A while ago I was reading a reflection in a Columban Missionary magazine . I share some of it with you .
It reads : " It is only right that we should question our use of the social media . While not allowing it to consume all our time and turn us into addicts , we can ask ourselves if we use it simply to escape ourselves , to avoid boredom , or to build up an admiring group of followers . It need not be like this . We are “connectors” , people who want to bond with others , form relationships , develop friendships . Today , thanks to the gift of modern technology , we are able to link with others across the world and share ideas and skills to build up hope and bring peace . When we choose to use this wonderful gift for the good of others , to encourage them and not to pull them down , we become apostles of hope in this digital age . To choose otherwise is to quench the spirit .
" " You cannot serve two masters , " Jesus said (Matthew 6:24) . If we spend an inordinate amount of time on social media , if we allow it to absorb us totally , whom are we following ? " Where your treasure is , there will your heart be also " (Matthew 6:21) . When we find God in our clever digital tools , using them to build and to nourish , then we are indeed blessed and the Kingdom grows . "
I especially like that last bit…" When we find God in our clever digital tools , using them to build and to nourish , then we are indeed blessed and the Kingdom grows ."
I would add to the above these recent words of the Holy Father in his Apostolic Exhortation Gaudete et Exsultate , " Christians too can be caught up in networks of verbal violence through the internet and the various forums of digital communication. Even in Catholic media, limits can be overstepped, defamation and slander can become commonplace, and all ethical standards and respect for the good name of others can be abandoned. The result is a dangerous dichotomy, since things can be said there that would be unacceptable in public discourse, and people look to compensate for their own discontent by lashing out at others. It is striking that at times, in claiming to uphold the other commandments, they completely ignore the eighth, which forbids bearing false witness or lying, and ruthlessly vilify others. Here we see how the unguarded tongue, set on fire by hell, sets all things ablaze (cf. Jas 3:6)."
It reads : " It is only right that we should question our use of the social media . While not allowing it to consume all our time and turn us into addicts , we can ask ourselves if we use it simply to escape ourselves , to avoid boredom , or to build up an admiring group of followers . It need not be like this . We are “connectors” , people who want to bond with others , form relationships , develop friendships . Today , thanks to the gift of modern technology , we are able to link with others across the world and share ideas and skills to build up hope and bring peace . When we choose to use this wonderful gift for the good of others , to encourage them and not to pull them down , we become apostles of hope in this digital age . To choose otherwise is to quench the spirit .
" " You cannot serve two masters , " Jesus said (Matthew 6:24) . If we spend an inordinate amount of time on social media , if we allow it to absorb us totally , whom are we following ? " Where your treasure is , there will your heart be also " (Matthew 6:21) . When we find God in our clever digital tools , using them to build and to nourish , then we are indeed blessed and the Kingdom grows . "
I especially like that last bit…" When we find God in our clever digital tools , using them to build and to nourish , then we are indeed blessed and the Kingdom grows ."
I would add to the above these recent words of the Holy Father in his Apostolic Exhortation Gaudete et Exsultate , " Christians too can be caught up in networks of verbal violence through the internet and the various forums of digital communication. Even in Catholic media, limits can be overstepped, defamation and slander can become commonplace, and all ethical standards and respect for the good name of others can be abandoned. The result is a dangerous dichotomy, since things can be said there that would be unacceptable in public discourse, and people look to compensate for their own discontent by lashing out at others. It is striking that at times, in claiming to uphold the other commandments, they completely ignore the eighth, which forbids bearing false witness or lying, and ruthlessly vilify others. Here we see how the unguarded tongue, set on fire by hell, sets all things ablaze (cf. Jas 3:6)."
