Over the weekend, Russell M. Nelson, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to which I belong, suggested women in the church take a ten-day “fast” from social media. To be seen in context here:
I invite you to participate in a 10-day fast from social media and from any other media that bring negative and impure thoughts to your mind. Pray to know which influences to remove during your fast. The effect of your 10-day fast may surprise you. What do you notice after taking a break from perspectives of the world that have been wounding your spirit? Is there a change in where you now want to spend your time and energy? Have any of your priorities shifted – even just a little? I urge you to record and follow through with each impression.
Clearly, this isn’t a “social media is bad” moment, but more of an invitation to reflect on how time is used, and how that used time might be inviting negativity.
President Nelson invited youth to participate in a similar fast in April.
It now begs the question: What about the men?
Surely this admonition to avoid negative influences that wound our spirits applies universally. And clearly, taken in the wider context of admonitions and advice given this year both in April and this past weekend, examining how we spend our time and finding better uses for it is a good idea.
I’m considering a fast of my own. Maybe my perception that social media allows me an outlet to speak and joke with others might fade as I spend more time speaking and joking with the real people living in my house with me. You know, wife and children.
Although I have to give social media credit for this: I keep in touch so much better with my siblings through Facebook than I ever have in “real life” or via phone. Maybe that’s a shortcoming I need to conquer; a presence online is pale compared to a presence in person. But an online presence is better than nothing at all.
There are a few things that could be cut out, however:
- Buzzfeed, what with their foul words in the headlines even
- Fark, what with their foul words everywhere
- YouTube -- or at least selective parts of YouTube -- where the scum reside.
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