A New Realm of Social Media
When Facebook debuted in 2004 from a dorm room at Harvard, the world didn’t have any idea what the social media platform might become. Social media itself was still in its infancy, relegated to corners of the internet and certain affinity groups. But today, Facebook is preparing to enter an entirely new realm of its social media dominion—it’s called the metaverse.
Though Facebook has had a rough few years being accused, and even found guilty, of perpetuating misinformation on its platform and using its power to harm rather than help its users, the social media giant still holds significant power in the lives of millions of people across the globe. With the launch of Meta (it’s new name) and the announcement of the coming metaverse, we find ourselves once again on the edge of a developing technology that is certain to dramatically impact our lives and experience of the world. 
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In this thought-provoking article on The Gospel Coalition, Ian Harbor and Patrick Miller anticipate how the metaverse will change how we think about ourselves, the church, and God. The article points to numerous virtual or augmented reality tv shows, games, technology, and experiences that are already being used today, and imagines them magnified. Harbor and Miller argue that our metaverse future will lead to several predictable trends that Christians and Christian leaders must begin to think about and prepare for now.
The ability for humans to recreate themselves and construct an alternate reality that we desire will lead to even more identity crises. Christians will need to fight for the goodness of physical creation in a more and more disembodied world. In a virtual world that is limitless, we will need to accept and treasure the limits that God has placed upon us in his goodness—and the list goes on.
Chrisitan Union aims to teach college students, professionals in major cities, and all believers about the goodness of God’s creation and the calling he has placed on us to be stewards of the good news of Jesus. In a world that continues to search for meaning, identity, truth, and a sense of belonging, only Christians can say they have found the words of life—the very meaning of life itself. Through its three ministries, Christian Union is developing Christian leaders to be at the forefront of shaping a culture that desperately needs to be reformed into the image of Christ.
Read the full article here.
