I often find myself in transit.
Moving from home to school to work.
Organizing my mind from classwork to paperwork to real work.
Readjusting my perceptions of the world we live in as I learn more.
How does this question play into our roles as "Christian Public Leaders?" If we are the public person being watched and doing the watching, how does this interface with our preaching and teaching?
Most of this transitional time is spent in the car and my newly found best friend-NPR. As I was driving to the gym the other day I encountered a fascinating interview. The person being interviewed was a press correspondent for the President and he made an interesting observation about how smart phones have completely changed the ways people communicate. Now, instead of just the White House Press marking the President's every move, the average person has the opportunity to let their opinions weigh in. He raised the question, "We fear "big brother" watching our every move, but what about "little brother?"(those social media outlets that document a person's life).
It made me think about the WELCA (Women of the ELCA) gathering that I attended last fall. In Phoenix, AZ, I ran into a wonderful woman from my home congregation. We said hello, shared a hug, and she proceeded to introduce me to the person she was with. As she was introducing me, she gave a very accurate, current and detailed account of my life. The side note to this story is that we had not spoken over the phone or in person in over a year. How could she know all of these things? Where was this information coming from? Well, it was certainly not my mother. She acquired her information from Facebook. Because of social media, my own posts as well as friends posts, she was able to introduce me to a complete stranger.
Which leads me to the question, how does "little brother" effect the lives of the public person? As I am training to become a pastor (a very public person), I am learning that my words and actions matter in ways I never dreamed possible. Wearing too high of heels can get a scolding. Posting politically leaning articles on Facebook could alienate some voices. The newspaper will spin quotations out of control (yep, been there!).
Assuming that "little brother" is not going away and will most likely become more intense, how do we grapple with it in a proactive way? How do we keep tabs on the good, the bad, and the ugly that arise from people being able to express any and all opinions? At what points have we lost or enhanced communication?
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