REFLECTION - SOCIAL MEDIA: DIGITAL JUNGLE OR GARDEN OF GOOD WORDS?
Social Media: Digital Jungle or Garden of Good Words?
In a world connected by likes, stories, and incessant sharing, an uncomfortable yet necessary question arises: have social media platforms become a ruthless jungle, or can they still be cultivated as a garden of good words? The answer is not simple; it demands honest reflection and spiritual discernment.
For many, social media functions as a showcase of connection, entertainment, and information. For me, however, it has become an arena of invisible battles—a territory where the mind and emotions are continually strained, tested, and not infrequently wounded.
It is no secret that leaders of major Big Tech companies severely limit the use of social media in the lives of their own children and close associates. Such caution is not born of paranoia, but of knowledge: the psychological mechanisms, emotional triggers, and artificial reward systems activated by these platforms produce deep and often silent psycho-emotional consequences.
In short, social media, when poorly used—or used without order, discernment, and purpose—can become a source of emotional and spiritual illness. They are as dangerous as the palace balcony from which an idle David gazed upon Bathsheba: the place of distraction almost always precedes the ground of the fall.
Three Forms of Harm
The Redeemed Purpose
I acknowledge, however, that social media can be useful instruments—platforms for the communication of good words and the responsible dissemination of ministry. Even so, I do not regard them as gardens meant for carefree contemplation, but as jungles that require caution, vigilance, and clear purpose. They should be crossed only when strictly necessary.
A Survival Method
In light of this, I have adopted a simple yet effective method:
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Limited access: only once a week.
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Controlled environment: exclusively on the office computer.
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Clear purpose: to avoid impulsive use and preserve ministerial focus.
This digital discipline has served as a means of safeguarding emotional and spiritual health. Less access results in greater clarity; less noise brings lightness to both mind and heart.
As John Piper has aptly observed, social media will serve, on the Day of Judgment, as evidence that we had available time for the reading of Scripture, diligent study, and prayer—and yet chose distractions.
If you also perceive that social media has been draining your vital energy, perhaps it is time to reassess its use. May it cease to be a jungle and become fertile soil—where one plants with purpose and reaps with wisdom.
Summary
This article offers a critical reflection on the use of social media in light of emotional health, spiritual well-being, and Christian ethics. By recognizing these platforms not as neutral spaces but as environments shaped by algorithms, stimuli, and vested interests, the author warns of their potential harmful effects—such as temptation, polarization, and destructive comparison. Without demonizing technology, the text advocates for a disciplined, intentional, and pastorally responsible use of social media, whereby these platforms cease to be jungles of distraction and are instead traversed with prudence, purpose, and spiritual vigilance.
Author
Manoel Gonçalves Delgado Jr. holds a Doctorate in Pastoral Ministry and is a public theologian and researcher in the fields of social ethics, technology, and faith. He works in practical theology, missiology, and Christian reflection on contemporary challenges, with particular attention to the intersection of faith, digital culture, and social justice. He lives in Brazil, where he develops academic and pastoral projects focused on the critical, spiritual, and ethical formation of Christian leadership.
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