Leading by Facebook, Yes we can

by Sarah-Leah Pimentel · July 22, 2014

Hi, my name is Sarah-Leah and I am addicted to Facebook. If there was a support group for chronic social media users, I would probably sign up.

We can be missionaries even from behind our computer keyboards, Sarah-Leah
Pimentel argues. (Photo: Morguefile)

Social media forms a large portion of what my employer pays me to do and when I get home, I begin to suffer from FOMO (social media jargon meaning the �fear of missing out�) if I�m not online within the hour!

As I was looking for ideas for this column, I scrolled through the Facebook wall of one of my favourite priests, then read Cardinal Wilfrid Napier�s latest tweet and searched for #prayforpeace, the hashtag (keyword that links multiple users who are talking about the same thing on Twitter) that was trending on the day Pope Francis prayed with the Israeli and Palestinian presidents at the Vatican.

I probably need to overcome my FOMO but can�t deny that I�m the quintessential product of my generation.

This is why I read the June 11 Southern Cross column by Toni Rowland, �Can we lead by Facebook?� with great interest. In her article, Toni asks whether the online generation, used to �instant gratification� and �immediately getting an answer to a question or a problem�, is being �empowered with beliefs and attitudes for the common good�.

If I were to look at my Facebook wall, the place where I can see what my friends and family have posted during the day, my kneejerk reaction to this question might be no. There appears to be another value system that speaks far louder on social media platforms.

The body and how it looks seems to be the greatest concern for my generation. We no longer have the flawless bodies of 18 year olds, but are still young enough to care about how we look. My friends, therefore, frequently post content about the need to dominate our bodies, pushing them beyond the pain barrier to achieve that washboard tummy or those ripped muscles.

Those who are fortunate to still have the �perfect body� may even post photographs of themselves, often wearing far more skin than clothes, further evidence that our culture encourages us to value the body.

Another prevalent theme is the desire for fancy cars and holiday destinations that are beyond the reach of most of us. On the one hand, it represents our dreams to strive beyond the mundaneness of everyday, but it also points to the materialism of our age by suggesting that these are the things that will bring us true happiness.

In the midst of this desire for the perfect life, there is also a great deal of cynicism. Every day, I see at least one Acid Aunty post, sarcastic comments that point to the less attractive qualities of human nature and can sometimes be quite derisive.

And yet�

In the midst of all these posts that represent a culture of transitory values that often contrast sharply with our Christian beliefs and our daily striving for higher things, I find some real gems, the mustard seeds that feed my faith.

Like the fellow pilgrim I met years ago who regularly shares a picture of the saint of the day or the friend who posts a simple prayer almost every night. Or those many friends who share the most important moments of their lives by posting pictures of engagements, weddings, the birth of a child or the milestone anniversary of a parent or child.

The photographs are a testimony that life, lived to the fullest, is far more meaningful than the unattainable figure or dream house.

Let me return to Toni Rowland�s question: Can we lead by Facebook?

This is exactly what my friends who draw me and others to that higher place are doing. They are saying: �Hold on, guys, my life here is more than a hedonistic quest for pleasure.� They are openly testifying to their faith on a public forum. They are using the means at their disposal to make God�s message of love available and accessible to all their online friends, many of whom may otherwise have no other contact with the Gospel, the saints, an awareness of Christ�s real presence in the Eucharist or the Church�s social teachings.

Already in 1975, Pope Paul VI emphasised that it is our responsibility as the faithful to employ all means of communication to evangelise:

�When they are put at the service of the Gospel, they are capable of increasing almost indefinitely the area in which the Word of God is heard; they enable the Good News to reach millions of people. The Church would feel guilty before the Lord if she did not utilise these powerful means that human skill is daily rendering more perfect.

�It is through them that she proclaims �from the housetops�� (Mt 10:27; Lk 12:3) the message of which she is the depositary. In them she finds a modern and effective version of the pulpit. Thanks to them she succeeds in speaking to the multitudes� (Evangelii Nuntiandi, 45).

So, how can I lead by Facebook? By sharing messages that affirm what is good and positive in our culture. By choosing to use my online voice to raise up the human person instead of tearing them down. By being courageous enough to share articles on the teachings of the Church, even those that are unpopular in wider social circles. By starting courageous conversations about the role of faith � without forcing others to share my views�in societal issues ranging from abortion, LGBT conversations, to human rights abuses and the global economic system, perhaps allowing some of my friends the opportunity to think about these questions from a different perspective.

It has been an hour since I last checked my Twitter feed, and so I leave you with a recent tweet by Pope Francis (which was retweeted 5800 times in less than 24 hours) calling us to reach out in love to others � via Twitter if necessary:

�To live as true children of God means to love our neighbour and to be close to those who are lonely and in difficulty.� (July 1 on @Pontifex with 4,2 million followers).