Showdown: Blogs vs. Facebook

I'm asking for your vote.

In the last 12 hours I have read two different online articles concerning Facebook. The first claimed that Facebook is destroying relationships as we know them, and not only that, but harming our brains. An Oxford University neuroscientist (!!) is cited, provocatively, saying:

"We know how small babies need constant reassurance that they exist. ... My fear is that these technologies are infantilising the brain into the state of small children who are attracted by buzzing noises and bright lights, who have a small attention span and who live for the moment." (read full store here)

A different essay is entitled You Have No Friends: Everyone Else is on Facebook. Why Aren't You? Here we are told to basically get with the program (no pun intended). Like email and cellphones, Facebook has now reached a tipping point and there's no going back. You just gotta use it.

These different opinions correspond roughly to those in the Shomo household. My own, nuanced view is that Facebook is like an atomic bomb that has the potential to destroy civilization as we know it... but this bomb carries a nifty locator device so it can be helpful to find others and to be found. It should be handled carefully lest adulthood and maturity (including mature faith) as we know it vanish from the "face" of the earth, so we might need some PSA's concerning how to properly handle this WMD.

Here's where you come in... I'd like your vote concerning whether you prefer Facebook or blogs. And I'd like your comments regarding why. You can vote off to the right, and you can post comments below (aren't blogs great?).

You see, I like blogs: I can write in paragraphs. I can use punctuation. I can promote reflection and discussion. I can also post pictures of Cullen and stay connected to the family that way. And I like others' blogs, too. I like to know what others are thinking and grappling with. Facebook is nice for a few things (read: I'm not a luddite), especially finding old friends and keeping in touch. In fact, I enjoy this aspect quite well. But ultimately, blogs win in my world.

But will my world remain?

So, what do you think? Is Facebook "the bomb" or is it not? Are blogs better? Did you read this far?

It's About Time

Cheryl felt it was time to post some recent pictures of Cullen. Indeed, it proved to be an excellent time, as today was Cullen's 18 month birthday! Eighteen. Wow, they grow up so fast!

Winter Wonderland

I admit, I'm hesitant to create another weather-related post. Many of our readers are in colder, snowier, icier, more frost-bitten climates, and it comes across as boastful to comment on Virginia definitions of "winter."

However... I thought you would all be entertained by this:

On January 20, the Virginia Beach public schools had a snow day. This was not because there was anything like snow on the ground, but because the previous day the news stations had mentioned the word "snow" several times. And the word "snow" was sometimes coupled with the word "inches." So the schools celebrated a snow day much the way we celebrate Washington's birthday today - kind of like a party when the guest of honor (in this case, snow) could not actually attend.

So today, President's Day, was determined to be a "make up day" for the "snow" day. But today, there was actually snow on the ground! Not much, mind you, but a dusting... and in my neighborhood, some ice as well.

Such is life in Virginia Beach.

There is currently legislation in the House to bus children to Michigan on snow days, to guarantee that these days will be used properly.

Class of '88

This picture was posted on Facebook by a fellow high school student, class of '88. I'm the one that looks like me but younger, skinnier. No, no, more toward the center and then go right...the tall guy with the blue shirt.

Super Bowl Sabbath (Flashback)

Here is a post I created back in February '06, when the Seattle Seahawks met the Pittsburgh Steelers (yes, them again) in Super Bowl XL. And yes, I did have to visit Wikipedia to remember those teams.


“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” Exodus 20:8

“For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” Galatians 5:1

In 1618, King James I of England issued the Declaration of Sports which enumerated which sports may be lawfully played on Sunday. Football was not one of them, but then again American football had not yet been invented. In any case, this declaration ruffled Puritan ministers of the time, who were committed to more strict “Sabbath” observance (recognizing Sunday as the “Christian Sabbath”). This debate blazed for decades, with the Declaration publicly burned by the Parliament in 1643.

Today, American Christians aren’t too worked up about sporting on the Sabbath. Nevertheless, there is an underlying issue that we must each examine: How exactly do we understand Christian freedom—that liberty we enjoy as sons and daughters of God through Jesus Christ? What does it mean to be freed from the rigor of the Old Testament law, and how does this relate in particular to the Ten Commandments (“Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy” is number four)?

Based on Galatians 4, I look at Christian freedom this way: You might tell your 5 year old child, “Don’t touch the stove!” But when he is grown, you allow him full access to the stove. You don’t give him extended freedom so he can burn his hand on the stove or stick his head in the oven, but because you expect him to have the wisdom to use it wisely. Similarly, God our Father gave us rules to follow in the Old Testament when we were “young.” Now that we are “grown,” we are expected to possess a greater maturity so that we can see behind the precise rules to their purpose. We are not expected to abuse our freedom (sticking our head in the oven) but take advantage of it (heat up our own frozen pizza).

How does this relate, then, to the Fourth Commandment in particular? God laid down many rules for Sabbath observance in the Law and the Prophets. For example, you could not pick up sticks on the Sabbath. Now that Jesus has come and the Scriptures are complete, we are expected to see the manifold wisdom of the Fourth Commandment and apply it accordingly. As spiritual grown ups, we should understand our needs for communion with God, fellowship with other believers, and true rest. We should also understand our responsibilities—to Christ’s church and to our families, friends, and neighbors. As we manage these needs and responsibilities, however, we are given freedom. To invite friends over for the Super Bowl, toss around a football with our son, or pick up sticks in the yard is our call; the Law is no longer acting as a referee.

But notice something: We are not to trample on God’s law like rebellious teenagers, but to honor God’s law like responsible young adults. Practically speaking, this means that we really think about how we use our time (or money, or whatever), and think about how we might use our freedom to honor our heavenly Father. God is not so concerned about whether we watch the Super Bowl or pick up sticks, but about the motivation behind these actions.

The Puritans were sometimes puritanical. However, their motivation was to honor God in all areas of life—and this is something we Americans need to learn a lot more about.