At the end of last week I was suspended from Facebook – for the second time! I only joined so that I could watch the live-stream of the Sunday morning service. This morning I appealed. Having given them some details, I received an apology and was re-instated .
Apparently I had transgressed “community values”. Not sure how. That set me wondering who sets these values – or are they rules? We’ve seen the rules change, of course. People banned for inflammatory speech and then allowed back again.
I started to wonder about where most people get their values from in the first place. Particularly young people. Family, yes, friends, mates, teachers even, but what about Social Media – X and the rest, not to mention the so-called “influencers” who get paid to tell people what is “in” and what is “out”?
Then there are the “disruptors”, suggesting through their podcasts and social media an alternative truth. Some of them attaining a guru like status. Even traditional Christian family values are pressed into service by politicians seeking power. Whether practised or not.
All this is not new. Jesus warned us to be wary of false prophets. The Old Testament prophet Micah spoke out when he saw values being distorted. Of the houses of Jacob and Israel he said, “their heads give judgements for a bribe, its priests teach for hire, its prophets divine for money.” He also predicted it would lead to disaster. In their case it did.
Chris Dawson