There is a joke about how to tell if you live in a rural, suburban or urban
neighborhood:
If you stand naked on the front porch and the neighbors can’t
see you, it’s rural.
If you stand naked on the front porch and the neighbors call
the cops, it’s suburban.
If you stand naked on the front porch and the neighbors ignore
you, it’s urban.
…I would like to add one: If you stand naked on the front porch and
someone puts a video of you doing that on social media, it is 2023!
Today it seems that the boundaries of society have been both
simultaneously expanded and contracted. Our society is expanded when
we can connect with family and friends from around the country and
across the world at any time, right from our phones. But our society has
also contracted so much that we often no longer talk to or even get to
know our neighbors who live literally right next door. What does it mean
for our spiritual lives to live in a world that is saturated with so much
information and communications that we cannot possibly read everything
that is sent to us? What is the cost of not even knowing the names of the
people living on our street? What is our current culture doing to our
souls?
Fortunately, the Bible gives us some guidance on the type of things
we should share on our social media accounts: Philippians 4:8 Finally,
brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is
right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if
anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
When we share things on social media that are harmful to people,
personal things about others that are meant to ridicule, shock or
disparage them; we are not living as a follower of Jesus. It is not funny.
It is cruel and wrong. How can we love our neighbor as well as ourselves
if we participate in a culture that publicly shames and embarrasses others?
Before you post anything on social media, ask yourself if doing so is
just to amuse or promote yourself or if it truly would help and uplift other
people. Imagine the change in our world if we and all of our friends
stopped and thought of others feelings before we said something online.
Simultaneously, if our call as a disciple of Jesus is to be a friend to
our neighbors, I wonder what would happen if we deliberately spent
some time off of our phones and tablets? What great relationships would
we suddenly discover if we would have the courage to wander over to
those people who actually live near us and to find out more about them
face to face? –Perhaps in time, you would even find out the reason why
they are standing naked on their front porch.
Article published in Rockford Squire Newspaper, October 5th 2023