Recently, one of our parishioners, who will remain anonymous, came to us and asked us how to control their anger, and remain within their Christian values, when it comes to social media.
You see, this member of the church, is a conservative, and many of the posts he/she is seeing online are of the liberal side. They mentioned that it seems that many conservative tend to refrain from voicing their political beliefs for a variety of reasons. This leads to a plethora of liberal views and many less conservative views are seen.
Regardless of political party, holding back, and refraining from expressing your views, may not be the answer either. So our member is stuck with the dilemma of whether to stay out of the “fray” or enter into the “lion’s den” and try to convey their views in a civilized and Christian manner.
Our recommendation is to decide if you want to be online and if so, on what platforms, but manage it to a certain time of day and DECIDE that you are not going to get into personal attacks of any kind but simply provide your own opinion based on your life experiences. In a word; honestly.
We advise to be fully transparent and honest when citing your views and their basis in scripture and personal, life experience.
So, in a nutshell, here is what we suggest:
-Pick one platform lie Facebook and avoid others. Social Media can drain your time and energy
-Determine a time, such as 30 minutes, that you will allow yourself to be on social media
-Commit to yourself that you will not engage in abusive behavior
- -Be honest
This is the best way we can suggest to be engaged but not jeopardizing your sanity or beliefs.