It has for all kinds of reasons (apocalyptic weather, anyone?), but in particular I am thinking of the debate and discussion surrounding the release of three e-books by Zondervan on the issue of women in ministry. The series is entitled ‘Fresh Perspectives on Women in Ministry’.
It is worth noting how this media event has taken off, as a new kind of pamphleteering. The Kindle/e-book format is cheap and instantly accessible with a minimum of online know-how. Then the books can be brought to the attention of the target audience through social media and then debated on blogs and on Facebook. It is simply churlish these days to complain that Facebook is a kind of secret world, since almost half the planet is on it.
Rather, it has been fascinating to see how quickly this has enabled specialists to interact with one another, and to have a wider public discussion. There’s dross on the internet, but like Wikipedia, it is able to flush its system. People who don’t debate fairly or who refuse to read and simply heap on invective are quickly called to account and disregarded. There’s a chance for a back-and-forth which can be really productive - and has been in this case I think. Read more
No comments:
Post a Comment