(part one)
way back on february 12, i jumped on facebook to take the pulse of my respective "nation" and their quick hit thoughts on that night's state of the union address. one of the original commenters on that thread was the professional united methodist pastor, chris perry. in short, his opinion was fairly cynical as it concerned the overall worth of the speech, and it took the thread into a much more interesting place than my original sarcastic post intended. midway through, i asked chris if he would be interested in subjecting himself to an interview to talk about all sorts of things. he agreed. that conversation follows below. i hope you enjoy it. chris gives some good perspective on his life and the general life of a pastor and will maybe help us lay folk have a better appreciation for his and our pastor's efforts.
we're going to break this up into several, easily digestible parts.consume away! please forgive all the capitalization!
"Pastor/Samurai/Director/Coach/Father Christopher Perry.
Welcome to HACAJAM. Thanks for the interest in giving our kind readers some insight into the world of a Methodist Minister. Why don't we start by laying a foundation. This interview was prompted by comments in a Facebook thread where you made the comment, "Most of the time I just keep my mouth shut." The comment was made in a political conversation, but the sentiment likely is true in many different arenas.
If you don't mind, tell us your general thoughts on social media and it's value to the global discourse. As a follow-up, how have you integrated social media into your own person ministry?"
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You forgot Doctor/Professor/Chainsaw Disaster Response Expert in your titles. 
Yes, I recall that conversation and it does, indeed, transfer into many arenas.
I view social media as being inherently morally neutral. It’s neither good nor bad. The value comes in how we use it. I suppose one of the negative sides is that it seems many people have lost their ability to filter, possibly because of the perceived anonymity of the internet. I mean, can you really not go to the bathroom without tweeting about it? There also seems to be a lack of civility on occasions because I can type whatever I want without having to actually see the impact it has on you. War is much different when you’re using a knife versus pushing a button and firing a missile. In that regard, social media has dehumanized interactions. We live in an extremely wired, yet still very disconnected, world. I do become annoyed when I see people sitting in the same room texting away with no face-to-face interaction. We seem to live in a world that prefers virtual interaction to “real” interaction.
But, on the positive side, social media allows interactions with ideas, cultures, and events I would never know about or engage otherwise. In the “real” world we tend to only surround ourselves with a homogenous community, at least as much as possible. We hang out with people who are “like” us. Via social media that’s not always the case. I don’t de-friend people on Facebook because they’re an Auburn fan or disagree with me politically. I enjoy being exposed to this variety of ideas. And I don’t even mind the minutiae (someone’s at the gym, someone’s at the grocery store, someone’s kid made a macaroni drawing today). It gives me insights into the lives of people. I have friends, literally, all over the world and social media allows me to share, somewhat, in their culture and interact with them in a way not possible previously. Sometimes I get annoyed with all the shared posts, and I definitely hate the “if you don’t share or like this you hate Jesus, are going to hell, and probably kill puppies in your spare time” posts, but I get to see how other people think and, occasionally, I’ll enter into dialog with them. Maybe without social media I’d never engage someone about a certain topic, especially if they disagreed with me, and through social media I get to see how they think and enlarge my own thinking.
As far as how I incorporate social media into my ministry, I think it’s an opportunity for me to share some of my life. I am somewhat guarded in what I post – the language I use and the content/topics I allow to go on my wall – but I think it allows my congregation,especially, to see me as a “real” person, which is not always the case with pastors. We’re often seen as robots locked away in the closet and wheeled out when holy words or deeds are needed, no feelings or life outside of the pulpit. I also use social media as a mini-blog to write on topics that touch my heart or to share information.
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That's a great place to start the meat of our meal. You talk about being somewhat guarded in what you choose to put out there in the social media world. Having known you as long as I have, I have seen you become more and more guarded as the years have gone by. Can you tell us why that is? Have there been specific instances that led you to back off in that regard?
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Yeah, I would agree with you. I have become a lot more guarded since we first became friends. Part of that would be maturity – I don’t feel the need to express every thought I have. Part of it is conformity, honestly. When I was a young associate pastor I could get away with a lot more. People would brush it off as long as the senior pastor were still respectable. There is a whole different expectation when you’re “the” pastor or senior pastor. So, in Paul’s words of being all things to all people I’ve dialed it back a little. Were I in a less traditional ministry setting I probably wouldn’t be quite as reserved. It’s a hard balance finding where it’s okay to push people and where I need to stay reigned in.
Now, to be blunt, there have been some painful experiences that have impacted how much I share. I’ve really put myself out there some, with some controversial issues, and gotten badly burned. I’ve had people attack me and leave the church over some of the stands I’ve taken and ministries I’ve chosen to be involved in. That’s caused me to be a lot more careful. Partially because you get tired of being beat up after a while. The biggest reason, though, is trying to be more reflective about choosing my battles. Is this something important to advancing the Kingdom of Christ or just something I’m on a kick about? If it’s the former, then I’ll take my stand and I don’t care what the consequences are. If it’s the latter, it’s not worth it.
Finally, I would say I’m more reserved because I want to be able to effectively minister to every person. I lean more towards the right, politically. If I had to put a label on myself it would be a “moderate conservative.” I don’t affiliate myself with any political party because I don’t find either one completely satisfactory. That said, I don’t want a congregation full of only Republicans. The Body of Christ is diverse. Having a homogenous congregation may make us all feel good, but it doesn’t help us grow or reflect the full expression of God. I want people in my congregation I disagree with on issues because it brings a different perspective to issues. Well, in order for me to allow people to express themselves and feel comfortable I feel like I have to stay pretty neutral, outwardly. I want someone who is a flaming liberal and a tea-party conservative to feel equally at ease around me, and everyone in between. We have a tendency in our culture to categorize people so if I openly and often express more conservative (or liberal, whichever you like) views on the “hot button” topics like gay marriage, gun control, abortion, or anything else those on the “opposite” side likely won’t feel as comfortable openly talking with me. If I’m asked my opinion, I don’t hide it, but I don’t go blasting those views from the pulpit or on Facebook. When I feel strongly about a topic I prefer to discuss it in a Bible study or small group type setting. From the pulpit I would rather stay focused on disciple-making and spiritual growth issues, things all Christians need to hear. In this manner, if you asked most of the folks in my congregation where I stood about a political party or issue, they probably couldn’t tell you. But, hopefully, they could tell you I would listen to you and care about you no matter your opinion.
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to be continued...
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