I have to admit I was disappointed in this book by Jesse Rice. I purchased it because the title combined two things I find of great interest – the church and Facebook – and its subtitle, “How the Hyper Connected Are Redefining Community,” was intriguing. I had hoped for some practical tips for those in the Christian community on using social networking, but the book focused more on the negative aspects.
The author digresses at length to tell some interesting stories, such as the invention of the air conditioner, the creation of the Palms Islands of Dubai, and the history of the Hubble telescope, but I found these illustrations too numerous and distracting. He also goes into depth about the creation of Facebook and repeats arguments that have become all too familiar of late: that Facebook relationships are less demanding and authentic than real life relationships and that our hyper-connectivity is leading us to continuous partial attention.
Using the illustration of Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well, Rice gives three “tools in the work of co-creating our Facebook worlds”: intentionality, humility, and authenticity. These tools are important for maintaining any type of relationship, however, and those who employ them in face to face relationships probably carry them over to virtual relationships as well.
I am not disputing the negative aspects of social networking, but these have more to do with the weaknesses of human nature and less to do with technology. People have always found ways to waste time and escape from authentic relationships and responsibilities. We wear fake personas and hide our true selves in person as well as online. In my own experience on Facebook I've found I’ve gotten to know people better and shared more with them than I would have without Facebook.
As I finished reading this book, I read the results of a study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project released on June 16, 2011. People who use Facebook have more close friends, get more social support, and report being more politically engaged than those who aren’t, according to the report. An earlier report by Pew concluded that the Internet is not linked to social isolation but can lead to larger, more diverse social networks. I wish The Church of Facebook had focused more on these aspects of social networking than the negative ones we hear so frequently.
