“Social Mediaism”

Fast Food, High Fashion, and Social Media (The Three Main food groups consumerists fall for and feed themselves)

“Love without courage and wisdom is sentimentality, as with the ordinary church member.  Courage without love and wisdom is foolhardiness, as with the ordinary soldier. Wisdom without love and courage is cowardice, as with the ordinary intellectual. But the one who has love, courage, and wisdom moves the world.”

--Ammon Hennacy, a Catholic activist 1893-1970

My thoughts are everywhere concerning my, um, concerns. Courage and the concept of being courageous in spirit has always been hard for me to understand, so here I am processing it.  I’m a HUGE Harry Potter fan (I promise you, it’s okay to be a Christian and read it) and it has always been symbolic to me; very religious, even.  When I first came to London all I could think about was seeing all the great Harry Potter things to do, so what did I do first but go on to find a website to get sorted! I tried several different quizzes and answered honestly (but most of the questions were highly suspicious, asking “what is your favorite color” like that would affect the destiny of your sorting) and pretty much every answer was the same: “Hufflepuff”.  I couldn’t get over it!  I ran it over in my mind—Hufflepuffs are loyal and good friends (*note that of course I believe that these are indeed accurate and that they are not defining of your true character) and are generally nice. I’m apparently “nice”.  This, actually, is a label I resent because I don’t care much for being known as someone who is “nice”, but would rather live for Jesus and have the world know that.  Anyway, I truly thought for a while it was because I lacked courage enough to be kicked out of Gryffindor (who are also described as loyal friends). Being “sorted” like that made me realize a few things.

1) You pretty much decide who you are: even if a sorting hat, or a person, or the world decides to “sort” you, only you and God know how much personality you really do have! He puts those qualities in you for His glory, and He gives more! His spiritual gifts and fruit of the Spirit are much more desirable.

2.)Why miss out on what you think you don’t have when you can just pray to God for REAL courage?  He chooses the weak things of the world to shame the wise (1 Corinthians) and His “foolishness” is far greater than the “wisest” of men!  I do not want to be “wise” or “courageous” or “loving” in the world’s self-puffing-up sense.  Only Jesus matters.

3.) Nothing is new under the sun, thank you Ecclesiastes!  People will always want to feel part of a group and share things in common.  It just so happens that the world warps everything so you feel left out if you don’t get in with what you think you want.  You know?

My identity is rooted in Christ!  I am radically transformed by Him!  I am moving from glory to glory, and even though now I see in part, one day I shall see face-to-face the true glory of my Father. I must immerse myself in Him and His truth over me daily; I miss a day with Him and I am utterly weak and defenseless—two days and I am capable of any sin!  O how I need my savior!  I’ve been feeling that tug of war lately, and I know in my spirit I must do what I cannot allow my flesh to do, and do in the Spirit what the flesh is so against.

Now. Onto the "Social Media" business.

Lately I’ve noticed a deluge of posts on Facebook concerning a certain “Joseph Koney” of the LRA (Lords’ Resistance Army) and how people are spreading the desire to make him famous to make him get caught.  This is my response to the media, and why I think it is possibly being used to exploit it, rather than alleviate a cause that seems good, perhaps beneficial.

A little history about this man is that he was the top-gun leader in the LRA in Uganda about 7-8 years back , where he gathered an army of innocent children, killed their siblings and parents in front of them, made them slaves, and brain washed them into killing and recruiting others for an endless walk of torture.  These kids would never have normal lives—they could never cry for fear of being killed.  All of this and more is demonstrated in the "Invisible Children"’s campaign, which is when I first heard of it a few years back in high school.  I knew Joseph Koney was bad news and must be stopped.  My question is why is this just now becoming popular?  While I see the sentiments are that people want to use the social media to alert everyone about Koney and his nasty, immoral deeds, I cannot help but wonder about the ulterior propaganda sported in this Facebook fad.

That’s just the thing—social justice is social justice, and it’s not a “fad”.  Is it not dangerous to advocate something you know nothing about by just jumping on the bandwagon of responses, post and re-posts?  Look at you, how amazing you are, for hitting the “like” button on “ending poverty”. Argh this sounds so callous, but I am really, truly passionate about social justice and I can’t stand the way social media is making it out to be! Sure, its great that the social media can be used to spread good causes, &c., but think of how it has become nothing more than a fad that makes you feel good for liking it.   When the media and networking can be a good thing I seriously doubt Koney is going to be running away to America, looking for a nice home to step into, only to have the door slammed in his face because you saw a YouTube video about him.

“Without vision, the people perish.”  That’s what I’ve heard from my pastor, Jimmy Seibert, who lives in such a radical way his heart breaks for the neighborhood he lives in and moved to that specific spot in Waco in order to love the homeless better by walking with them.  This is the kind of radical love we need, not some video-posting fad. But, I digress. I’m reading three books simultaneously: “The Church Can Change the World” by Jimmy Seibert, “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” by Suzanne Collins, and “The Irresistible Revolution” by Shane Claiborne.  So there’s a few “revolutions” going on within the leaves of these pages, but each book has adequate comment on society. I truly cannot begin to compare them all, for each is very different, but I see irony in the sense that Jimmy and Shane’s books reflect the everyday battles we real people face and how to be a radical believer, whilst in Collins’ book, the main character is leading a revolution of sorts but the cause is vain. There is no kingdom for which she fights for (I found it incredible that even their wedding scene never describes going to a church or being married by a pastor/priest), yet I see the longing and the hopelessness of the world. “Even the rocks will cry out" (Luke 19:40)

Speaking of which, the real news is that there has been another earthquake in Haiti. Haiti and Japan are both so susceptible to Earthquakes, and my heart breaks for both! Japan has always been on my heart since God laid it on my heart and I wanted to be a missionary there, and Haiti has been on my heart since my very good friend and teacher shared with me her passion and vision for the country and people. I ended up going on a mission trip there soon after and fell utterly in love with all of the people and their homes. Lord please do what only you can do, heal their ground and their people, and bring true hope that rebuilds more foundations and leads people to you. Amen. No doubt my really good friend, Faith, will share her thoughts on this soon, as I may do in another post.

 It is already tomorrow, thanks to the 24-hour system. Buenas Noches, mi amigos!