Pictures, Poetry and Parables

In his 2012 book ‘Viral’ (How Social Networking is Poised to Ignite Revival) Leonard Sweet challenges those of us who have been more used to learning from books, communicating by landline, using libraries and watching TV as its broadcast. He draws distinction between ‘Two tribes’

The Guttenburgers – named after the founder of printing. Whilst recognising the enormous societal change brought about by the invention of printing in the 1400s, he suggests that many in today’s church still inhabit mind-sets that are mechanistic, responsive, physical, linear and hard-wired.

Googlers, on the other hand use internet, mobile technology, social media etc to gather information, make connections, create news and form relationships.

Guttenburgers must learn from Googlers:

Christians must learn about connecting with others from the experts – those who can’t seem to stop texting, IM (Instant message)ing, tweeting and updating their status on Facebook. What would happen if Christians devoted less attention to strategy and paid more attention to pursuing relationships? (24)

The book makes two pleas: first for those who feel that social media, internet etc. culture has passed them by to take this revolution seriously; second to consider how the use of new forms of media can provide opportunities for mission and connection with those for whom this approach to communication is de rigour.

So in relation to my theme:

PICTURES

Sweet refers to Googlers as the TGIF generation. Twitter, Google, IPhone and Facebook.

Many of these media use words. However, I was interested to read in Guardian on 24^th September that Instagram has overtaken Twitter in terms if world wise users. There are now 400 million Instagram users who post thousands upon thousands of pictures to describe their opinions, activities and lives. Pictures are becoming the new means of communication. This is in just three years since Sweet’s book was written!

POETRY

In his section on Google Sweet goes off at something of a tangent to promote the cause of poetry. It might be tangential to his central argument but is nevertheless helpful to mine! He draws parallels between the greatest poets and some of today’s songwriters:

If you enjoy music you enjoy poetry (119)

Quoting Eugene Peterson he appeals to those who lead churches to:

Treat words with reverence, stand in awe not only before the Word but words, and realise that language itself partakes of the sacred (119)

Poetry can shed light, challenge, introduce shade, touch the emotions and leave space for interaction in ways that prose or narrative often cannot.

It is not without reason that so much of the Bible is written in poetry. Contemporary songs also connect with the sacred, the spiritual in a way that other media messages cannot. As we abbreviate more and communicate less formally perhaps lyrics have an ever –increasing part to play in drawing attention to what’s really going on in people’s lives and heads?

PARABLES

Sweet suggest that Jesus would have easily adapted to the TGIF world and I think also to the use of pictures. After all that’s what parables are about – bringing eternal truths through pictures of daily life. Jesus surely was the master at working within the popular culture of his day to make his point!

Sweet points to two parables to illustrate this:

The parable of the mustard seed. This is an annoying wed which once it starts growing, is almost impossible to stop. It harbours all sorts of pests within its leaves. A bit like Japanese knotweed. That’s what the kingdom of heaven is like – a sprawling, growing, pervasive network that harbours all sorts of life, including the flotsam and jetsam of society!

Then there’s the leaven – a small amount of wheat germ which when exposed to the right conditions grows and grows and becomes the central and essential ingredient to life-sustaining food.

The imagery of connectedness in the body is also updated in the network connectivity and relationship forming that exits within social media.

The book is called Viral for a good reason; viruses and experienced in the cyber and natural worlds are normally considered negative influences but the idea of infectious faith is central to the future for Christianity:

The Jesus movement began virally and viral was the Jesus way of living. Like any life-beginning and life-affirming process, the Jesus movement revives itself again and again with a period of first incubation, then relationality, replication and a bursting forth of multiplication that cannot be contained. (189)

The potential for the church is nothing less than revival through the TGIF generation, making use of social media to spread the word:

Christ is alive and moving in all generations and cultures, whether or not our immune systems can handle a new breakthrough. (191)

The Big Question for Guttenburgers is whether or not they will be part of this breakthrough?

I might add and if so how? It’s tempting to say that new forms of church which are for and by TGIF people are the way forward - but can we whose teeth are longer (and hair greyer)  consider how we might  use social media to enhance our understanding of the world in which we are living, God’s world.