Facebook and Twitter are wonderful, terrible places. On these digital street corners, friendships are nurtured, and in this digital hellscape relationships are destroyed.
I’m not offering a comprehensive theology of social media. I humbly submit several quick points that may (or may not) be helpful. As always, I write as a fellow traveler, a pilgrim on the way rather than a sage who has arrived.
- We must not share false witness. Our commitment to the truth & the fair representation of the other extends to the content we share. Both right and left-wing blogs crank out content hourly that is designed to be shared on Facebook. Bloggers have monetized gullibility and ideologues are easy targets. Simply because something seems true does not mean it is.
- Related to point 1: We should not highlight the most extreme voice on the other side of an argument and assign their motives to everyone on that side. It’s lazy, irresponsible, and unhelpful.
- We’re going to disagree. There’s value in disagreement. Sometimes, in our disagreement, facts are presented that cause us to change our mind! There is no value, for the Christian at least, in hatred, name-calling, and insults.
- You simply can’t say everything: thus, the danger of saying anything. Tread wisely when writing and extend grace when reading. I generally do a risk/reward evaluation before I post. I usually get it right, sometimes I don’t.
- This point may be controversial. But I’ve really made an effort to avoid sarcasm. In these deeply divided days, sarcastic memes and posts do nothing to raise the level of discourse and winsomely communicate our perspectives. (As an English lit guy, I understand the beauty and usefulness of satire, and it does have a role in our discourse.) Sarcasm, though, I’m trying to avoid.
- If you can’t love your neighbor on social media, you probably shouldn’t be on social media. And if you don’t know who your neighbor is, I [sincerely] invite you to Google: “The Good Samaritan.”
