One of the questions we needed to answer in our World Religion presentations was: “What the leaders of each specific religion had to say about the use of media?” During these last weeks this question has been on my mind, so I have been going through some talks and articles by LDS leaders so I can share them in this blog post. I found LDS leaders warn us about the bad use of media how it can destroy families and relationships, but also they motivate us to use media to bear our testimonies and share our beliefs.
First I would like to share with you two statements made by LDS leaders warning the members about media’s negative influence:
In 2003, for example, Elder L. Tom Perry warned all the members of the LDS church about how media can directly influence in a positive or negative way on families. He said: “Oh, what impact advertising, television programs, the Internet, and the other media are having on our family units! We remind you that parents are to preside over their own families. Helps and reminders will come from the Church Internet site and television channels, as well as through priesthood and auxiliary leadership to assist you as we strive to fulfill our family responsibilities.”
Last year, Elder David Bednar talked to all the LDS Young Single Adults. He talked about the spiritual hazards in the technologically oriented and rapidly changing world. He said: “Today I raise an apostolic voice of warning about the potentially stifling, suffocating, suppressing, and constraining impact of some kinds of cyberspace interactions and experiences upon our souls. The concerns I raise are not new; they apply equally to other types of media, such as television, movies, and music. But in a cyber world, these challenges are more pervasive and intense. I plead with you to beware of the sense-dulling and spiritually destructive influence of cyberspace technologies that are used to produce high fidelity and that promote degrading and evil purposes.”
LDS LEADERS URGE MEMBERS TO USE MEDIA TO SHARE THEIR BELIEFS
Now I would like to focus on how media can be used to share LDS beliefs. Media allow us to spread our ideas and beliefs in seconds. A couple of weeks ago, one of my friends posted the following Mormon Message video on her Facebook page:
Thanks to that simple video one of her friends who was going through a hard time of her life asked her more about the LDS church and her beliefs.
Can a simply video, Blog post, Tweet make the difference?
This video certainly made a difference in someone’s life.
On 2007, Elder Russell Ballard gave a commencement address at BYU-Hawaii titled: Sharing the Gospel Using the Internet: “Now, may I ask that you join the conversation by participating on the Internet to share the gospel and to explain in simple and clear terms the message of the Restoration. Most of you already know that if you have access to the Internet you can start a blog in minutes and begin sharing what you know to be true… You can write to media sites on the Internet that report on the Church and voice your views as to the accuracy of the reports. This, of course, requires that you understand the basic principles of the gospel. It is essential that you are able to offer a clear and correct witness of gospel truths. It is also important that you and the people to whom you testify understand that you do not speak for the Church as a whole. You speak as one member—but you testify of the truths you have come to know.”
HOW DO LDS MEMBERS SHARE THEIR BELIEFS ON THE INTERNET?
Here are some specific ideas of how LDS members share their beliefs through the Internet:
*Share/post your beliefs on social network sites as Facebook and Twitter.
*Include some of your beliefs and spiritual experiences on your blog/other website. For example, there is Web site called “Mormons Believe” where LDS members can share their testimonies.
* Share inspirational videos with your friends.
*Comment on other blogs/websites answering other people’s questions about the LDS church.
*For other ideas visit: "Ways to Share the Gospel Online"
DO LDS MEMBERS WHO SHARE THEIR BELIEFS CONTRIBUTE TO THE CHURCH'S GOOD REPUTATION?
It is important to use powerful media tools to spread our feelings and experiences based on our beliefs. I know this will help draw more people to the church, however I also think this will benefit the image of the church in the media and will clarify some misconceptions people have about the LDS church.
Michael Otterson on his article: The Church's Reputation: Progress, Challenges, and Opportunity, said: "Monumental progress has been made during the past century, and particularly in recent years, in gaining respect in the public's mind. Significantly, studies show that people who know Mormons on a personal level typically have great respect for them..."
Based on Otterson's opinion and/or in your own opinion. Do you think LDS members who share their beliefs on the internet are contributing to the church's reputation? Why?
I think Stefani poses a great question. I think it is important to remember that any group or organization, whether it be a church group or a charity or a sports organization, all have members who are outspoken and opinionated and do not hesitate to share their thoughts and beliefs. People are entitled to their own opinions and beliefs and are free to share these thoughts anytime and anywhere thanks to our Constitution. In today’s world, I don’t think it is as detrimental to a church’s reputation as it once was to share one’s beliefs on the Internet. People are more in tune and aware that it is a personal opinion and not the “law”. We have more ways to research and get our facts about a religion than base it on one person’s posting on the Internet. I do however think that when done the right way members who share their beliefs on the Internet are definitely contributing to the Church’s reputation. Whatever they are saying is reflecting on the Church.
ReplyDeleteThe Church has always faced opposition, especially in the media. For so long, it seems that members of the Church were somewhat limited in shaping the media's portrayal of the Church. Now, most members have the ability to use the media to define the Church themselves. We have also been encouraged by Church leaders to be proactive in representing the Church in the media. I think its great that the Church encourages this and that the members are responding. I do believe that this effort will pay off. It may be slow and we may not see the immediate results. But, as we all know, by small and simple means, great things will come.
ReplyDeleteIn your post you quoted Michael Otterson: "people who know Mormons on a personal level typically have great respect for them..." How true I feel this statement is! I can't tell you how many non-LDS members have told me this very thing-that before they met and got to know members of our faith, they were skeptical, unsure about the Mormon faith and beliefs, and a bit timid as a whole. Now, with the Internet and new media technologies, we have a phenomenal opportunity to make ourselves known by participating in a conscious religious discussion, an open forum exchanging religious ideas to meet people who have questions, and ease this sometimes uneasy transition for non-members with similar feelings! There's no doubt about it-the spread of Mormon beliefs through the media is very real.
ReplyDeleteTo answer your question, I think LDS members who share their beliefs on the Internet ARE contributing to the Church's reputation, and for the most part to its GOOD/BETTER reputation. A simple video link, Blog post, Tweet, and/or Facebook status update CAN most definitely make the difference. We reach a global ONLINE audience with our religious messages. Today, believe it or not, these simple tools are powerful! We should use the media for good.
Further, I agree with you. I do believe, for the most part, that sharing our testimonies and using the media as a missionary tool will benefit the image of the LDS Church in the media and will clarify and help others to understand our basic beliefs. It’s also a great way for the public to approach us! To ask questions! But the important thing to remember here is that we have taken a very real and public role in shaping the media's portrayal of the Church and ultimately defining it. Whether we like it or not, we have a responsibility to be mindful of these definitions-to make sure they are accurate, to be cautious so not to offend others in what we post, and maybe most importantly, to be sure that our other non-religious-natured posts are of high value and moral, as well. I think this speaks more about our religion than we may realize. It's no longer others watching us physically (our daily pursuits where others take notice to the way we behave knowing we're Mormon) but now, it's about how we act online, too. We should be aware of this and act accordingly.
*Thanks for the "Ways to Share the Gospel Online" link too! I appreciated that! Good post.
Brittany Glas
COMMS482-001 Blog Post
10 November 2010
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ReplyDeleteIn order for any religion to have a positive effect in the community, it all starts with it's members. We know church's do good things, but in order for someone to want to associate themselves with that church, they have to see people doing good things. One way this is accomplished is by having active members being helpful by interacting with the community, and sharing your gospel knowledge ang telling others about blessings you have received in your life is one way to make a difference. As thousands of members bare their testimony on-line and share their experiences from across the world, we show that the LDS faith is a world church.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, everyone who bares their testimony is also adding to the reputation of the church because we cans see people of all ethnicities, races, and cultures letting others know about the gospel. If members didn't interact and only "church leaders" posted comments it would be weird, negative, and others not of our faith could potential be scared to join are church because of the negative stereotypes associated with it. Having everyone involved shows that the negative stereotypes are not true!
Anytime a member of the Church makes a comment on their faith, it presents an opportunity to impress someone else. The key to understanding why members are encouraged to share their testimonies about the gospel is because it doesn't matter what they say. What does matter is that to those who read, hear, watch or otherwise take in their statements, the Holy Ghost is given an opportunity to encourage the individual to open their mind to Mormonism.
ReplyDeleteAlso, anytime we as a church can clarify anything about our beliefs it is a good thing.
I definitely think so. People who are not familiar with the Church and have a skewed perspective from negative media forget that people are flawed and not the Church. So as faithful members who try to fairly represent the love that abounds from following Christ's example, we have the opportunity to polish a tarnished reputation. I have always had positive feedback from nonmembers when I share "mormon media". At the same time these same individuals know and respect me as I do them. So before we go spreading the Church's compassion, we must first share our own and serve all men. How can people be receptive of "mormon media" if they feel as though we have personally offended them? I would say it's not only "mormon media" that that builds the Church's reputation, it's us as individuals first and foremost.
ReplyDeleteContribute to which type of reputation? A positive one? A negative one? I think the case varies on an individual basis -- some Church members are quite unintelligent about how they interact with the media, especially if it paints the Church in a negative light. For example, when I was a teen-ager, I received a chain email from a friend about some "horrible movie," about a missionary who comes out of the closet while serving a mission. The email pleaded people to forward this on to all their friends. Being the naive 14 year-old that I was, I did so. My dad, to whom I had sent the email, later spoke with me about it. His lesson was interesting: any publicity for that film is good publicity. Whether we are saying it is good or bad, the fact that we are saying anything about it piques and whets others' appetite and they get curious to the point of seeking out the film.
ReplyDeleteI have noticed similar cases in such media interactions with "Big Love" and even Prop 8. I personally have a VERY hard time with the Church's stance on Prop 8, so I merely sit back and don't fight for either side because I feel so conflicted. However, so many of my friends, I feel, painted the Church in a terribly negative light because of the way they handled the situation.
So, to answer your question, Stephanie, posting youtubes and spiritual statuses on social networking sites can be effective, yes, but some of the other interactions we have have with media can also be fairly destructive to the Church and its reputation.
- Logan Bradford
I agree a lot with what Logan had to say. Anyone who has seen the comment pages on Youtube or comments on other sites that have anything to do with religion can find an exchange of ideas about Mormonism. People make accusations and some members of the church try to clarify doctrine or to defend the church but they just make things worse. I think this is a challenge that is unique to our church because people hold us to a pretty high standard. If someone gets on and says "I'm Mormon and blah blah blah..." then I think people sometimes judge the whole church off of that one member. If a lay member of another religion were to get on and start saying stuff about his church I don't think it would have the same effect.
ReplyDeleteI also think you have to take into consideration the other effect of members blogging. On the one hand members blog about their faith, on the other hand they blog about their doubts too. Just as we learned earlier in the semester about how the internet first leads to hyper individualism and then to a form of neo-tribalism.
ReplyDeleteSo, some members do contribute to the overall good reputation of the church, while other blogs are a location where a niche group of unsatisfied members gather to voice their coplaints to eachother. Thanks to google, any member who disagrees with a general authority on a doctrine is able to find other members who agree with him in minutes.
The real question to ask is what are the most used search terms for the church, and what are the sites that come up? Is a quester more likely to get a mormon blog that voices a positive view of the church or a negative. Though members blogging does contribute to the reputation of the church, I think it's too early to tell weather this is a good or bad thing.
In response to if a video or a tweet can make the difference, i think that it really can. People today feel comfortable with technology and social media. These videos are so accessible which in turn allows many people around be influenced by the good that is on the internet.
ReplyDeleteI also think that member bloggers have an influence. Although I do not have a blog and I don't really understand that whole world, my friend had a really cool story happen to her. She blogs a lot and is very open about her life and her religion. A girl halfway around the world saw her blog and said she felt something special. She messaged my friend and asked her more about the Mormon religion. She is now taking the discussions.
I think it depends on the portrayal the certain member gives of the church. It can obviously be negative and positive. People are so sensitive towards our church, so I think anytime the can criticize us they will take that opportunity. Some members, while using media and having good intentions, may contribute in the wrong way towards the church's reputation. i think it is important to use the ability we have to be in tune with the spirit while broadcasting something about our church through the many means of the media. So I think it can be good and bad for the Church's reputation. Those who are anti will still find ways to criticize.
ReplyDelete