{"id":471,"date":"2009-07-04T14:05:00","date_gmt":"2009-07-04T14:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/deaconsbench\/2009\/07\/twittering-for-jesus.html"},"modified":"2009-07-04T14:05:00","modified_gmt":"2009-07-04T14:05:00","slug":"twittering-for-jesus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2009\/07\/twittering-for-jesus.html","title":{"rendered":"Twittering for Jesus"},"content":{"rendered":"

Technology and the Church: what a concept! Take a look at how some faith-filled Facebookers (and Twitterers) are sharing the Good News<\/a>: <\/p>\n

<\/a>Things went smoothly for the first hour of the Twitter experiment at Trinity Church in Manhattan on Good Friday in April.<\/p>\n

While hundreds of worshipers watched the traditional dramatization of the Crucifixion from pews in the church, one of New York\u2019s oldest, thousands more around the world followed along on smartphones and computers as a staff member tweeted short bursts of dialogue and setting (\u201cDarkness and earthquake,\u201d \u201cCrucify him!\u201d).<\/p>\n

The trouble began in the second hour.<\/p>\n

Twitter\u2019s interactivity \u2014 its essence \u2014 made it easy for an anonymous text-messager to insert an unscripted character into the Passion play: a Roman guard who breezily claimed, \u201cI\u2019ve got dibs on his robe.\u201d When another texter introduced a rogue Mary Magdalene, the intrusion only confirmed the obvious: Twitter\u2019s trademark limit of 140 characters per message is no bar against crudity.<\/p>\n

Religious groups from Episcopalians to Orthodox Jews have signed up for Twitter, Facebook and other social media networks with the same gusto that celebrities and politicians have, and for some of the same reasons \u2014 to gain a global platform and to appeal to young people who might never go near a church.<\/p>\n

Still, many clerics admit to an uneasiness about the merger of worship and electronic chatter.<\/p>\n

In online debates and private discussions, leaders of all faiths have been weighing pros and cons and diagramming the boundaries of acceptable interactions: Should the congregation have a Facebook page, or should it be the imam\u2019s or priest\u2019s? Should there be limited access? Censoring? Is it appropriate for a clergy member to \u201cfriend\u201d a minor?<\/p>\n

Some recoil at the informality and unpredictability of the crowds marshaled by social media, and at their seeming immunity \u2014 even hostility \u2014 to the authority of established institutions. More deeply, some in the clergy see a basic tension between the anonymous world of online life and the meaning of religious community.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn Judaism, we believe that God resides in the community \u2014 among people in the same room at the same time, hearing each other\u2019s voices and looking in each other\u2019s eyes,\u201d said Rabbi Gerald C. Skolnik of the Forest Hills Jewish Center in Queens, who also wanted it known that he carries an iPhone and a laptop and is talking with his congregation about a Facebook page.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut can you tweet a minyan?\u201d he asked, referring to the quorum of 10 people required for most Jewish devotions. \u201cI don\u2019t think so.\u201d<\/p>\n

Religious groups are answering many such questions for themselves \u2014 and, for the most part, signing up for interactive media, said the Rev. Bill Reichart, a Presbyterian minister in Atlanta who leads an informal network of Web consultants who work with people of a broad spectrum of faiths.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf total control is what you want, social media will frustrate you,\u201d he said, reprising his advice to the clergy. \u201cBut the trade-off is the ability to hear and learn, reach out in new directions.\u201d Many clerics, desperate to connect with young people, have been like radio dispatchers using the wrong bandwidth, he said. \u201cThe young don\u2019t do e-mail anymore,\u201d he said. \u201cThey do Facebook.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Check out the rest of the story<\/a>. And tweet on!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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