(The title of this post is to be read in the most terrible Utah accent you can muster. Please go back and read it again with that in mind. Many thanks.)
In the month of December, 2009, Americans sent over 10 Billion textual messages, according to Matt Richtel's New York Times series, “Driven to Distraction.” We send them to our friends, our family members, our co-workers, our business clients, and even our bosses. Facebook, Twitter and email all offer similar, instant communication to texting.
Many people – especially the older generations – complain that these social media are deteriorating people's abilities to develop good interpersonal skills to build meaningful relationships.
As social media has become more and more pervasive in our society, it has incorporated even some of the more personal and even sacred areas of our lives, including our belief systems.
With the advent of the Internet in the mid-1980s came the ability to quickly communicate with other people and even ministers of other faiths quickly jumped on the bandwagon, going so far as to develop Web sites that allow professionals in religion to collaborate with other professionals in their field. One such Web site is www.ecunet.org, which doubles as both an online meetingplace, as well as a collaboration center for professionals of religion.
Reverend Charles Henderson (http://web.mit.edu/comm-forum/forums/religion.html) first discovered this resource in the late 1980s and started using it to formulate his sermons. It even allowed, as the link explains, ministers to use others' sermons and then return to the forum after giving the sermon and give an evaluation of the sermon itself. Henderson cited ecunet.com as a great resource for his sermon preparation.
More and more people are using the beloved interwebs to share their beliefs. I (although slightly shamefully, for the mere reason that I consider it to be “succumbing to Mormon culture”) frequently post links to www.mormon.org (ps – have you seen the new mormon.org?! It'll blow your mind.) on my facebook because I want to share the gospel in a fast, convenient way with past acquaintances thousands of miles away who I am now not terribly close to, but still feel a moral duty to share the gospel with (that was a terribly constructed sentence. My most profound apologies.).
Similarly, the MTC has people working on mormon.org as “chatters,” answering people's questions and, in essence, teaching them the gospel. I have even heard of people being taught all the lessons through the chat function on mormon.org and being more than prepared for the baptismal interview, in which they participated and were subsequently baptized.
And the Church hasn't stopped there – select missionaries are now allowed to keep blogs and maintain facebook accounts about their work so they can hopefully access people whom they normally wouldn't be able to. Some are allowed to spend up to an hour every day working on their blog or facebook account.
A missionary facebook profile: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100001108500975&ref=sgm
Said missionary's blog: http://restoredtruth.wordpress.com/
And another's: http://www.dannytcook.blogspot.com/
The purpose of bringing up these social media is not to highlight the Church's new and innovative approach to missionary work – about which I am skeptical, by the way – but to bring to the surface my question: what role does real, interpersonal interaction play in someone's spiritual development? Is our use of social media affecting more than just our interpersonal relationships - could it also hinder our own spiritual development? Can those people who are “attending” church services online or chatting with a Church representative online have equally powerful spiritual experiences as those who physically attend church services or meet with missionaries? Does the electronic element of the spiritual development dull the power of the Spirit? Think of your personal studies that you have done online: when you read the scriptures online, does the Spirit communicate differently than when you are reading your leather-bounds?
I certainly have my own opinions on the matter, but I am curious to know your views and even hope to see some links to empirical evidence supporting your opinions.
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I taught at the MTC when they introduced the Mormon.org chats. When the program began, my zone was one of a handful selected for its missionaries to spend their allocated Referral Center time responding to chats.
ReplyDeleteFrom my experience, the vast majority of the chats were nothing more than silliness or arguing. There were a pleasant few, however, where people seemed genuine and had questions answered. There was indeed a spiritual experience through the chat window.
I believe this is thanks to the power of the word. Whether it's on a screen or a page, people can have profound spiritual experiences while reading. The format may change, but the words remain the same.
That being said, there are certain things like attending worship services and meeting fellow members that require interpersonal relationships, but building a foundation of faith through scriptures and having questions answered is, I believe, perfectly viable through online resources, should people choose to use them.
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ReplyDeleteI think it is important to realize that one's spiritual development really does differ from person to person. How one feels the Spirit strongest, for example, varies depending on the individual you talk to and the FAITH/RELIGION that person aligns with. Even their background/upbringing play a role... I think religion on some deeper level is very personal-I think personal prayer is intimate. We are encouraged to delve into doctrine to develop our OWN testimonies. We can receive personal revelation... So, I say this. One can definitely develop spiritually as an individual. On his or her terms.
ReplyDeleteBUT-Along with that, I must admit that I think interpersonal interaction plays a significant role in one's spiritual development. The term "COMMUNITY" comes to mind. "Ward FAMILIES." Even more basically, we must realize the importance of family unity in the Church and then realize why it is we take our wards very seriously... We are all BROTHERS and SISTERS, after all? If nothing else, community and the building of interpersonal relationships within the Church brings plentiful opportunities-the opportunity to teach someone about the Gospel, to bring someone closer to the Spirit, ministering to them/witnessing to them, providing service, and even companionship to others. Though community in the Church does not always include the intellectual, ground-breaking insight of deep doctrine in terms of one's spiritual development, it can most definitely bring others closer to the Lord through service, companionship, and simply, by offering learning opportunities (We learn by example, do we not?).
So, I think interpersonal interaction along with personal interaction, concerning spirituality, go hand in hand.
Perhaps you're on to something though. Perhaps our shifting standards concerning legitimate social interaction by way of social networking rather than in-person contact has affected more than just our relationships. Maybe it's affected our most important relationship of all... our relationship with our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Perhaps we're slacking spiritually because we care too much about our OWN salvation. I think the idea is legitimate in that I believe the two are necessary to continually GROW. It's not just one or the other. Oftentimes we are too much about the interpersonal, and other times, we are too concerned with our individual interaction with the Gospel. ("Popular Culture in/as Religion"). Also, I think it is important to remember that simple discussion, explanation, and even debate concerning Gospel topics is an engaging form of Gospel study that provides for spiritual development... (in person or via Webcam/chat, I suppose it HAS to be better than nothing at all).
All in all, I am not going to say that those “attending” church services online or chatting missionaries online don't have equally powerful spiritual experiences as those who physically attend church meetings on Sundays. I won't make that judgment call. Once again, I think spirituality is very dependent on the person. It ranges from person to person. Further, I think the Spirit works in amazing ways. And I think this new wave of technology can and will only help those who seek out the Church, if only to provide the resources they may need at the time. I think there is great opportunity here.
From personal experience though-there is something to be said about the reverence that is brought to a congregation when we dress "Sunday best." When family and friends unite in a young couple's blessing of their first child. When a new convert bears their testimony for the first time publicly, and you helped to fellowship them. There is something to be said about the power interpersonal interaction brings to spirituality. It feeds it.
Ultimately, so long as one is seeking out the Spirit genuinely, member or not, its presence will not dull, but reveal itself-in either realm.
I believe that the spirit can be felt as someone uses the internet as a means to receive spiritual information and revelation. When I was growing up my family would listen and watch to General Conference via the internet because my parents did not want to take four young children to long meetings where there is zero tolerance for making noise and taking away the spirit and peaceful environment that everyone else would want to enjoy. However, staying home and wearing "normal" clothes rather then "church clothes" plays an important role for how someone acts and the reverence they show. I know that I would have paid more attention if I was in an actual church building, dressed up and sitting by many others who were doing the same.
ReplyDeleteI think General Conference is the rare exception in the church where it is okay to not be sitting in the building, as long as you still hear the information. On a "normal" Sunday it is vital to attend the services and mingle with everyone else. The LDS faith is set up in such a way that all members have a responsibility to help others and in return they receive blessings and their testimony gets stronger. As we teach the lesson, give a talk, make comments, shake hands with those in attendance and visit those who don't attend everyone benefits. On the other hand, staying home where your only duty is to listen is beneficial but it does not help someone reach their full potential because they are never called to participate. Therefore, I think the internet as someones only method of participation in religion does hinder their spiritual development.
With regards to the scriptures, for me personally I like to hold them in my hands and be able to mark them. This helps me so I can remember what i read about, and I can reference the scripture in another setting. If we do everything on line, it can be a burden for our minds to get into a state of reverence. (Being only one click away from espn.com or any other website is a temptation....and I hate reading on the computer regardless of the book!) However, every time I pick up the leather bound scriptures (since I am use to it) I can automatically get in the proper state of mind and zone everything else out.