A Humble Proposition: Social Networking

Blogs, MySpace , Facebook , Twitter , Friendfeed , LinkedIn , Digg , Flickr , Wikipedia , Second Life , YouTube .  These and more are all buzzwords in the media right now.  A new thing (well, not SO new anymore thing) has happened on the internet.  We've grown up.  We've gone from the internet being a collection of experts posting webpage after webpage telling us what they think (and therefore, what we're supposed to think) to a world where all of us are creating content.  And to a greater or lesser degree, all of us have become experts.

This free-flow of information is amazing.  It wasn't CNN that was the major player as the plane landed on the Hudson, it was Twitter.  It was people walking to work, looking off their balconies, and out their office windows that told us the story.  It's almost as if the world has become flat (with a nod to Friedman).  Not that the globe is no longer round but the hierarchical structures societies perpetuated for generations are disappearing before our eyes.

Some brave souls (gavoweb , revmommy ) have pioneered this way of being in cyberspace.  Others of us follow along.  While yet others say that the technology is not quite perfected or wait so we need to wait and not engage.

The truth is, the world is already there.  Countless faithful Christians as well as multitudes of those who do not yet know God's love are posting, twittering, uploading pictures, and networking away every minute of every day.  And if the people are there, so should be the church.  And not just "the church" but each person representing their life should be there.  Not 2-D Christians but full-bodied people who share their struggles, joys, dreams and disappointments, all while trying to live a life in response to God's love in Jesus.