Lentorama 2016: #Lent

Day 9: Mixed messages

These appeared in order in my most recent search for Lenten tweets:

Consider a digital fast this #Lent and exchange some screen time for prayer time. He is eager to listen to you and speak to your heart!

— Bishop Paul Loverde (@Bishop_Loverde) February 18, 2016

 

Listen to the free podcast of Reflections for #Lent. https://t.co/H89p6bk0Jw pic.twitter.com/0kXxNZbPiH

— Ch House Publishing (@CHPublishingUK) February 18, 2016

Which led me to think about the number of people who give up social medial for Lent. I can say anecdotally this is a growing thing, as it seems like I've seen more mention of it this year than last. Based on this article about Google's research into what people are giving up, there are four states where some form of social media topped the list.

I can see why this would be a popular choice - social media is time consuming (says the guy on his blog) and can be relentlessly negative. Taking some time away would give a person a chance to clear their minds and focus on the season. On the other hand, I did see one tweet (right when I started to think about this year's theme, which I forgot to save/bookmark/do whatever you do in Twitter to save posts) which wondered if Lent was the right time to abandon relationships, even digital ones, when they can be so supportive.

For me, I tend towards the latter camp (says the guy on his blog).  It's not that I don't think that giving up social media isn't worthy of Lent, as I do think it would provide a tangible loss (if not an actual physical sacrifice). But like many people I use social media to keep in touch with friends and family, and while I could do something crazy like actually call or write, I think the value of more frequent, less formal contact outweighs what good I could get from giving it up. But as they say online, YMMV (does anyone actually say that anymore?).