On the first weekend in June, President Nelson held a youth worldwide devotional. Highlights were tweeted as follows:
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Disengage from a constant reliance on social media by holding a seven-day fast from social media.
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For three weeks, give up something you like to do and use that time to help gather Israel.
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Do a thorough life assessment with the Lord, and perhaps with your parents and your bishop.
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Pray daily that all of God’s children might receive the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
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Stand out and be different from the world.
Of course, since all the LDS Youth were on a social media fast, none of them saw the tweet. Just a little joke, one several others were making on Twitter:
And another.
But this wasn’t just another old codger knocking these darn kids and their new trends:
Or as another Tweeter put it:
First of all, this kind of devotional is something that we haven’t had for a long time because we’ve had a mostly incapacitated Church President for a while. Also, President Nelson included his wife in the devotional, which feels like a first. Let’s drill down a bit into the five bits of advice for the youth to see what’s going on here.
Disengage from a constant reliance on social media by holding a seven-day fast from social media.
This is an interesting one. On the one hand, there are several great reasons to do this, and it sounds like President Nelson understands it better than some of my fellow ward members who think all social media is evil and will bring the downfall of human civilization. [1] Here are a few reasons I can easily list:
- Social media can be, particularly for youth, very competitive in nature and lead to a falsely undermined self-confidence. There’s a lot of social anxiety that coincides with the use of social media. This appears to be the main reason for the recommendation.
- How is anyone supposed to endure an 18 or 24 month mission without social media? This can be good practice.
- Fasting practices, like Lent, in which people give up something they use without thinking and experience life without it are inherently spiritually valuable exercises.
- When I think about how boring our lives were back in the 80s before cell phones, when we were all ignoramuses because we didn’t carry the entire world of knowledge in our pocket, and when we had to watch TV shows without playing games on our phones, I realize that OK maybe we are just a little too digital these days. My kids (who also think climbing trees is dangerous) have never experienced that world.
For three weeks, give up something you like to do and use that time to help gather Israel.
OK, so that’s a long time, but again, like the Lent idea, it’s a good spiritual practice. Repurposing that time to do something else is an interesting idea, although it probably depends what you are giving up how much time that will give you. My first thought was “what do they mean by help gather Israel” because I always think of the Jews, like they are lost somewhere, and we are herding them like cats. It’s such a Biblical euphemism. Which reminds me of one of my favorite Mormon stories:
I’m not a fan of all this euphemistic referring to ourselves as the House of Israel, but there was a clarification.
Here’s another use of the “Israel” concept:
LOLWUT?! I’m starting to think I know who’s trying to make this phrase the Next Big Thing.
Let’s move on to the next one.
Do a thorough life assessment with the Lord, and perhaps with your parents and your bishop.
Here’s another one that seems incredibly broad, but there was clarification given that this was about where you are on “the covenant path.” That’s a phrasing that sounds like it was lifted out of an Evangelical preacher’s mouth if ever I heard one. No shocker than in our increasingly right-wing church we’ve been adopting the phrases of our worst critics who happen to vote similarly to the majority of Mormons. If they try to start Purity Balls for the YW, I’m outta here. But I suppose it’s just another euphemistic phrase.[3] What they mean is progressing through the Mormon Milestones: baptism, temple, mission, marriage, kids, death, creating your own worlds, etc. They’ve thrown the bishop into the mix in case you have anything you might want to *cough* confess.
Pray daily that all of God’s children might receive the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Hmmm, I’m starting to think this woman’s tweet was right!
Stand out and be different from the world.
Well, that should be easy enough if our youth exit social media. As they well know, they will miss seven days of connection, inside jokes, who’s dating whom, what shows everyone is binge watching, etc. But that could be a good thing.
The only other thing I noted that was interesting about the Youth Devotional was the suggestion that YM and YW hand out the FTSOY pamphlets to their friends. Wow, someone has a whole lot of confidence in that little booklet. [2] That will for sure help Mormon kids stand out. Way out.
A(n adult) friend of mine did the 7 day social media fast and reported back on her findings:
After seven days away from Facebook, I can tell you with clarity why I am here and what this experience isn’t for me:
– I am here to see the important events in your lives. I care to know if you had a surgery, a child’s mission call or graduation, or birthday.
– I am here to have occasional deep discussions. I love to hear your thoughts about meaningful issues.
– I don’t care about videos, shared links, or “hot button topics.” Didn’t miss them at all. I also didn’t miss ads.
What did you think of the Youth Devotional?
- Will the youth take up these challenges?
- Are these good challenges for the youth?
- Are you going to try it? Do you think it’s valuable for adults? More or less than for youth?
Discuss.
[1] One woman ranted that Facebook was terrible because people could post whatever they wanted anonymously. I pointed out that, no, your face is attached to what you post–it’s literally called Facebook! It’s not anonymous!
[3] Ugh. I already heard it used repeatedly this week at church. Gross.
I liked your take on this. I appreciate what Pres. Nelson is trying to do here, which is to unite the youth and give them something to sacrifice and be excited about. I think these are good challenges for the youth and I applaud the effort. I have not heard much about the end results. A few of my thoughts on this: 1. Much of the Christian world does something very similar at Lent, why not do this then and have something to unite us with other Christians? (Christians that we should unite with, not the Evangelicals who we keep trying to befriend and they hate our guts) 2. I think it’s good to examine our priorities and give up pleasures for a limited time, but I really don’t like the martyr mentality that so many people in Mormonism wear as a badge of honor. People love to share stories about how they gave up their favorite hobby and spent that time serving in the temple or doing family history, etc. While I recognize that it can be a meaningful sacrifice for people, it sometimes comes across as sacrificing all individuality for the institution, which can be unhealthy. 3. I am not a big fan of the “covenant path” concept, but I think I may just have to endure during the Pres. Nelson administration. I just listened to Rob Bell’s “What is the Bible? ” and love his stuff on covenants. The whole point of the Abraham covenant story and covenants in the Bible is the idea that God is the one acting on the covenant and that it’s done out of love, it’s not a contract. I think we phrase it in such legalistic terms “you need to fulfill your duties under the covenant or you will be found in material breach and God will withdraw his love and blessings.” This is what creates and perpetuates the obedience culture that has some unhealthy side effects. I did not do any of the challenges, but may in the future. I feel like I had enough “goals” and “challenges” (that were not really my decision) on my mission to last a lifetime.
The advice that President Nelson gave was generally good, non denominational advice for youth in my opinion. Less social media, more real conections, evaluate the path you’re on, think about others, and stand out (any college counselor other hiring manager will say the same). I was afraid it was going to be an anti-pornography and chastity lesson and was pleasantly surprised in that regard also.
That being said, two of my here teenagers though “meh.” Join the Youth Battalion??? Hokey. Pass out FTSOY? Not going to happen.
But overall it was worthwhile and good message for adults too in my opinion. Adults are some of the worst offenders on social media and can be as self absorbed as teenagers. I need to go check my Instagram now…
Prior to joining the church as a teen, I mocked my Mormon peers for carrying FTSOY. After joining the church, I still mocked people that carried physical copies even though I agreed with the principles. I’m not clear that distributing them as tracts is going to be effective in most regards.
Otherwise–I wish I’d listened to this devotional simply to ask my Sunday School students about it. I’ll see if I can work it into a discussion later in the month.
President Nelson is just getting started. The fireside message by numbers with the youth may be a pattern he will carry on with adults.
He already gave a message to priesthood holders that was point-blank honest. In my ward it wasn’t even referred to. Not surprising. Latter-Day Saints may been in for a shock with President Nelson. He may be thinking that we are more Latter-Day Aints, and feel there needs to be house cleaning so some sort. Are we in the world and now of the world instead of in the world, but not of the world?
His talk from April 2016, then President of the Twelve, titled “The Price of Priesthood Power”
Recently, Wendy and I were in a meeting where the organist was poised and ready to play the opening hymn. His eyes were on the music, and his fingers were on the keys. He began pressing the keys, but there was no sound. I whispered to Wendy, “He has no power.” I reasoned that something had stopped the flow of electrical power to that organ.
Well, brethren, in like manner, I fear that there are too many men who have been given the authority of the priesthood but who lack priesthood power because the flow of power has been blocked by sins such as laziness, dishonesty, pride, immorality, or preoccupation with things of the world.
I fear that there are too many priesthood bearers who have done little or nothing to develop their ability to access the powers of heaven. I worry about all who are impure in their thoughts, feelings, or actions or who demean their wives or children, thereby cutting off priesthood power.
I fear that too many have sadly surrendered their agency to the adversary and are saying by their conduct, “I care more about satisfying my own desires than I do about bearing the Savior’s power to bless others.”
I think it’s interesting that there is a large group of the membership who, like Jared, really identify with a hard line that separates the “Ain’ts” from the “Saints.” Jared, are you hoping that these kinds of things will weed out those who aren’t 110% committed? Do you envision the future of the Church being more inclusive or a smaller more committed core?
Felix said: unite the youth and give them something to sacrifice and be excited about.
HOLY COW! I totally missed that but he’s completely correct. Shared sacrifice greatly helps in bonding with others.
I think these are great ideas. Get off your phone and focus on helping others, even if it just means praying for them.
“who demean their wives or children, thereby cutting off priesthood power.”
An interesting capstone to the sequence.
I too am bothered by the implication that there is only one “covenant path”. This carries connotations of Iron Rod Mormonism, checklist Mormonism, and other elitist baggage that I though we were moving away from in recent years. The phrase “THE covenant path” can be easily shifted to “A covenant path”, which implies that there are more than one; indeed, there are probably as many different “covenant paths” as there are people trying to walk them. Why can’t we state it that way instead?
I’ve also heard of various faith-based and secular social movements promoting the “Digital Sabbath” in the last few years, wherein one day a week (often limited to 3 or 4 weeks) is dedicated to detaching from digital technology and immersing one’s self in various analog activities. A lot of the Digital Sabbath activities people have written about are a bit hipster-y (listening to vinyl records, writing poems on vintage typewriters, microbrewing, etc.) but I suppose it’s limited only by one’s imagination. One day a week for a limited period seems reasonable. One whole week might be excessive, and sets up for binging when the fast is over. In general, promoting moderation and healthy use while avoiding dependence is a sensible approach. In the LDS church, though, we often mistakenly promote self-mastery and moderation (Sabbath day observance, fasting, WoW, etc.) by emphasizing the negatives, the restrictions, the deprivations; this makes it feel like a punishment more than a blessing. It appears that Pres. Nelson is doing that here as well.
Another thought just came to mind: a youth social media fast makes me think of the youth pioneer treks. There, young people likewise have their digital devices confiscated at the start so that they can spend the next few days fully engaged in inaccurate historical reenactment, complete with artificial hardships and manufactured spiritual experiences. There is a fine line between encouraging moderate, responsible use of digital media, and hitching ourselves to a metaphorical handcart.
felix, I’m not reading any advocacy on Jared’s part, merely prognostication. I happen to disagree that President Nelson’s plan is to thin the herd, but it’s a reasonable conclusion, if not the only one, to make.
Not a Cougar and Jared, I can see this as prognostication. I’ve seen this perspective from people all over the Mormon spectrum, for some it was the reason they left. Jack Hughes, I agree with your thoughts on “the covenant path.” I think the message that will resonate with younger people and the modern world will be how these things can improve your life right now, not about ensuring you get to heaven.
felixfabulous-no I do not want to see a weeding out. I hope for just the opposite. I hope to see church members reinvigorated. Even though I hope things will go well for mormonism, I have to be realistic. The Book of Mormon doesn’t hold back, the Gentiles will reject the gospel of Jesus Christ. Prosperity brings pride and the church will see many defectors. It is already happening.
I don’t understand the beef with “the covenant path”. Seems pretty innocuous to me, and sounds more Mormon than Evangelical to my ears.
And when Jack Hughes says “I too am bothered by the implication that there is only one “covenant path”, I can’t help but think how is that any different than “strait is the gate, and narrow the is way, which leadest unto life, and few there be that find it”? Was the Savior being exclusive?
It seems to me a useful concept that we’re either on the covenant path or not, especially when it comes to teens. I think if they’re cheating on tests, drinking and doing drugs, or playing around with sex, it’s reasonable for them to self-identify as not being on the covenant path. What would it even mean to tell them “there are lots of covenant paths”?
Martin: I can’t speak to Jack’s comment. My issue with it is that the term sounds like these evangelical mega-churches, and that’s the entire nature of my objection–I also dislike how the word “purity” is used by that group. However, my larger objection is probably that we are a very works-focused church, reveling in the illusion of our own righteousness. I suppose that’s better than other things we might revel in, but still, we are at risk of believing “All is well in Zion” so long as people are hitting their little milestones and checking their little boxes. We sometimes get so focused on being good Mormons that we forget to be good people and good Christians. I’m not saying Nelson was using it that way (but 90% of Mormons likely will). I am strictly objecting to it sounding like something the far right would say which gives me the heebie-jeebies.
“We sometimes get so focused on being good Mormons that we forget to be good people and good Christians”
I’ve heard that before, and it’s another one of those things that makes me wonder just how different the culture of the church is from place to place, even within the western US stronghold. That statement makes absolutely no sense to me, and I don’t think it would to most members of my congregation. You cannot be a good Mormon if you’re not a good person and a good Christian. We may get a little too hung up on checking boxes, but I think we’re very well aware that the boxes are only a means to accomplishing the overall goal, which is specifically to become a good person and good Christian (yes, you can say that’s works-focused, but I’d argue it’s more transformation-focused). I guess I honestly don’t know if I’m just projecting my personal worldview on my stake, or if my stake really is just better than yours. Or rather, maybe my stake is just better about putting box-checking in perspective.
The other thing is that I used to be much more sympathetic to is the idea that we needed to quit focusing so much on rules and more on the higher law with teens. But this past decade of working with youth has me thinking that de-emphasizing the rules isn’t a great idea. Youth are, as expected, immature. They’re generally smarter (able to learn faster) than adults, but their patience with listening to adults drone on and on abstract topics is limited. Unlike bloggers, most don’t get a kick out of picking over words and trying to flesh out concepts constantly. Rules (with reasons!) are great for them, and prevent a lot of problems. Understanding sin, and specifically how bad sin really is, is likewise good for them. Yes, it can lead to feelings of not being good enough and even of being dirty for a time, but I’m not totally convinced that isn’t a good phase to pass though too (as long as it’s not too long or too deep, and as long as they know they’re loved by the people around them). You can never truly appreciate just how glorious the gift of Christ’s grace really is until you’ve truly understood how bad sin is and how much you truly want what’s good. Simply de-emphasizing rules and assuring kids that Christ’s atonement makes their sins okay before they’ve experienced any of that can result in a wishy-washy-ness that can lead to life-alteringly bad choices. Addictions once acquired are hard to break. Boundaries once crossed are no longer nearly as high.
I know there’s a balance, and the impression I get is that most people who comment at W&T think the church is too rule focused, but where the balance is and how it should shift probably varies depending on where one lives. Personally, I like Pres. Nelson’s approach — a lot. I attended the fireside with the deacons I work with, and it was interesting that not one of them is very involved in social media, but they all immediately identified their problem as being with computer games. They decided in quorum (and it wasn’t the leaders guiding them) that they were going to do a fast from computer games for a week. Their sincerity made me all squishy inside.
“The Covenant Path” rubs me super wrong because it’s a way for one person to look at another person and judge them. It’s in-group vs out-group. And it leaves no room for following Jesus that doesn’t include Mormonism. My Catholic friends clearly can’t be on the covenant path. But they can absolutely be on the straight-and-narrow path because that definition of discipleship is bigger than Mormonism.
“Yes, it can lead to feelings of not being good enough and even of being dirty for a time, but I’m not totally convinced that isn’t a good phase”
The problem is that way too often ‘for a time’ means emotional wounds and incorrect beliefs about oneself that last decades if not an entire lifetime. I’m going to guess you aren’t someone who experiences that yourself.
My concern with the social media blackout is that social media is a (sometimes the) primary news source for most people. What was happening in the news when the call was given? Was it censorship? Many states were in the midst of primary elections- were some older youth and young adults purposely unplugged in an effort to dampen a democratic resurgence?
I agree that spiritual clarity can be enhanced when one tunes out distractions. At the same time, there are people who don’t have the luxury of tuning out – there are dumpster and tire fires (metaphorically speaking) in national and world politics, local issues, science, natural conservation, etc.
ReTx, my only response to your statement, “And it leaves no room for following Jesus that doesn’t include Mormonism,” would be that the Church still proclaims itself to be the only church on the earth with effective ordinances that lead to salvation and exhalation. I don’t think any reasonable Mormon would argue that you can follow Christ without being a good Mormon (excluding the receipt of proper ordinances), but most Mormons would likely agree you don’t get to hang out with God for eternity unless you’re a good Mormon (in this life or the next). Unless and until the Church moves from that position, any true solidarity with other Christian faiths will remain elusive.
Are these challenges good for youth? Probably, if they aren’t counterproductive. Taking a break from Facebook for 7 days can’t hurt. But passing out copies of FTSOY might hurt friendships or relationships. It’s not like most peers don’t already know Mormon kids are different. FTSOY moves that from different to weird or being seen as a teenage zealot.
Good for adults? Only if you think adults should be treated like children. Teach us good principles and let us govern ourselves.
I just read the current edition of FTSOY and I actually like it. It’s vastly less pedantic than the mid-90s version (no more “necking and petting”!) and for the most part seems to aim at broader life principles rather than rule following. I still wouldn’t expect much from people trying to use them as tracts, but it strikes me as a reasonable resource for current members.
Not A Cougar –
I see what you are saying, but that wasn’t quite the distinction I was going for. What rubs me wrong is the sense of superiority built on exclusive ownership of the one-and-only-way. That superiority is the problem, not that we believe we have something no one else does (most religions believe that about themselves). When we emphasize our superiority over and above God’s other children, we are missing the entire point of discipleship.