Friday, June 5, 2015

My Ten-ish Commandments of Facebook Engagement on Hot Topics


This list is far from perfect and I am guilty of violating most of them, but let's all learn to be more courteous and respectful! *Feel free to add to them. 

  1. Err on believing that you are misunderstanding someone versus assuming you have someone all figured out. 
  2. Seek to understand before you want to be understood. In other words, before you go on "the attack" make sure you genuinely understand what  someone is arguing for.
  3. Beware of oversimplifying complex issues.
  4. You cannot fairly critique a position, unless you can faithfully explain it with the best of it's advocates. 
  5. Thou shall not drop opinions if you are not willing to genuinely dialogue about it. 
  6. It's usually better to take the conversation offline. PM's are good, phone is better, face to face is best. 
  7. Remember beliefs are not disconnected from the person but are deeply personal and usually connected to a deeply ingrained worldview. If you really want to help someone, be ready for the long haul! 
  8. Thou shall not read posts quickly or sloppily and then jump to inaccurate conclusions.  
  9. Thou shall not write 10 pages of comments in one shot, absolutely overwhelming the reader and making it impossible to respond. 
  10. Just because someone posts an article, blog, etc. it does not mean they endorse everything listed in it.
  11. Be very slow to rebuke openly or interject an extremely personal opinion to someone you don't even know and added on Facebook 10 years ago. 
  12. Be aware that others are watching and careless and unqualified statements can hurt and alienate people and maybe even skew their view of Jesus. 
All of this takes more time, effort, and love, but it is ultimately worth it. 

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