Social media ‘vitriol’ warning
Iain Taylor, Anglican Church
In his
latest address
to
the Provincial
Council, Archbishop Foley Beach of the
Anglican Church
in North America has
warned Christians, especially clergy, that
they need to behave better on social media.
Noting
that
the pandemic has
led
to
people’s
fears,
frustrations,
anger,
and
concerns overflowing onto the streets and
the
internet, Archbishop Beach
is most disconcerted by
the vitriol and
lack of
Christian
character
displayed
among
Christians on social media. He insists that,
as followers of Jesus, we should be appalled
by
the broad
labelling, assumptions, and
condemning of whole groups of people,
together with the mean and personal attacks
on individuals.
This is what teenagers like me are facing every day online
Esme from Sussex, aged 16, describes the feeling of isolation as a Christian teenager on social media
The first social media platform started in 1997. Twenty-three years later, social media has become its own online society. At 16, I am part of the first generation to not grow up without the Internet.
To what degree should a Christian engage with the news?
How much responsibility do we have to know what is happening around us?
I have a relative in Australia who never listens to the news on TV or the radio and never scrolls through social media. He did not hear about the shooting at Bondi Beach until days after the event. When he did hear, he did not engage or find out more about it. Does it matter?