1.5 hour session discussing what is a #digidisciple & some of the issues raised over the past year.

1. #DIGIDISCIPLE(S)
DR BEX LEWIS, @BIGBIBLE
Discipleship encompasses our whole life, but how can
we continue to be whole life disciples in the online
space?
#MediaLit12

2. WHAT IS A DISCIPLE?
 A 'disciple' is one who,
by following Jesus,
grows in their faith in
Christ and in so doing
models and teaches
Christians the precepts
of the Bible, prayer,
doctrine, relationship,
Christian living,
service, and worship…
http://www.wordnik.com/words/disciple

3. HTTP://YOUTU.BE/PCYRC4U79YM

4. MATTHEW 5:13-16, THE MESSAGE
 "Let me tell you why you are here. You're here to be salt-
seasoning that brings out the God-flavours of this earth. If
you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness?
You've lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage.
 "Here's another way to put it: You're here to be light, bringing
out the God-colours in the world. God is not a secret to be
kept. We're going public with this, as public as a city on a hill.
If I make you light-bearers, you don't think I'm going to hide
you under a bucket, do you? I'm putting you on a light stand.
Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—
shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By
opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up
with God, this generous Father in heaven.

5. WHAT IS A #DIGIDISCIPLE?
 A 'digital disciple', or, as The
Big Bible Project calls it, a
#digidisciple, is someone who
seeks to live out their
Christian faith in the digital
space, whether they are a
'digital infant‗*, or are fully
immersed in the digital
worlds. These are people
seeking to be 'generous
with their lives’, opening
themselves up, engaging
with others online.
* thanks to Rev Kate Bruce for that concept

6. THE ONLINE AS A SPACE?
 This concept of the online as space, culture,
environment or world is key when we consider what
our #digidisciple(s) have to say. As Christians we live
24/7 for God, in whatever spaces we live in or
engage with.
 There is no such thing as 'virtual' and 'real' worlds:
only online and offline/physical space/cultures - the
connection between the two is different for each
individual. We need to take seriously our Christian
presence both online and offline.

7. THE ONLINE AS A SPACE?
 Are we the same person, living by the same values
in both 'spaces', what should those values be, and
what particular challenges does the online
environment offer to Christians?
 We also need to think about the particulars of specific
digital spaces, whether that be Twitter, Facebook,
Google +, blogs, forums, or Second Life, although all
are affected by the increasingly mobile and interactive
nature of the digital space.
 http://www.scribd.com/my_document_collections/3474752

8.  Twitter, for instance, is a bit like a public coffee hour. When
you‘re at your best, you spend a little time with everyone, and
take care especially to welcome newcomers. And, as at coffee
hour, it‘s generally considered rude when a group of more
established friends hang out in a clique, telling inside jokes
that highlight how much everyone else is not part of their set.
Facebook, by contrast, is more like going to coffee with a
select group of friends who might bring some of their own
friends along. The conversation is still relatively public, and
you might run into folks at the coffee shop who join in the
conversation. A blog, however, is a poetry reading. Sure, it‘s
public in a way. But it‘s pretty likely that only those people who
already know you will come to hear what you have to say. If
they like it, they might invite friends to the next one, or they
might hang out afterwards to comment on your work. (p.86)

9.  The thing is, it‘s not likely that you would introduce
yourself to someone and then immediately invite
them to your upcoming poetry reading. You might
mention that you write poetry in the context of a
coffee hour getting-to-know-you or just-checking-in
conversation. If there‘s a mutual interest, you might
even go for coffee with other poetry-loving friends.
All of this would happen before you started inviting
people to your readings by way of creating a
context for that invitation that comes off as
something more relational than narcissistic. (p.86)

10. NOW…
What kind of issues have appeared under the
#digidisciple theme over the past year…
All discussions = starters … we may have more than
we need… Let’s see where the conversations go!

11. INTERACTIVITY?
 ―Prior to the printing press, reading was a deeply
social practice that drew on traditions of oral
storytelling, which braided the recitation of a tale
with its interpretation by the teller and the real-time
response of the audience.‖
 ―…premodern bookish encounters were not centred
on didactic performances for passive listeners, but
were fully interactive engagements that enlarged
any given book into a much wider social ―text‖.‖
 P.62

12. ―BIGGER BIBLE CONVERSATIONS‖

13. p77

14. HTTP://MARTINSAUNDERS.WORDPRESS.COM/2012/
06/07/JOEL-VS-POVERTY/

15. 7/6/12, 11PM

16. 10/6/12, 1AM

19. WHAT WOULD JESUS TWEET?

20. WHAT IS COMMUNITY?
http://asbojesus.wordpress.com/2011/02/08/986/

21. WIKIPEDIA DEFINES COMMUNITY AS:
A group of interacting people,
living in some proximity (i.e., in
space, time, or relationship).
Community usually refers to a
social unit larger than a
household that shares common
values and has social cohesion.
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community

22. FREEING THE HOUSEBOUND?
 Yesterday, via John Piper‘s Twitter feed there was a link to
another blog asking people to pray from someone called Ian
who has brain injury. Their blog is all about Hope. It’s the
one thing they have that they can give to others, even
though they have lost much. Their blog was such an
encouragement to me and praying for them brings me out of
my own situation and focused on prayer instead. Without
social media I wouldn’t have any of this, but with it I am
reminded of the God who wants to hear our prayers and
have constant scripture to focus on. I also have the
encouragement of friends and a way of encouraging others, in
between the hospital appointments and the naps
 http://bigbible.org.uk/2012/05/growing-your-faith-when-youre-
semi-housebound-by-our-newest-digidisciple-jacksdavie/

23. HOW DO WE ENGAGE?

24. HTTP://AUDIOBOO.FM/BOOS/367199-A-FEW-PEARLS-OF-
WISDOM-FROM-JAS-TDC11-RE-COMMUNITY

25. LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOUR?
 What does it mean to ‗love your neighbour‘ in a world in
which a ‗friend‘ might as easily be the kid from down the
street you grew up with as a woman in Botswana whom
you‘ve never seen in person and only know in the
context of Facebook status updates, photos, and notes?
What is the nature of community at prayer in a compline
service tweeted each evening by the cybermonks of a
Virtual Abbey? What is the ecclesiological and liturgical
significant of worship in various churches across the
theological spectrum on the quasi-3D, virtual reality site
‗Second Life‘? How can we negotiate spiritual
interaction in these contexts without losing sight of
basic elements of Christian faith expressed in
traditional embodied and geographically located
practices of prayer, worship, and compassion
towards others? (p.xiv)

26. HTTP://BIGBIBLE.ORG.UK/2012/06/A-TALE-OF-
2-CHURCHES-PARTAKERS_DAVE/

27. WHO IS A ―FRIEND‖?

28. FRIENDSHIP
―…Out of a commitment to an ideal
of Christian relatedness that sees
us all as God‘s children, each
worthy of attention and care.‖
(p.145)
 Where is the balance between conserving our
sanity/deeper relationships, and ensuring that all
feel valued? What about friendship ‗clearouts‘?

29. HUMAN BEINGS AT MACHINES, NOT ―ARE
MACHINES‖.
http://www.sxc.hu/photo/192333

30. AUTHENTICITY
 The digital age has taken an old human pastime to
new levels. That pastime is our ability to
withdrawn into our little worlds, into our own
little realities, to put on digital clothing that
obscures who we are, rather than reveals who
we are. Technology, and especially the internet,
have made it possible for just about anyone to lead
a secret life, or in many cases, several secret lives.
 http://bigbible.org.uk/2012/06/trinity-in-digital-
context/

31. ANONYMITY
 As a theatre director I’m used to being hidden
behind the art that I produce. My work has been
hidden behind the personality of several actors who
then incarnate my contributions
http://bigbible.org.uk/2011/09/anonymity-
constructive-or-obstructive-digidisciple/

32. FUNCTION
 ―… when we resist the go-tell-it-on-the-
mountain broadcast urge in an
abundantly fertile medium, we have the
opportunity to facilitate the sharing not
of a narrow Christian message, but an
expansive Christian practice with a
whole host of people, known and
unknown to us.‖ (p.146)

33. WHAT WOULD YOUR COMMANDMENTS OF
SOCIAL MEDIA BE?

34. SOME GOOD ADVICE:
 Care for others - genuinely
 Know that the world doesn‘t revolve around you
 Be ‗remarkable‘, be different
 Earn the right to have others take notice of you
 Be grateful if ONE person cares what you‘re doing
 Have something to say that matters
 Do stuff that matters – make an impact
 Strive to bring value to everyone you connect with
 Be fantastically generous with our time, money, and
kindness
 Be outrageously committed to making the world better
 It‘s all about relationships – build & nurture them
 Thanks @ianaspin (http://bigbible.org.uk/2010/10/the-eleven-commandments/)

35. DISCUSS: THE SMARTPHONE?
MASTER NOT SLAVE?
 How frequently do you
check your phone?
 Do you feel ‗naked‘
without your phone?
 How do you ensure
that it becomes slave
not master?
 Do you ever have a
‗digital sabbath‘? What
does that look like?

36. DO WE BLAME THE TECHNOLOGY?
 The argument has often been presented to me (and I
have used it myself) that life was quieter, less stressful
before email and text, tweet and FB came along. I look
back to an imagined idyll of peace and balance, where
stress was unknown and the days filled with
contemplation and equanimity. HA! What rubbish. I have
always been a person who takes too much on. I
would be driven to overwork in a world of quills and
scrolls. I can go on silent retreat, spend time in the art
space and make the number of cards I produce the goal
of the day. Productivity! Purpose! Oh Pants!
 http://bigbible.org.uk/2012/05/running-too-fast-
technology-is-not-the-enemy-johnschaplain-digidisciple/

37. DIGIFREE? WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

38. WHAT IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY IN THE
DIGITAL AGE?

39. SO MUCH MORE…
 http://bigbible.org.uk/category/fortni
ghtly-summary/

40. JOIN US AS A #DIGIDISCIPLE?
 http://bigbible.org.uk/di
gidisciple/
 Post on a ‗regular‘
basis
 Posts that encourage
thoughtful engagement
and discussion
 Comment upon others
posts
 #BigBible, #BigRead13,
#DigiLit, #Digidisciple

41. THANK YOU & I HOPE WE CAN
CONTINUE BEING ‘IN
CONVERSATION’
Find me, Bex, on @drbexl, @digitalfprint,
@bigbible