The Slippery Slope of Social Media
We can all agree that for the past few months, there have been plenty of controversial topics that have taken the stage on the public forums. From the presidential campaign & election, to all of the protests, terrorist attacks, and a current hot-button topic as of late: the implementation of the temporary travel ban for certain countries to come into the United States, there is no shortage of controversy anywhere you look. It’s practically plastered to catch our attention everywhere we turn.
One of the spaces we encounter all of this is social media; no surprise there. (I no longer have a Facebook account, or an Instagram account, but I did have those back in 2015). Both of these (among many others) are loaded with the most current and controversial topics of the world, most often impacting the individual poster who is making their case known on the particular subject matter.
Going back to Facebook, though: it doesn’t take a physicist to tell you that the social domain is loaded with propaganda (from all sides, let’s be real), intensely opinionated articles, slander, and false “news.”
My wife still has a Facebook account, and I’m glad; it allows me to see pictures and updates of family members that we aren’t located near within a close proximity. For those types of reasons, I love(d) Facebook.
What I found myself struggling with was the amount of time I would waste by mindlessly droning through my news feed as if it were a motor-memory robotic routine, or clicking on an article that caught my attention and browsing through the comments and thinking negative thoughts about the commenters and making snarky remarks to myself at their inability to communicate effectively or even coherently. I was very much engaging in the emotional snits of the social media world and joining the rest of these people who also didn’t seem to have “anything better to do” than be on Facebook and make complaints and argue for the sake of arguing without rational dialogue.
I finally decided to pull the plug because I had just finally “had it” with social media. I had to take a step back to recognize that it wasn’t benefiting my life in any way and it wasn’t making me a better man in Christ. All things we do must take us in that direction. Either what we are doing is making us holier, or it isn’t. Social media was not making me a holier man, so I had to take an honest look at myself and the situation and just end it. A couple years later and I’m still quite happy with the decision I made to remove myself from these domains.
Facebook is not inherently bad. Neither is Instagram, Twitter, or any of the other means to connect socially. The great televangelist Venerable Fulton Sheen would likely agree that there is nothing fundamentally wrong with these domains and we should use them for the Church’s benefit, and there are many ministries that do. These social media networking tools were created to bring people together in an order to share of their lives with their loved ones from a distance. That’s one of the beautiful things about the ever developing technology; we can connect without being close in regards to geographical proximity. That can also be a real danger. and we know that.
The slippery slope is difficult to see. We recognize that inherently, there is nothing wrong with these modes of communication, therefor we’ll justify our actions using that as its foundation, but we know that’s not sufficient. We tend to abuse them ('them' being the social media websites or apps). However, not all of us do. Some are able to use social media to attract many to the Church and its teaching (Word on Fire, The Catholic Gentleman, etc…) However, not all of us are capable to do so and we must be willing to look at ourselves honestly and set our pride aside (the deadliest of the deadly sins, might I add) and admit that maybe we shouldn’t be engaging in the online arena to the degree we have been.
What’s the point I’m driving home? How does any of this really tie into Catholic manhood? First and foremost, we must remember that should we choose to remain engaged in these social arenas, that behind every commenter and behind every writer is a human being with dignity, created in the image and likeness of God. Once we have that as our foundation, we can approach delicate situations with charity and respect keeping in mind that your interlocutor is a child of God, whom you are commanded to love.
If we come to the conclusion, like I did, that we do not see it best to be actively participating in these social realms, than we must find things to do that will replace all that time lost and in turn, make us holier men preparing for sainthood. I, for example, began reading. Since I’ve removed myself from Facebook and Instagram, I have been able to read probably 30-40 books, which really doesn’t sound like a lot, but I consider that an accomplishment considering I used to mind-numbingly browse my news feed only to become angry and discontent. I’ve simply replaced that time with something that will make me more intelligent, more holy, and mold myself to better hold the Holy Spirit within me. Perhaps you decide that volunteering will be a better use of that time; do it. Consider the spiritual and corporal works of mercy and find ways to incorporate those into your new found time.
What we ought to do is make an examination of conscience to see if we are becoming holier men or not be participating in these realms. (Really, this should be done for all of our actions) remember the great words of St Paul, “…it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal 2:20). If we can say that by our actions we allow Christ to live in us, than we are making progress.
Pax Christi
