We’ve heard of some Pastors and Ministers who are reluctant to get into Facebook. Although we can now see a lot of Churches utilizing Facebook Fan Pages in their ministry activities, still, that percentage is rather small compared to the amount of people using Facebook. So we ask, what is the biggest fear of Ministers, Priests and Pastors that prevents them from engaging on Facebook?

For this, we talked to Penny Nash of www.penelopepiscopal.blogspot.com for her insights. According to her, she sees two reasons why Church leaders are keeping away from Facebook.

Fear #1: Ignorance,
Some people perceive Facebook as something not to be taken seriously. This is because they think those who are using Facebook are just chatting about nonesense,  just playing games, doing silly stuffs and other fun-related activities. Ministers may see Facebook as another waste of time so they’d rather spend their spare time to more productive activities.  

Fear #2: Mistakes
Another reason why people stay away from Facebook is that they don’t want to make mistakes. These people are those who believe that whatever it is that they publish or post over the Internet will be there forever just like what happens to traditional media (television, newspapers, radio, etc.). If they ever mess up or show a little bad judgement, they fear that this will put their names or reputation as Priests, Pastors or Ministers in jeopardy - FOREVER. So, staying away from Facebook will somehow relieve them of this responsibly.

Nash, who is a seasoned blogger, Social Media practitioner and an “extroverted priest” summed these reasons all up as “the tail wagging the dog”. To us, this situation is not as hopeless as it may seem. Enlightening these people’s perspective is the key to address their fears. Hopefully, our efforts to reach out  to as much Pastors who keep an open mind and try understand the essence of Social Media will change their stance and draw their attention to the more significant value of Facebook to their Church’s mission.