"The abnegation of reason is not the evidence of faith, but the confession of despair."
- J.B. Lightfoot
Saturday, February 28, 2009
When I first became aware of the blogosphere I thought it was a great idea, though I had no idea how far it would spread. I love reading opinion, and I remember, way back in the day, devouring the op-ed pages of the newspaper. The blogosphere is an op-ed page times infinity, basically, and you can find as much opinion as you want. You can drink opinion until you burst.
My interest in the blogosphere became wedded to my interest in technology and programming, and thus, coming out of a conversation at an EntMoot in late 2002, the Thinklings was born. It wasn't long until I was writing blog software meself.
The blogosphere, in other words, keeps me pretty busy.
But I wonder . . . is the blogosphere a worthwhile pursuit? Three of my four kids blog as well, and are bombarded with the avalanche of opinion too. I hadn't planned on that (it didn't cross my mind, frankly) in 2003, but they are now teenagers and one almost out of his teens. I have wondered if, on balance, it was better when I was their age and we didn't have the internet complicating our lives. (Jill and I stalk their blogs and facebook pages, of course :-).
The first huge blogospheric brou-ha-ha I was exposed to occurred around Thanksgiving, 2004. Unfortunately and grievously, it was a huge, public, multi-blog slander-fest between people who will all stand as adopted sons and brothers before the same Lord and Redeemer one day. It was ugly. I didn't know that kind of ugly could happen in the blogosphere. It shook me.
Some blogs I read are very edifying. Others are not. Many of them have negative things to say about the church (this is the Christian blogosphere I'm referring to). Some are full of snark. Some are full of complaints. Of course, many of the complaints are valid. But I wonder how effective complaining on a blog is. Many blogs set themselves against each other. And much of what you can read is unrestrained. The internet is the one place one can be both a bully and a coward at the same time.
I recently had someone very dear to me tell me that the Thinklings has made her less enthusiastic about studying the Bible. I think her reasoning is along the lines of "what's the use? I won't be able to arrive at a firm conviction without soon reading that others disagree, or think people who hold that conviction are naive, or dislike (and ridicule) the Bible study author, etc." That shook me too.
Through the blogosphere I've found that a lot of things I thought were helpful or benign are seen as great dangers by others. People I've admired from my past (James Dobson, Max Lucado, Beth Moore) are reviled. People who I had no firm opinion of, but who I admired for their talent and skill (Thomas Kinkade, and a host of very talented CCM artists, for example) are ridiculed, demeaned, and slandered. These people are all "part of the problem".
I wonder, sometimes, what would have happened to my new-found faith when I was 19 if the blogosphere had been invented then. If I had jumped into the Christian blogosphere as a new believer, would I have emerged intact?
Though I think I've remained the same guy in "real-space", I've found my blogospheric personality is not nearly as kind or patient as it once was. I've become more cynical, at least when expressing myself in HTML.
On the flipside, the blogosphere has been huge in maintaining dear friendships, has gained me new friends, and has made me think, and think deeply. This hard work of thinking has helped me have a much better grasp of theology than I had before. As my faith in humans has waned, my faith, trust and hope in God has increased. I'm thankful and hopeful that there will not be a blogosphere in Heaven :-).
I think that in many cases the blogosphere has become a great avenue for reform in the church, and that gives me great hope. The blogosphere has given some of my real-life friends and blog friends a venue for sharing their excellent thoughts and superb writing skills with the world, almost for free. I've been able to get a peek into my kids' inner thoughts, and have been able to observe, over their shoulders as it were, their struggles and triumphs.
There are blogs I read that edify, encourage, and challenge me greatly.
In total, I'm hard-pressed to tell whether this phenomenon of the blogosphere has, on balance, been a good or bad thing.
It's something I've been wondering about. A lot.
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Comments on "Does the Blogosphere Help or Hurt?":
3. iMonk
- 02/28/2009 12:56 pm CST
Goof thoughts and good questions.
I'm of the opinion that there is everything on the blogosphere, and we have to be careful making our experience universal. A new Christian can find lots of incredible, great resources and helps. Look at Driscoll's web site. So much there helpful to new believers. But there is that other side- the fights and the debates. Not good for new believers at all.
Everyone's web site has a niche, and we really can't be all things to all people. But we do need to see it from the new users pov.
One thing for sure: we can't go backwards. It's here.
4. Eloquorius
- 02/28/2009 1:41 pm CST
I'm sure the blogosphere is worth it, in the long run. I'm glad to see you address the tone and content of the Christian blogosphere! It's good to see someone address that. Churches that have so openly addressed the net pr()n problem say nary a word about the manner in which we conduct ourselves online. No dirty pictures = no problem, I guess. But for every struggling brother that clicks that-link-he-shouldn't-click, I have to wonder how many other Christians are engaging in slander, malicious talk, spreading false testimony, gossiping, or simply sinning by enjoying watching others do those things. When it comes to the internet, the church sure has carefully picked the pet sins when it comes to internet use.
5. Shrode
- 02/28/2009 3:56 pm CST
As for the good, I will say that it has helped me clarify my thoughts on a lot of subjects, sometimes the "fire" here has helped me refine some things. I've also gotten some really good sermon ideas and insights from the commenters here.
It's also helped me keep up my friendship with you and Jared. I mean, let's be honest - would we have stayed this close were it not for this blog. I was really close to Asbell, but my own laziness has kept me from actually talking to him for years. (I'm so ashamed.)
Can I use this opportunity to say something I've been thinking ALOT? I've been wishing for something like the thinklings, or a group blog that's private. I've got lots of stuff going on in my life and ministry that I would love to share (and get feedback on) but it's stuff I can't share with the public. But if there were just a few of us that could post and comment and interact on a password protected blog, that would be awesome. And it would help me alot, I think. As it is, I have to be quite careful of the things I post and I'm kind of tired of it. (cue music) I Just WANNABE ME!.....
But overall, I can't tell you incredibally thankful I am for this blog. (Very.)
6. Why Not
- 02/28/2009 3:58 pm CST
"This hard work of thinking has helped me have a much better grasp of theology than I had before. As my faith in humans has waned, my faith, trust and hope in God has increased."
Keep sharing what you have learned. I'm pleased that you have grown in these areas. It is reflected in your writing and your life.
7. Michele
- 02/28/2009 4:15 pm CST
The Blogshphere influences me hugely, as well. I'll admit, I'm pretty addicted checking out about 10 blogs a day, and like you my kids and my own facebooks, etc.
The really good influence: Excellent brothers and sisters sharing excellent encouragement, powerful words that build me up, strengthen me, challenge me, inspire, reprove, rebuke, teach and cheer me. I've learned to avoid the ones that bug me. I rarely get on blogs that make me want to argue.
The bad influence: I waste time. I read stuff that's stupid, gossipy and fluff as well. It also lends to being a busy-body, checking out people's facebooks, looking into their lives when I have no relationship with them, or if I do, they bug me, you know?
It's definitely an influence that could subtley consume your days, and must be watched carefully. Thoughtful post.
8. Bob Sacamento
- 02/28/2009 5:00 pm CST
Great post. I have been looking for someone at one of my favorite sites to make a post on this topic for a while. (Why not start my own blog and post it myself? Can't happen. And you don't have the time to find out why.)
When I first heard about blogs a few years ago, it was the first time, and probably the last, that I actually bought into the idea of a technology changing a large segment of society for the better. I thought it would be great for the church in particular, as a method for creating on line "spiritual communities" for unfortunately individuals (yes, like myself) who could fit in with their local congregations because they ... I don't know ... asked too many questions, couldn't see what was so great about CCM, couldn't see what was so bad about CCM ... whatever. I thought it would be a great avenue for intelligent discussion of all sorts of things that people in "real life" don't want to discuss intelligently. More personally, I thought it would be a chance to keep and even improve my writing abilities. And maybe, just maybe, I could start my own blog (tried. It died.) and get discovered by some publisher and ... whatever.
Forget the last hope. I knew it was a pipe dream from the get go. Not too disappointed there. But the blogosphere hasn't helped my writing at all. A brief comment here and there just isn't enough practice, and with virtually no feedback, it's basically useless.
And the no feedback brings me to my real disappointment with the blogosphere. It just simply does not contribute to community at all. There are very few real discussions. Just people stating their opinion. No real give and take, listening and responding. If you aren't already "in" at some blog by other means, you just aren't ever going to get "in". Maybe I should have seen that coming. Oh well.
And when exchange does take place, there is just something about the dang blogosphere that brings out the worst in people. People get just plain nasty. And usually over nothing.
And somehow or another, this medium is just the worst for miscommunication. When you're talking to someone face to face, it's hard enough to get them past what they think you must be saying to reach what you really are saying; somehow, in the blogosphere, this task often becomes well nigh impossible. What is it about blogs that makes that happen?
I keep coming back to the Thinkings because the mixture of thoughtful, conservate, evangelical Christianity and assorted goofiness appeals to me, even though I have figured out that no blog is going to give me what I hoped I would get a few years ago.
By the way, your one comment, "I wonder, sometimes, what would have happened to my new-found faith when I was 19 if the blogosphere had been invented then. If I had jumped into the Christian blogosphere as a new believer, would I have emerged intact?" -- was excellent and should give us all sober pause when we consider what kinds of posts and comments we are going to throw into the blogosphere for all to read.
9. Bill
- 02/28/2009 5:12 pm CST
All - thanks. Great comments.
One thing I have to say: I think the Thinklings commenters are some of the best in the blogosphere. I've always thought that.
Shrode - you could easily have a blog that was private, where only those of us you gave permission to could see your posts. Bloo does that. Let me know if you're interested. There's already a place to do it (Bloo Community), that I haven't exactly launched formally yet but that's fully operational.
10. Milly
- 02/28/2009 9:41 pm CST
I think that with almost anything we have to take the good and bad, we just have to prepare for it. I have made some friends out in the blog world. I’ve even had some great phone calls from some of the folks out there. The Thinklings is the blog that got me into this world and I’ve made a few friends because of this blog. It has also given me a boost to pick up my bible when I agree or disagree with someone or something I’ve read.
Thanks for the love.
11. Crossbow
- 03/01/2009 9:07 am CST
What's interesting is that I work in the educational technology field. We study blogs and their effect on education. In those studies, we find that blogs do a tremendous job at developing community. Students learn a lot about communication, how to understand others, etc. Almost the exact opposite of what Bob Sacramento said. But this is in the academic blogosphere. For some reason, it usually works there. Maybe because people are getting graded. Or they could be kicked out if they acted up. So the fear of an immediate punishment really gets to people, I guess :) Also, the owners of the blogs (the professors) do look at the blog as a way to build community, to foster discussions - not just as a way to toot their own horn. Well, the good bloggers do, at least :) And when someone does step out of line, they usually tend not to take the whole "how dare you come on to my blog and..." rubbish* approach. They look for ways to pacify and understand the situation, not just smack back with an argument.
Of course, I say usually. There are bad academic bloggers out there, too. But we are trying to keep them offline as much as possible :)
* you don't "go on" to websites. You download the code into your computer and the Internet page that you read actually resides in your computer. A website is not a house that you invite people to - it is broadcast that is sent out by someone that is hoping you will invite them in to your house. Don't ever feel bullied into thinking someone is giving you some awesome privilege by letting you "on" their site. It is the other way around.
12. Bill
- 03/01/2009 2:17 pm CST
"you don't "go on" to websites. You download the code into your computer and the Internet page that you read actually resides in your computer. A website is not a house that you invite people to - it is broadcast that is sent out by someone that is hoping you will invite them in to your house. Don't ever feel bullied into thinking someone is giving you some awesome privilege by letting you "on" their site. It is the other way around."
I know from a purely technical sense the browser is pulling down HTML over the http protocol, but I think that's being a bit pedantic.
I think this might be directed at us :-) - fair enough, but every online community has the right (or, to avoid a pointless argument, the ability) to police the content. You are correct that it is a broadcast, but on blogs that have comments, the broadcast analogy breaks down. This isn't like a radio show. It's two-way, meaning that every reader has the ability to add content to the site, to broadcast their own thoughts.
For instance, if someone decided to come here and drop F-bombs all day long, whether it's my privilege or not that they are reading the HTML generated on this site in their browser is beside the point. In the interest of the community, and because I can, they would be banned. That's not being a bully. That's being protective of the people in the community that are being bullied.
From time to time someone on this site has gotten abusive (it's pretty rare). Inevitably, when we've asked them to clean up their act, they've come back with the "what, you don't believe in free speech?". This reflects a deep misunderstanding on their part as to what a blog is. It is, yes, just html that they have downloaded on their browser. But it's html that is served from a webhost that is being paid for or at least rented by the proprietor of the site.
It's not bullying to have standards. Nearly every online community out there, and certainly every sign-up service (blogspot, facebook, etc) has them.
For my part, if I was engaged in a debate on someone else's blog and the administrator started asking me to watch my Ps and Qs because I was getting abusive, my hope is that I would, in good faith, clean up my act. If for no other reason than to practice a little bit of the Golden Rule on someone else. I don't think I would see that as bullying.
Sorry for the long comment. And, for what it's worth, it is an awesome privilege for us to be read by a couple of hundred people a day, and to have a number of them provide their great insights every day in the conversations around here. So don't mistake what I'm saying - I see your point. My point is that the privilege goes both ways.
Peace.
Leave a Comment:
The Thinklings,
Ah...how I can relate to much of what you've said here. I have been reading your posts for a while now (I simply do not comment regularly because I have a long list in my Feed Reader and get to everyone over time).
Nonetheless, I enjoy your posts. Keep posting, my friend. Good stuff here.
Blessings,
~Amy :)
Walking In The Spirit
http://amyiswalkinginthespirit.blogspot.com