Social Networking for Missionaries?

Should LDS missionaries be on the online social networks?

A few missionaries from the New York, Rochester mission have been approved to set up Facebook accounts for a pilot program. The photo shows some of their Facebook profiles.

In the spirit of my last post, calling into question why missionaries might blog, I'd like to think through why they might participate on Facebook or any other of the social networks now available.

I have some of the same concerns I expressed with blogging. Is this really the best use of a missionary's time? Doesn't this risk reconnecting missionaries with the world they left behind at the expense of keeping their focus on where they are called and their proselyting purposes?

I want to be an advocate for missionaries doing social networking. But first, how could it go wrong?

Distraction
Employers, parents, and others are justifiably worried about the enormous time sink that social networking has become, and especially Facebook. It can really kill productivity. As a professor, I have had my students use Facebook as part of my English courses. This has generally been successful, but my students have sometimes complained that they go to do their homework assignment on our class Facebook page and they end up getting distracted by the games, updates, and media so readily accessible and coming in through the content streams of their friends.

Missionaries consecrate not just their time, but their attention to the cause of spreading God's word for 18 months or two years. Would social networking not undermine this? Missionary work is a kind of fasting from secular life that helps missionaries clear their heads, get their priorities straight, and get real about their core values, the importance of work, and the importance of relating to people in the most authentic kinds of ways. As a parent of teenagers, I find I am constantly battling the electronics that absorb their attention. My wife and I plan getaways where no computers or cell phones are allowed so that our family time won't be interrupted or threatened by the always-on, always-interrupting world of media. I have a son on a mission in Mexico right now. I'm very pleased that he is not on the computer except very briefly to give us his short email message each week. The young missionaries who serve in the field today are in the demographic that is most threatened to be lost among today's digital distractions. This is certainly why Elder Bednar directed his sober cautions about the online world to the young people within the church educational system ("Things as They Really Are" CES Fireside for Young Adults, May 3, 2009). This is dangerous stuff.

Bad Connections
Social networks are all about connecting people, learning about their lives through updates and media streams, and interacting with those people. People tend to amass friends and followers on Facebook and related services indiscriminately. There are plenty of scare stories about thieves, stalkers, and criminals exploiting the easy connections on social networks in order to cause harm. A well-meaning missionary might friend investigators, only to discover these were not authentic investigators but people intending harm.

Another kind of bad connection may be with those who only mean well for the missionaries, such as friends and family from home. It doesn't take long to imagine that a missionary spending time on Facebook could become deeply homesick, or try to pursue a romantic relationship with a friend from home. My oldest son is getting married soon and his brother on a mission in Mexico will not be returning for the wedding. My parents stayed in the field even when my father's mother died. This is part of the sacrifice of missionary work: we leave home behind. Social networking could break down the walls that keep a missionary consecrated to the cause.

Bad Media
Advertisements constantly appear on Facebook, not all of which are modest, and if missionaries begin to exchange photos with friends (particularly friends who are not members of the Church), they are likely to be introduced to aspects of others' lives that might be a problem. As a missionary I declined invitations to attend parties, but on Facebook people love to post invitations and photos of all the fun they are having in life -- whether or not that fun fits within Mormon standards. Frankly, I'm a bit surprised at how readily my strong LDS friends and students post photos or videos that show they haven't really thought through their audiences online.

Potential Benefits
Let's say that it is possible to address all of the concerns above -- and I do think that's possible. If missionaries had clear time limits for their online activities, and especially if they worked as companionships and also had some oversight from leadership, I think the negatives could be handled. But are there enough positives? Just what is to be gained from being on a social network as a set apart missionary?

Being Personal. Well, one of the keys to success in missionary work is being appropriately personal. This has now become a central part of LDS public relations with the new Mormon.org campaign and its emphasis on the lives of members. A profile on Facebook could help to humanize missionaries and could help potential investigators see the missionary's life as a testament of his or her values. But how will they find these missionary profiles, and what would be the nature of the interaction with missionaries online?

Creating Connections Among People. Missionaries can, of course, invite church members, recent converts, current investigators, and potential investigators to be their friends on Facebook. This could have the benefit of creating connections among the missionary's connections -- the "friend of a friend" effect. If missionaries have friended local ward members, this could be a way of getting investigators to relate with ward friends early and extend the important socializing process beyond jus church meetings.

Emphasizing Family. Missionaries are encouraged to talk about their families while they serve. It could happen that an investigator, seeing the missionary's family members or family life represented through Facebook updates and media, would recognize the impact of the gospel on more people's lives more dramatically. And imagine an investigator starting up a conversation with the parent of a missionary. It could involve members at home more directly in supporting the missionary work. It would thrill me to be able to create constructive relationships with and bear testimony to people in Mexico that my son is meeting right now.

Events. Facebook is a place where people can post events and invite their friends to these. Whether it is the Hill Cumorah Pageant, a local cottage meeting, a picnic, or worship services, missionaries could invite members and investigators to these via Facebook.

Engaging People Through Updates. The updates that are the bread and butter of Facebook can of course be distracting, but they can also very constructively engage a missionary in the lives of his or her investigators (and vice versa). Imagine an investigator posting about having a disappointing day, and a missionary noticing and showing concern. Recently one of my sons was injured seriously on a scouting trip. In the ambulance on the way to the hospital I posted onto Facebook what had happened. The quick outpouring of concern from our many friends who saw the status update was a profound testimony to me of genuine love and concern. And people kept checking in throughout my son's convalescence. It really helped! Missionaries can be there for others in the same way. And of course, if missionaries are posting updates about their own activities regularly, they can increase interest among investigators both in the missionaries (as remarkable people) and in how the gospel is so central to their happiness.

Online Teaching. This is one I'm not sure that the current field missionaries have considered. Right now, there are full time missionaries who do nothing but find and teach people online through chat. These are the Elders and Sisters who respond when someone clicks on the "Chat with a Mormon" link on Mormon.org. These missionaries have been extremely successful in teaching people over the Internet (and by phone) -- far beyond initial expectations. It turns out that many people feel more comfortable discussing serious matters of the soul in this medium. Through Facebook or other social networks, field missionaries can talk about, coordinate with, and send investigators to these online missionaries. This will be critical, in fact, when we start seeing the phenomenon of missionaries attracting investigators who are not in their geographical area. The online missionaries always coordinate with the local missionaries and church units wherever these are, while keeping continuity with investigators as they move toward baptism.

Distance Investigators & Missionary Coordination. Right now missionary work has been conceptualized according to the geographical boundaries of each distinct mission. But the Internet cuts across those boundaries. Effectively, every missionary that goes online can become a missionary to the entire world. For example, let's say one of those Rochester missionaries friends someone from the local area who is from faraway India. Before you know it, the missionary in New York could become friends with those people from India, teaching those people or preparing them to be taught. Facebook could then become one way (among several) through which missionaries of differing missions could coordinate. We have yet to contemplate the powerful networking effects that could happen when thousands of missionaries are opened to making connections across hundreds of missions. Could there be territorialism and conflicts? Maybe. But because missionaries share the common purpose of bringing people to Christ, they will work it out. I have already witnessed this among the online missionaries who work at the MTC. They work seamlessly with the field missionaries. Investigators draw strength and are taught both from those who are geographically near and those who are digitally near.

Greater Member Involvement. As missionaries develop connections with investigators through social networks, they will also be able to make connections with members -- not just local members, or members from back home, but members who have identified themselves as being willing to talk openly about their faith, such as those who are posting profiles on Mormon.org. The Internet is making it possible to find members who have things in common with investigators even though they might live far apart. A person of African heritage might be investigating the Church in North Dakota, wondering what it would be like to be black in a church that seems pretty white, at least where he lives. Well, the local missionary could help that person find other black church members and read about their experiences (by following this link, which brings up those self-identified as African-American on Mormon.org). Members like Michael Morris or Dewain Clark (both black) have made their Facebook addresses public on their Mormon.org profiles. I'm guessing they would be happy to make friends with that fictional investigator from North Dakota. This suggests a new role for field missionaries allowed to do online social networking -- brokering church contacts. It may be as important for a local investigator to connect with that distant Mormon with whom he shares things as it is that he come to know and appreciate the local ward or branch members.

It's all about the people, and Mormons are very good at seeing to the needs of people and connecting with them positively. It happens in all of our local units, and it can happen online.