I sometimes wonder if the re-post or the copy and paste ability is making our culture less wise and more detached. I have noticed that we have this short cut system that sometimes (in my opinion more often than not) allows people to attach themselves to a system of thought or belief without actually going through the process of explaining why and what they believe, so instead of putting your opinion out there to be questioned or discussed we simply can post a link and add our short one liner to attach a positive or negative opinion of whatever (let's not even talk about the "like button")
The other aspect of this potential problem is the group or party name... now imagine if we didn't have short cuts to explain why and what you believe by simply saying "I'm a Republican" or "I'm a Democrat" or even the religious side of it with "I'm a Baptist" or "I'm a Lutheran".
I feel like we lose something in the cultural or personal relationship when we don't take the time relate our thoughts better to one another. For example my wife and I were talking the other night about infant deaths and aspect of the soul, this was turning into a wide reaching topic of discussion and getting into things such as baptism, predestination, and the nature of sin. I thought that this was a great conversation even though it took time to touch on its many aspects even briefly, it encouraged intimacy of relationship and understanding but also simple art of conversation. This short cut ability alienates and detaches us from one another to the point of not even having complete conversations with each other and relying on or preferring text messaging to actually talking.
Oh the wonders of our modern world... just think how connected we are because of them. We can can play video games with a friend without actually being with the friend. We can actually have multiple text conversation with people without the use pesky things such as body language or even complete words.... isn't tht gr8...LOL. We can find out how people are doing and what they are up to without actually having to ask them... we can be friends without actually knowing them.
I'm not saying all these things don't serve a purpose and a use on a certain level but what referring to is not the occasional complementary addition but more so normal replacement use of these things.
So when the situation allows... sit down have a conversation and try not to sum up what you believe by saying you are a "blank" or a 4 or 5 point whatever... just explian what you believe and why and if you are not so good at putting the words together to explain yourself then that's alright because the more you do it the better you will get at it.
Just some thoughts by Brenden Drew
2 comments:
I love everything you said and how many words you used to say it! I must admit I have fallen into this trap while at the same time not liking it very much at all. I missed a day of work this week so yesterday I was feeling very rushed to catch up and I caught myself more than once typing those abbreviated words in my emails! It really made me stop and take notice of the fact that I’m too rushed and texting way too much! Just a few short years ago I didn’t even know how to text!! My mind was on the very ideas that you are writing about and then I open up your blog today and read it and have to say “Preach it Nephew!”
Let me add one other thing that I think contributes to this. There is an unrealistic pressure in our society to have many friends. I think the result of trying to keep up with that is that we have redefined and maybe cheapened the term “close friend”. If I kept in personal touch with all the people that think that I should do so I would be on the phone or with people 24/7. This is something that has been bothering me for a while because I constantly feel guilty about it. I am praying that God will give me the courage and the confidence in His calling in my life to have healthy boundaries and not accept the guilt rather self or others inflicted on me if I don’t “keep up”. God, Family and my few closest friends are my priority and if I don’t hold to that I lose my most precious possessions. LOVE YOU!
-Aunt Rhonda
whtevr.
Kidding! I think you have touched on a profound characteristic of our modern society - we have more "contact" than ever before and yet more and more people feel disconnected, unvalued: lonely. Nothing can replace the good we give and receive when we engage one another in face-to-face conversation. It's nourishment for the soul.
I wonder sometimes if it would be a good practice to just go on a "electronic communication fast". To just set aside all email, texts, blogs, and such for a week or so and just listen and talk with people.
Thanks for the good post.
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