Facebook - a rant

Many of us have Facebook profiles and if you don’t; good on you. You’re not missing out on anything. Many people would argue that Facebook is a tool that allows us to keep contact and up-to-date on our friends, relatives, and such. No objection there. But I wouldn’t place money on anyone ever saying that Facebook has enriched their life, because it hasn’t.

Facebook might be a convenient tool for keeping up with people but it actually diminishes the value and depth of our relationships. It actually reduces our ability to communicate effectively. It also makes cowards of most of us. We either say too much and hide behind our computer screens, or we say too little because it all becomes a news source and proper discussion manners have become seemingly lost or forbidden. We have grown into this online world in which our lives are virtual. It’s all an intellectual train wreck if you ask me. But I will digress and discuss something I saw today.

It didn’t disgust me. I pitied it at first. It didn’t make me happy either. I reminded myself that people have free will. Okay, here it is, this picture:

Please tell me I’m not the only one who immediately grows sad when I see this. Does anyone else see the problem? The bass-ackwards philosophy that Facebook has created? That “likes” are akin to prayers. That the votes some picture gets will determine someone’s personal decisions about their spiritual life? Where is the freedom in that? Where is the heart yearning for God or his Church? Going back to church is about more than sitting in a pew, smiling and acting like a good person. It’s about seeking God as a community of believers.

The problem is this: Going back to church is great, and there is no set template or diagram to show the proper way to get there. Neither is there with God. But one part of the equation must be ones heart and ones will. What is the worth of a decision that had no intention of being made without force of personal discretion. Legally, if someone else held my hand while I held the pen, and proceeded to mark my identical signature on a check, it would appear I did it. But that’s still not good enough. It’s not my intention to make that commitment. And in this case it appears to the entire audience that it is not the intention anyhow. But let me bring in an example we all might remember.

Angels in the Outfield.

Remember the plot? The family was broken up and the son asked his dad if/when they ever would get back together. The dad, said “when the Angels win the Pennant.” Now, the dad might have meant that. He certainly did not know when the Angels would, and from the story, it seemed clear that it was not going to happen soon if ever, and the team was so pitiful it needed divine intervention to occur. So the kid prayed. It happened. The Angels won despite the odds. His dad made a deal and even thought he probably didn’t think it would happen, he intended to keep his end of the bargain. But you see, it was his dad’s wish that things could work out in a way to make it happen, but cited an improbable narrative in order to stress the unlikelihood of it occurring.

What’s the point? The point is, the son in this case ought to have a real desire in his heart if/when he comes back. If the dad is doing it as a way to coax his son into making a decision against his will this will have very ill consequences. The individual needs to have personal freedom in order to love and believe in God, or not. “Likes” are not prayers. Prayers are prayers. If someone says “I will pray one rosary for every like” that is quite different. But let me say that the “like” is still a dull means of supporting someone in spiritual growth. They don’t need likes alone – they need prayer too. If you choose to like something like this I urge you to pray for it too.

It’s like the chain emails that guilt you into sending. I see it all the time but these days it’s on Facebook. A picture will be there with something like “if you love Jesus, share this” or “I am not afraid to say I love Jesus,  like if you agree.”

No thanks. God doesn’t need to see that I shared something in order to see that I am contrite and acknowledge his dominance over my life.

Preachy enough? Hope so. Kidding. Now share this blog or suffer the consequences!