What's a friend worth?

Earlier this week Facebook filed for a $5 billion IPO. That's a lot of money, but Facebook and its money people believe there's a boat load of money - multiples of $5 billion to be exact - to be made through social media. Given the number of people who use Facebook and the time spent there, I suspect they're right. Like hundreds of millions of others, I've got an FB account. It's been a nice way to stay in touch with some old friends who live far away. It's also been useful to me in my ministry. But something about this week's IPO has me on edge.

Relationships are fundamental to who we are as humans; for Christians, relationship is at the heart of the Trinity. Facebook, and the web in general, are supposed to help us come together yet all too often they do the opposite. Who amongst us hasn't experienced all the glories of passive aggression via Email? On social media sites, people can and do post comments they'd never share face to face. And, back to email, at least as a point of departure, gossip in the digital age has assumed a dynamic unimaginable in the past - who needs a telephone tree when you can blast the latest dish or rumor to fifty, 100, 1000 people?

I won't claim to be saying anything revelatory here, but I will confess that I'm bothered, and in a way that I haven't been before. Don't be surprised if you read more on this from me. In the meantime, I think I'll go talk to someone.

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