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SALT LAKE CITY -- While many religions are embracing the social media, leaders of some churches around the country are warning their congregants against sites like Facebook and Twitter.
Some suggest church-goers shut down their social media sites or limit the way they are used.
For example, The Chicago Tribune reports a parish in Chicago strongly recommending that families avoid using social network sites over concerns for youth in particular. Parish leaders cited privacy concerns, saying "pictures, actions, and thoughts are shared instantly, globally and permanently," and listed four potential dangers: dishonesty, predators, wasting time, and denying reality.
KSL spoke with Laurel Christensen, general manager of Time Out for Women, about the issue in general. She says like it or not, most people are using social media.
"If you start to set limits on social media and what you're willing to do in that realm, you're basically making a decision that you're not going to talk to a huge percentage of people you could be getting your message to," she said.
She believes if church leaders want to reach more people, social media is the arena in which to find them. A study released in January by LifeWay Research indicated nearly half of Protestant churches use Facebook.
"The value of social media is so critical," said Christensen, "because you have to be able to talk to people where they are."
Christensen also says church leaders have the right and responsibility to protect their privacy on sites like Facebook or Twitter. However, she also says it's pretty difficult these days to maintain an adequate level of privacy on these sites because so much is already out in the open.
Earlier this year, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops issued social media guidelines. In a message for the Catholic Church's World Communications Day, to be celebrated on June 5, 2011, Pope Benedict XVI supported the use of online social networks, saying they provide a great opportunity. He also strongly cautioned against the dangers of superficial relationships.
Written by Nkoyo Iyamba with contributions from Linda Williams.
