Think Before You “Share”
Recently I saw a YouTube video posted on facebook called “Rich Kids of Instagram.” (http://richkidsofinstagram.tumblr.com/). The video featured a group of twenty-somethings unselfconsciously sharing their pictures of lavish beach parties, consuming countless bottles of Dom Perignon champagne, getting off their private jet in the Hamptons, all of which they post on websites to impress their friends. Over the top—right?
It got me to wondering if those of us with more modest means who try to hold to a Christian ethic of a simple life, attempting to respect the environment and meet the needs of the poor, have not succumbed to a similar temptation. When does sharing our blessings on Facebook become flaunting them? A few cases in point culled from those I follow on facebook: A priest wonders whether three trips to England is too much for one year. A deputy to General Convention posts the nightly dinner menu (with pictures) taken at Indianapolis’ most posh restaurants. A vacationing Senior Warden shares several pictures each day of the lavish golf courses he is playing in Hawai’i; a bishop poses with glamorous Hollywood celebrities at a recent fundraiser.
For my part I can think of times where I have done similarly, including sharing snapshots of the red rocks taken from the balcony of my home in Sedona, Arizona, purportedly one of the state’s more affluent communities.
What must our readers think? What are we thinking? Are we on some subconscious level advocating our own Episcopal brand of the “prosperity Gospel” (follow Jesus and he will add to your bank account) or is this simply inadvertent boasting—”see what I have?” Don’t you wish you you had this too?
And can we include in our public boasting our quickness to broadcast photographs of our beautiful grandchildren, or gatherings of our huge number of happy wine-drinking friends, or our designer wardrobe? It is likely that those of our acquaintances who don’t enjoy such gifts will either be hurt, or simply envious, and envy is one of the seven deadly sins we don’t want to be responsible for engendering in others.
I am convinced that we Christians, especially those of us who are ordained, are not doing ourselves or our church any favors by these public displays of our material blessings. We are a Christian denomination which has always advocated for the poor and for a just economy, but do we practice what we preach? Or are we more driven to impress our friends with what we have than to advocate for those who have not?
We might fool ourselves by thinking that our postings are only for our friends—although why should we boast to our friends?—but if there is one thing that social media has taught us, it is that anything we post on the web has the potential for becoming public in a big way. The average facebook member has several hundred friends and they in turn each have several hundred. In such a geometric progression it doesn't take much for our innocent boast about our new SUV, European vacation, or five-star restaurant meal to go viral.
Jesus is always reminding his followers about the danger of attachment to things, material possessions, power, and prestige—you all know the proof texts. What is even worse for Jesus is when we use our possessions in ways which harm others. It is often said that social media is “word of mouth on steroids” for its power to reach so many people so quickly. What are the words in our mouth, or on our facebook page? Facebook bragging is bragging on steroids and it has the power to harm not only our own soul, but the faith of those around us.
Let’s “share” the things that really matter.
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Friday, July 13, 2012
Wrong on Every Count
One expects good journalism from the Wall Street Journal. What we got instead today in their reporting of General Convention was an inaccurate and nasty diatribe against the Episcopal Church in general and our Presiding Bishop in particular.
I hesitate even to give out the link to this example of muckraking, but I guess I must if I am to refute the errors it contains. If you are an Episcopalian and read it, be prepared to be slimed.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303919504577520950409252574.html?mod=WSJ_article_comments#articleTabs%3Darticle
The reporter himself as an Episcopalian, but it is clear that he knows little or nothing about our Church. I very much doubt he even attended.
The Article is entitled, "What Ails the Episcopalians" and begins by saying that General Convention "is noted for sheer ostentation and carnival atmosphere. For seven straight nights, lavish cocktail parties spilled into pricey steakhouses, where bishops could use their diocesan funds to order bottles of the finest wines."
I can tell you as a veteran of three of these gatherings, that I have never come close to a lavish party or a bottle of expensive wine. I took my breakfast at Starbucks, and lunch was usually at Subway. Our last dinner get together as the Arizona deputation was at a local sports bar--pictured below! Not a bottle of expensive wine in sight!
.jpg)
That's for starters. The Presiding Bishop (whom she incorrectly calls "Bishop Shori"), her next target, she calls "secretive an authoritarian", who rules through a cabal of committees which she controls and who "brazenly" carries a metropolitan cross in procession. The first charge is laughable, the second just plain wrong. Previous Presiding Bishops carried this cross because they are, well, Primates of the Church!
Next comes a whole litany of attacks one usually hears from the ultra-right--the Episcopal Church has declined because of its liberal stands on social issues (actually all expressions of organized religion in the United States are in numerical decline, the Southern Baptists--hardly a liberal church--being the leader). The church is in financial trouble because of the cost of litigation over breakaway groups which have tried to take our property--also not true, most legal costs have been born by individual dioceses, and in fact giving to the church increased this year.
If the reporter had bothered to talk to those of us who attended, he would have learned that General Convention was a wonderfully hopeful and positive experience, with better collegiality and cooperation that I have ever seen.
We Episcopalians can be hopeful about a church that has the self-awareness to take on its own restructuring, take prophetic positions on the world's urgent problems, include all people in its sacramental life, and proclaim to the Good News of Jesus in many new and creative ways. And we do it all in a uniquely democratic manner, which is sometimes messy, but always Spirit-filled.
I am at loss to understand how the Journal would permit this kind of article to published in its paper without even checking basic facts. Could it be that the editorial board has connections with some of those groups who seek to discredit "mainline" American churches? In any event, such "reporting" is hardly worthy of such a venerable publication.
I have only one more thing to say to the Wall Street Journal: I am cancelling my subscription.
[Note: Since I wrote this on July 13, I have learned a few things. First, the Wall Street Journal reporter is not a woman, as I originally thought, and he has written before for Virtue Online. I was also reminded that the Journal is now owned by Rupert Murdoch who uses his media outlets to further his own right wing agenda. I would also recommend two additional responses. George Congar is a conservative writer, but he too has panned this particular hatchet job. http://www.getreligion.org/2012/07/rum-sodomy-and-the-cash-the-episcopal-church/ Scott Gunn, head of Forward Movement Publications, provides a closer criticism of the article at http://www.sevenwholedays.org/2012/07/13/errors-wsj/]
I hesitate even to give out the link to this example of muckraking, but I guess I must if I am to refute the errors it contains. If you are an Episcopalian and read it, be prepared to be slimed.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303919504577520950409252574.html?mod=WSJ_article_comments#articleTabs%3Darticle
The reporter himself as an Episcopalian, but it is clear that he knows little or nothing about our Church. I very much doubt he even attended.
The Article is entitled, "What Ails the Episcopalians" and begins by saying that General Convention "is noted for sheer ostentation and carnival atmosphere. For seven straight nights, lavish cocktail parties spilled into pricey steakhouses, where bishops could use their diocesan funds to order bottles of the finest wines."
I can tell you as a veteran of three of these gatherings, that I have never come close to a lavish party or a bottle of expensive wine. I took my breakfast at Starbucks, and lunch was usually at Subway. Our last dinner get together as the Arizona deputation was at a local sports bar--pictured below! Not a bottle of expensive wine in sight!
.jpg)
Next comes a whole litany of attacks one usually hears from the ultra-right--the Episcopal Church has declined because of its liberal stands on social issues (actually all expressions of organized religion in the United States are in numerical decline, the Southern Baptists--hardly a liberal church--being the leader). The church is in financial trouble because of the cost of litigation over breakaway groups which have tried to take our property--also not true, most legal costs have been born by individual dioceses, and in fact giving to the church increased this year.
If the reporter had bothered to talk to those of us who attended, he would have learned that General Convention was a wonderfully hopeful and positive experience, with better collegiality and cooperation that I have ever seen.
We Episcopalians can be hopeful about a church that has the self-awareness to take on its own restructuring, take prophetic positions on the world's urgent problems, include all people in its sacramental life, and proclaim to the Good News of Jesus in many new and creative ways. And we do it all in a uniquely democratic manner, which is sometimes messy, but always Spirit-filled.
I am at loss to understand how the Journal would permit this kind of article to published in its paper without even checking basic facts. Could it be that the editorial board has connections with some of those groups who seek to discredit "mainline" American churches? In any event, such "reporting" is hardly worthy of such a venerable publication.
I have only one more thing to say to the Wall Street Journal: I am cancelling my subscription.
[Note: Since I wrote this on July 13, I have learned a few things. First, the Wall Street Journal reporter is not a woman, as I originally thought, and he has written before for Virtue Online. I was also reminded that the Journal is now owned by Rupert Murdoch who uses his media outlets to further his own right wing agenda. I would also recommend two additional responses. George Congar is a conservative writer, but he too has panned this particular hatchet job. http://www.getreligion.org/2012/07/rum-sodomy-and-the-cash-the-episcopal-church/ Scott Gunn, head of Forward Movement Publications, provides a closer criticism of the article at http://www.sevenwholedays.org/2012/07/13/errors-wsj/]
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Thursday, July 5, 2012
The video below
Whoops, this posting should have come before the video. Still having trouble with wifi connection--each place we are in, room, hearing room, HOB, has it own set of challenges getting on. As time goes on, I hope to get that fixed.
There are new policies in affect about use of electronic equipment in meetings. For example, no pictures from the meetings unless we have permission of those being pictured, and no tweeting or facebooking from the floor, so most of my reports will have to be after the fact.
I will continue to do my best to keep in touch with all of you!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
There are new policies in affect about use of electronic equipment in meetings. For example, no pictures from the meetings unless we have permission of those being pictured, and no tweeting or facebooking from the floor, so most of my reports will have to be after the fact.
I will continue to do my best to keep in touch with all of you!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Arrival in Indy
We had an uneventful trip to Indy. As suspected it is hot and humid here, although comfortable in the hotel. We are having some phone and internet issues which I hope to get fixed tomorrow. Right now, I am trying to do this blog over my iphone!
After we arrived, we went right into a Province VIII meeting. Although the Province does some great work, the administrative logistics always upset me. The meeting, badly organized and boring was at least offset by the reports about some of the good work being done. Carmen Guerrero spoke as did our own Winnie Follett about the work of ECW. I could have done with the mind numbing report on canon changes. Let's see if I can upload a picture of Carmen giving her report and we will call it quits for this first night.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
After we arrived, we went right into a Province VIII meeting. Although the Province does some great work, the administrative logistics always upset me. The meeting, badly organized and boring was at least offset by the reports about some of the good work being done. Carmen Guerrero spoke as did our own Winnie Follett about the work of ECW. I could have done with the mind numbing report on canon changes. Let's see if I can upload a picture of Carmen giving her report and we will call it quits for this first night.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Monday, July 2, 2012
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