Facebook is an interesting space. Most of us have a love-hate relationship with it. Some hate it more than others so much so that they have abandoned it. For many there is a sense that there is not enough good on Facebook to outweigh the bad, so they discard the whole thing. Others know themselves well enough to realize they don’t have the self control to avoid being sucked into the mind-numbingness that can happen with a Facebook addiction, so they have deleted their accounts and avoid it completely.
For those of us still using Facebook, however, I can only assume that you, like me, still see some value in it. Maybe the value is as minimal as an occasional laugh at a ridiculous video or silly meme, but there is value nonetheless. But even for us who find some residual value in Facebook, we recognize that there are many negatives as well. Without some discipline, Facebook can be a brain-sucking hole that robs us of intelligent thought. It can also be a narcissistic playground for those who relish the dramatic and confrontational. But even if we don’t have that bent to us, there seems to be some sort of magnetic polarity that too often lures us into the ridiculous and the bad behavior of others.
For all of its negatives, however, Facebook offers a space like no other. On the upside, through the magic of Facebook, I am connected to friends who are scattered around the world and I have been reconnected with friends long ago lost. It is also a one-stop place to stay up to date on the happenings of organizations I support and/or have an interest in. I have found links to articles, books and videos I might have otherwise missed, that have been helpful and challenging in a variety of ways, even in exploring issues involving the living out of my faith. Granted all those things can be done in other ways, but there is no other platform where all of those things can be done so easily in one place. That is why I am still on Facebook and I will continue to use Facebook until there is a better way.
All that being said, Facebook is still annoying in many ways. Seeing things I don’t want to see is unavoidable. I still get sucked into goofy animal videos and the latest article from the Babylon Bee (okay, that is probably still on the plus side of Facebook). But I still hope for the good and keep coming back, trying to use it in a way that allows the positive to outweigh the negative.
One of the ways I try to use Facebook, rather than having it use me, is to post articles I have discovered that make me think about how I am living out my faith, or those that cause me to ponder how my understanding of the Bible shapes my views on the issues of the day. The hope is that others will read and appreciate the post as well or might add some commentary that might further enlighten my understanding. Usually the article post is done with little or no commentary, except for something along the lines of, “I found this article interesting,” because I want to hear others’ commentary before I express my own. I don’t always get the input I hoped for, though. Often there is very limited interaction and it is not uncommon for my “friends” to be rude and mean spirited in their comments with they disagree with the slant of the article or the perspectives of the commentary.
Since my friend group on Facebook is quite diverse (which is good - I actually wish it were even more so) it is virtually impossible to post an article dealing with politics or current culture or faith, that everyone agrees with. But that is really the idea. Posting something that everyone agrees with would not only be boring, it would serve no purpose in terms of challenging my own understanding of the topic. I don’t learn and grow when I surround myself with people who always agree with me and I don’t improve my own understanding of topics when I engage in a love-fest of mutual agreement. I learn and grow when people are willing to explore the gray areas of the boundaries with me. That is the space where I truly like Facebook. There is no other place where I can so easily access such a wide variety of perspectives - where I can throw out ideas on a particular topic and get feedback so quickly from such a wide ranging audience.
Even within this, though, there are problems with the Facebook world. Topics come and go faster than Hollywood relationships and within a very short time, my post is lost in the menagerie of memes, cat videos, and over simplified political commentary. In that respect, I end up not truly reaching as many people as I would hope. Even if I do, however, Facebook doesn’t always feel like a safe place for people to express differing opinions, so I am inclined to believe people hold back in sharing their opinions - opinions that I wish I could hear. I don’t mind reading the vitriol of others, but not everyone is comfortable with that, so I am sure some refrain from participating because of the perceived risk and/or discomfort that may result in dealing with those who disagree with them and don’t have much concern with politeness or decency. That is unfortunate and where Facebook prevents me from experiencing what I hope for.
So I am considering an idea. I would love to hear some feedback from those of you kind enough and patient enough to read my blog post on this. My idea is to create a group where topics could be shared and thoughtful dialogue would be encouraged. I would love to have the topics focus on living out our faith in our current culture - how it looks in our neighborhood, our workplace, our larger community, in current issues and even in politics. This assumes a Christian faith, the Bible as the primary source of authority, but does not necessarily need to limit to participation to those who identify as Christians, as long as they are willing to accept that the majority of the members will come from this perspective. The paramount ground rule for the group would simply be politeness and respect - respond to people politely and respect the opinions of others, whether you agree with them or not. Those who have difficulty embracing those ideals would have their posts removed and, if the problem persists, they would be removed from the group. I would not want the responsibility for those decisions to fall to a single person (I don’t want to be the group dictator), so the best scenario would be to find another person, or two, to share the role of moderator.
Ultimately I would like the group to be what I always hoped Facebook would be - a place to share ideas and thoughts, to post interesting articles and opinion pieces, to encourage one another with newfound insights into Biblical passages and, above all, learn from one another. I would like it to be safe place to share ideas that drift into the gray areas, without the fear of public judgement. I would love to hear more voices than I hear now, and I would love to have voices that agree, from the beginning, that civility is important. It all sounds very idealistic, I know (it is also ironic that a group focused on following Christ needs such criteria), but I find myself longing to find some people willing to grasp for the ideal rather than settle for the status quo.
Let me know your thoughts. Leave a comment here on the blog or on my Facebook post. If you prefer, send me a private message, a text or talk to me more in person. I am open to ideas and suggestions, agree or disagree, or somewhere in between.
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