Yes is the new Maybe

A Post by Ben Gooley


Two team members arrived at our meeting with a pizza in each hand. I asked where the food came from and they explained that the event they’d just come from had unwisely catered based on the number of Facebook RSVPs.
 
“But, you know, ‘yes’ is the new ‘maybe’ and ‘maybe’ is the new ‘no’, so we all ate and there was still a whole pizza left over for each person who actually came.”

To what extent is this shift a reality, and what are we to make of the shift in meaning for the RSVP?

Late last year, Henry Alford mused on the issue in The New York Times: How the Internet has Changed the R.S.V.P., in a piece that was careful to scatter blame liberally but only lightly. Alford acknowledged the reality of the shift, and its unfortunate nature, but largely saw it as an inevitable consequence of the transition to the ease of the electronic medium for invitations.  Facebook itself has perhaps recognised the problem, now using ‘join’ for those wanting to indicate a positive response to an event invitation. Christians are far from immune from this societal drift. 

What might a Christian response be? Jesus told his disciples

“Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.” (Matt 5:37 ESV). 

James expands slightly on this when he writes

“But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your ‘yes’ be yes and your ‘no’ be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.” (James 5:12 ESV)

That seems pretty straightforward, except that I suspect many of those who use ‘yes’ to mean ‘maybe’ and ‘maybe’ to mean ‘no’, do so in an attempt to be gracious to those inviting them.  Rather than appear negative by actively and publically declining an event without their reason being clear, indicating ‘maybe’ offers a way to try to show some level of support without committing to actually making the event.  This is a potentially fraught approach, but does offer some scope for giving a public response which can be followed up privately with more detail.

Similarly, joining a large, anonymous event without actually following through by attendance may not have particular negative relational consequences and is perhaps justifiable in certain contexts.  However, responding ‘yes’, or joining an event for which your response has relational and planning implications for the event organiser, but then not attending, seems to be a fundamental breach of trust.  This would appear to fall foul of the principle behind the texts above.

The Christian should be one whose word can be trusted, and whose pledge is solid.  Christians are those who have staked their life on the promises of the One they deem faithful and so godliness is reflected in their own faithfulness to their commitments.  While there will remain times when circumstances overtake a genuine commitment – illness and honest misadventure – the Christian showing the fruit of the Spirit will exhibit faithfulness among their works (Gal 5:22).

There may be legitimate contexts in which ‘maybe’ can be used in place of ‘decline’ and where ‘join’ can be used in place of ‘maybe’.  But the Christian ought to take care that their integrity is maintained.  Paul’s words to Titus still ring true:

“Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us.” (Titus 2:7-8 ESV).

Media Matters

The latest edition of Case magazine is set to arrive in mailboxes this week. Our topic is 'Media Matters'.  Why? Because the media we engage with impacts what we do and what we think. It affects how we communicate and who we communicate with. In our varied contributions we reflect on how media is changing the world, and the impact—both good and bad—of those changes.

The first article is by Dr Jenny Taylor of Lapido Media, who discusses the ‘religion taboo’ within the news media. News stories are frequently written by journalists with little understanding of the religious issues involved, and some ignore religious factors altogether. Taylor looks at why this is, how it is changing, and what Christians can do to overcome religious blindspots.

The focus then moves to digital technologies—the new media. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, and the like. There is little doubt that digital media has changed the way we communicate. It has enabled the establishment of new forms of virtual communities. It has given voice to millions who would previously have found it difficult to share their thoughts and ideas. We see YouTube videos ‘going viral’ as funny, profound, and sometimes even banal images of life spread across the globe in hours. We observe music and books being self-published and promoted in ways that would never have been possible in the past. Individuals and groups like change.org use social media to influence public opinion and to lobby governments. And we have vast virtual stores of information, knowledge and images available globally from desktops and via varied media.

Yes media matters, and how it is used also matters. But there is a tension that has arisen as a result of the massive shift towards digital technology in the last five to ten years. Does this shift serve to enhance social engagement, or do the manufactured personae we inhabit online in fact undermine genuine relationship? Does it facilitate social activism, or an illusion that deceives us and others into thinking we care? Is the removal of constraints that embed us in ‘real’ social and moral contexts liberating or isolating? Do the dangers of being consumed by technology addiction and idolatry mean that Christians should avoid getting too involved, or is the greater danger that of becoming obsolete in a world that has moved on? These are some of the questions we need to consider.

Julia Bollen addresses the reality of the pervasive forms of media that are ‘always on’, and what’s more, ‘always-on-us’. She asks us to think about the impact of the extensive use of new social media, and argues that the Bible places a special importance on face-to-face relationships and our ordained nature as embodied communicators. Looking at a different aspect of social media, Justine Toh exposes the emptiness of its role as a,

‘court of public opinion where we crowdsource notions of justice, right, and what are acceptable or unacceptable views’. 

In her view it is simply an aggregate of individual free choices, isolated from any context against which good choices can be made.

Scott Stephens (well-known ABC media presenter and writer) offers an insightful critique of the art and assumptions of Thomas Hirschhorn. Hirschhorn claims that his art, consisting largely of disturbing images of human carnage resulting from war and trauma, is an attempt to remove the artist-as-mediator to allow the viewer to genuinely engage with a reality usually censored by mainstream media channels. Stephens seeks to turn Hirschhorn’s argument on its head by revealing that his presentation of reality comes with its own form of mediation. In counterpoint, Stephens considers the transformative power of the often gruesome religious images of Christ and martyrs, which, he suggests, have an integrity and connection to deep truths absent from the work of artists like Hirschhorn.

In a short essay and interview, David May highlights the potential digital media has for the church in building up believers and reaching non-believers. The practical essay argues that as Christians we,

‘are privileged to communicate the greatest message of all, so it's worth embracing technology and media for the sake of the gospel’. 

In a brief interview David also explains how he has implemented some of these ideas in his capacity as communications director with his church.

Finally, this issue also includes a fascinating exploration by New College staff member Jonathan Billingham, who considers archetypal narratives and how they can be used by Christian artists. He illustrates his brief essay with his composition, 'Servitude'. A final segment—‘On holiday with C.S. Lewis’—is a collection of short reviews and reflections on the life and work of C.S. Lewis, testament to his ongoing influence on Christians today.

If you are not a subscriber to Case you can always read one or two articles free online from our website or you might sign up to receive your own quarterly edition in paper or digital form for as little as $20 per year. Subscribe HERE.

The more things change…

A post by Dr John Quinn

Image from Wikipedia Commons

Shortly after being elected Anglican Archbishop of Sydney in 2001, Dr Peter Jensen found himself embroiled in a stoush with the then Prime Minister John Howard over the issues of aboriginal reconciliation and the treatment of asylum seekers.  Twelve years later and the newly elected Anglican Archbishop of Sydney, Dr Glenn Davies, has also called for more humane treatment of asylum seekers.  Has nothing really changed in the last 12 years?

Image courtesy of google images

The 24 hour news cycle, with its insatiable hunger for new stories, creates the impression of a fast paced world where issues move rapidly and circumstances change constantly. You can tune into news around the clock, through ABC News 24, the BBC, CNN, Al Jazeera or any number of other media outlets.  News websites are constantly being updated with new material.  Live blogs cover the day’s goings on in Parliament or on the campaign trail.  Political parties and businesses engage communication consultants and PR executives to monitor the perception of their image. The treatment of any issue is necessarily superficial to keep up with the frenetic pace of the news cycle, and the image projected or the “spin” is where the real game seems to lie.  Any in-depth research on a policy question is practically “out of date” before it enters the public domain.  One has to wonder whether this is serving us at all well. 

Even though we have greater and faster access to information than ever before, the pace of genuine progress on any given issue does not seem to have increased. Aboriginal reconciliation and asylum seeker policy are two great examples, but there are plenty of others.  Whether the issue pertains to cost of living, housing affordability, work/life balance, mental health services, aged care facilities or environmental sustainability, it feels like we have had the conversation a thousand times over. And we usually have. 

Many Christians have embraced the digital revolution, blogging constantly and tweeting incessantly. Christian organisations invest an increasing amount of time and effort into online and social media resources (the irony of posting this on a blog is not lost!). Certainly we need to meet the world where it is at, having a presence in the digital realm is the being “all things to all men” of our generation (1 Cor 9:19-23).  At the same time, the writer of Ecclesiastes ought to give us pause for thought:

What has been will be again,

    what has been done will be done again;

    there is nothing new under the sun.

10 Is there anything of which one can say,

    “Look! This is something new”?

It was here already, long ago;

    it was here before our time.

11 No one remembers the former generations,

    and even those yet to come

will not be remembered

    by those who follow them.

The tools of digital and social media bring the constant temptation to be saying something new. In many cases the same thing was said a metaphorical five minutes ago, and the repetition changes little. Yet in the word of God we find what the world truly needs to hear. And it is the same today as it was yesterday and will be tomorrow.