For lack of a better title: "Facebook"

Note: This blog is written in response to an article on cnn: http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2010/11/18/pastor-facebook-is-encouraging-adultery/?hpt=C2

I read this and had to respond, because I've been thinking a lot lately about the relationship between church and social network sites. I'm thinking this is an area I'd like to explore more deeply because we're in a digital age and as part of the generation that is addicted to social networks, I know the reality that if the church doesn't find a way to be relevant, it will die.

I've heard pastors say that it's not up for the church to be relevant. A pastor I know talked about this in a sermon one time, and he said that the message of the Gospel is always relevant and the church cannot just change itself because people decide it has to change. Personally, I think this pastor is missing the point of church. I agree with him insofar as the message of the Gospel is always relevant.

BUT, and this is a huge BUT, the church as an institution must find ways to connect to Christ's followers or it will die. I considered using the term "cease to exist as we know it" but I think "die" better captures what I'm trying to communicate. In a digital age, and in order to reach a generation that knows nothing but technology, the church has to find a way to be a part of the digital age. The reality that churches today must face is that if the church doesn't speak up and bring itself into this conversation, other voices will rise up ahead of her and drown her out.

In his book "Gospel According to Peanuts," Robert Short explains why the church must be in conversation with the arts. He states, "Whenever the Church becomes too dull or narrow in using the gift of its spiritual perception, it is guilty of the same charge Christ laid to the Pharisees and Sadducees: 'You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times.' (Matt. 16.3)" (Short 14).

He also states, "If the Church fails to use the divine imagination gives to it, to see the unseen, to see "sermons in stones and good in everything' to see 'that all that passes to corruption is a parable,' as Karl Barth has put it, will constantly be embarrassed by a world capable of far more imagination than the Church itself" (Short 28).

I like that statement, a gentle reminder that if the church doesn't step it up in the digital age, it will be "embarassed by a world capable of far more imagination than the Church itself." There's gospel truth in that statement. As a pastor, my task is to find a balance between upholding traditions of the faith and leading the church as it discovers new traditions. The message of God's love and Christ's grace is timeless. How we tell that story is not so timeless. The Church must discover ways to tell the story in a language God's people can understand.

Does my church need to jump on the Facebook bandwagon? Should I even have a Facebook page if I'm a pastor? I would encourage my church to have a Facebook page. It's great for announcements and to show this generation and the next that as a church, we know we have to find ways to reach people in the digital age. As a pastor, I am responsible with my Facebook profile. I don't post anything up there that I wouldn't want my congregation to see. There are no pictures, notes, or comments from friends that put my values in question.

I do not agree with the NJ pastor's ultamatim for his congregation (that church leaders delete their facebook account or be removed from their positions). With great technology comes great responsibility. A more positive form of action could be to offer interactive seminars with your congregation. Sit down with them and talk about it. If you make something a forbidden fruit, it makes it much more attractive. If you give someone the tools they need to make smart decisions about the technology available, it allows them to make informed decisions about what they do. What happens from there are the choices a person makes and we live with those choices. We deal the consequences of our actions. That's part of what being an adult is about.

I will say, on record, that I can appreciate what the pastor is trying to do. He is trying to protect his flock. I've heard it said the best way to prevent pregnancy and STD's is to just not have sex. The best way to make sure your facebook page doesn't lead to adultery is to not have a facebook page. I can support that. But I also support a person's right to decide to have Facebook (and have sex, but that's a blog entry for another day...this one is getting long enough). People are going to get on Facebook and they're going to do stupid things (like the cheerleader who got suspended for putting up a picture of herself with a beer bottle). Eventually, people will learn their lessons, even if they have to learn them the hardway.

In the meantime, I'm keeping my Facebook profile and I'm updating my blog once a week. So, fellow pastor in NJ, I understand where you're coming from, but I disagree with your course of action as being the only solution to the problem. I still think the relationship between the Church and social web networking is an area I want to dig deeper into. We live in a digital age. The Church exists in a digital age. There is no escaping that, and personally, I don't think we should try.

Wishing you peace of Christ,
Pastor Becki

ps: As a side note, I think the comments on the article that say the pastor is insane are uncalled for. He is a pastor trying to find ways to protect his flock. I may not agree with his methods, but as pastors, it's what we do. It is not "things like this" that give religion a bad name. It is people that are ignorant enough to let Facebook destory their marriages that give people the fuel they need to make such ridiculous claims.
pps: As an extra side note, I've gotten into "Glee" recently and this past week's episode had a comment from a character that I thought was interesting. The character, a gay kid, was at dinner with his gay friend and another character from the show and he said that if people want to outlaw gay marriage because it "ruins marriage," we ought to outlaw divorce as well. In the spirit of Jonathan Swift's "A Modest Proposal," maybe we ought to outlaw Facebook as well.

**Short, Robert. "The Gospel According to Peanuts" (Westminster John Knox Press/Louisville, KY), 1999 ed.