FACEBOOK AND CHRISTIANMANIPULATIONI suppose I’m not the first person to get angryat certain things I’ve seen and read on socialnetworks, but there comes a time whensomeone has to say something to wake peopleup and to call them back to their senses.Over these past few days my heart has beentroubled by a vast wave of emotionalmanipu lation occurring on Facebook thatpasses itself off as Christianity. I have in mymind two specific and concrete examples. Letme share them with you.1 .- One like, one prayer, etc.Last week I witnessed one of the mostblasphemous pieces of ‘spiritual propaganda’that I had ever come across online. It left meshell shocked. I still haven’t recovered from it.The photo was a forty-something year oldArabic looking man- as thin as a pole- lyingdown on a hospital bed connected to a vastarray of transparent blue tubes. He lookedhelplessly into the eyes of camera and theheadline on the image went something likethis: “This man is extremely ill. But for every‘like’ this photo gets, we will offer up a prayerfor him.” In other words, one prayer- one like;two prayers- two likes; three prayers- threelikes, etc. I could scarcely believe what myeyes were seeing.Firstly, what on earth was someone doing witha camera at the bedside of such a sick man? Secondly, why would it ever occur to him (orher) to upload such a photo on a publicwebpage? Thirdly, what was going through theimmoral mind of the editor when he (or she)wrote “one like- one prayer”? How degrading!How sickening! How could we ever seek tomake merchandise out of weak and sicklypeople? Who gave us permission to act sodevilish? Is not such stomach-churnin gdecadence beyond belief? And just to think thatthe person in question had the ‘guts’ to passhimself (or herself) off as a Christian verges onthe blasphemous. It was a brute denial of thegrace of God. After all, what do we pray for?Do we pray because we get ‘likes’ on Facebookor do we pray because the Spirit of God stirsus to mercy and compassion to seek thewelfare of those that are worse off than us? Atany rate, if we pray motivated by our ‘like’rate, I very much doubt that the God oftransparency will have any interest in our vainbabbling. The photo was a putrid disgrace andsheer emotional manipulation. I don’t knowhow the pagan who uploaded that photo cansleep at night. He (or she) would have to bevoid of a moral conscience.2 .- If you love God, you will share this photo;if you’re ashamed of Him, you won’tAnother typical ‘Christian’ Facebook message(which is getting increasingly more common astime goes by) is the catchphrase that goesmore or less like the following: “If you loveGod, you will share this photo; if you’reashamed of Him, you won’t.” It tends to haveseveral variations that transmit the samemanipulative message i.e. you can’t possiblylove God if you don’t share every Gospel imageyou encounter online.Once again, it is the old school of rancidemotional manipulation. The vermin that sharethese comments know nothing of the freegrace of God. The early church fought until itwas blue in the face to stress that salvation wasof the Lord alone. His love and redemptionwere received in Christ alone. God’s blessingdoesn’t come upon us because we sharephotos on social networks or click ‘like’ onstatus updates that require us to do so lest welose our salvation. God’s favour is upon us forJesus’ sake. Full stop! Period! End of sentence!ConclusionThe problem- as always- with these type ofmessages is that well-meaning and weakerbrethren fall into unnecessary guilt complexesbecause they feel obliged to comply with whatthese ‘holy looking’ messages ask of them. It isa modern-day system of indulgences wherebywe seek to earn favour with God by our carnalefforts.T hese type of messages fall under thecondemnation of the God of the Gospel. Theyare distortions of the grace of Christ. Each oneof these messages is a false prophecy. So steerclear of them, saints. See them for what theyreally are. There is nothing remotely spiritualor Christian about them.
Posted on: Thu, 03 Jul 2014 23:31:32 +0000
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