
ROFL.
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One need only watch what happened on Facebook regarding “The Black Sheepdog” to know the possible pitfalls of public ardor for the Church via social networks. One also could get into an ugly family fight if, say, a naive cousin in a far state revealed on Facebook all the personal info one has hidden for 10 years (because of the Goal’s precedence but also because there are some truly sketchy folks around to whom so much info is available!), and one had to haul out the “I’ll report you to FB as a bad user if you don’t take that info down immediately!” when going about it the nice way only brought a chuckle of derision.
Whether on social media or blogs or websites, one can see almost immediately and certainly after a few viewings what the goal is, OR Who the Goal is. I often opt to “unsubscribe” or “deactivate.” I have opted to not return to any social networks.
And now, I have to go Google “Fenton”—no idea who or what that is! Thanks a lot! And then, I’ll go see if you truly have a “pork” category!
You know that’s a parody, right?
SoMe is a tool…it amplifies who you are. Use it selectively, with purpose, in an engaging way, reflecting our morals and values as Catholics. (No cyberbullying, intimidation, harassment, slander, detraction…in fact, give some consideration to lashon ha ra - the even stricter Jewish teaching. Righteousness of speech transfers to the Internet.)
We should be teaching people how to use it effectively, not being Luddites. Especially YOUNG people who don’t yet anticipate consequences well; their pre-frontal cortexes are still developing.
I coach people how to use SoMe effectively for job search, career development, and small business purposes. There’s a lot more to it than that but it’s a succinct nutshell.
blink-blink… Is that YOU, Cousin?
Pardon while I unsubscribe from Comments!
What an wonderful, amazingly refreshing approach to life and its complications. Life happens around us. Our reaction to that becomes who we are as people, as Christians, as advocates for the Kingdom. Focus on strenghts. Acknowledge weaknesses, but focus on strengths. How much more Christian an approach can we take to life?
This video is really pointless for a Catholic news website. I clicked on the link hoping to find out why I should or shouldn’t use social media or eat bacon and all I get is a meaningless video of stats.
Last time I checked, this was a Catholic news website, not a tech blog.
I’m quite disappointed by this piece. Maybe you should have chose a different title for the article.
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