From tracking Twitter trends to finding that flawless filter on Instagram, social media sucks us in. With Apple’s recent release of iOS 8 and the iPhone 6, Apple enthusiasts are in a frenzy to get their hands on the latest technology. Modern consumers are caught in a complex cyber-web of news and entertainment, accosted by a perpetual stream of information.
Digital platform eMarketer estimated that the average adult spent more than five hours per day on digital media in 2013, not including time spent watching television. The amount of time people spend in apps has increased 21 percent in the past year, according to data from Localytics, an analytics and marketing platform.
In the face of a world run on technology, the Office of Campus Pastors has announced this year’s spiritual practice of “Unplugging,” the idea of allotting time to disconnect from the fast-paced realm of electronics and social media.
“In an age of mass communication, technology and demanding schedules, it’s difficult for any of us to sustain an uninterrupted lifestyle,” the campus pastors’ Web page explains. “Nevertheless, withdrawing from these distractions is a significant component of our spiritual growth and formation.”
Under the broad category of unplugging, this year’s spiritual practice will focus on some sub-genres of the spiritual practice, including “Simplicity,” “Sabbath” and “Solitude.” In addition, campus pastors have designated the first day of each month as “unplugging days,” encouraging students to refrain from using electronics from noon to midnight.
Jewish organization and network Reboot has designated March 6 and 7 from sundown to sundown as the 2015 National Day of Unplugging as well.
“We increasingly miss out on the important moments of our lives as we pass the hours with our noses buried in our iPhones and BlackBerry’s [sic], chronicling our every move through Facebook and Twitter and shielding ourselves from the outside world with the bubble of ‘silence’ that our earphones create,” the event website said.
Individuals are encouraged to fill out an “I Unplug To…” sign by completing the phrase in a personally meaningful way, and to sign an online pledge to fast from gadgets and have meaningful face-to-face interactions with friends and family. Organizations from all over the country have planned events to enrich the unplugging experience in their local communities, including yoga, art projects and shared meals.
For students relying on social media and digitized information for their academics, the concept of unplugging is all but practical. However, that does not mean that it should be disregarded.
As a journalism major, I am obligated to look at electronics and social-networking apps not just as toys, but tools. I am obligated to stay up-to-date on the latest news, to check what’s trending on Facebook and Twitter, to stay plugged in at all times.
But rewind to five weeks ago, in the midst of Alpha leader training, and my situation was radically different. Left without a phone for the weeklong training trip called Bridges, I felt naked and vulnerable. However, what began as a feeling of insignificance because I was not exchanging real-time updates on electronics, turned into the unforeseen fruits of thoughtfulness and freedom.
Unplugging doesn’t mean joining an Amish community, nor does it constitute civic apathy or social disengagement. Psalm 46:10, a verse selected by campus pastors as related to unplugging, reads, “Be still, and know that I am God.”
Although it may be impossible to slow the breakneck pace of the digital world, consider that stillness as a spiritual decision that does not hinge upon the speed of your schedule or the length of your to-do list. It is important to make the distinction between unplugging and disconnecting, between stillness and immobility.
Though students are often required to be digitally connected for academics, there is a fine line between you using technology and letting technology use you. The spiritual practice of unplugging necessitates that Christians refuse to be enslaved by social media or crippled by cravings for electronic entertainment. Ask yourself the question: If you wanted to completely unplug for a day and turn off all electronics, could you do it?
Whether you have time to unplug for five hours or five minutes, consider participating in APU’s spiritual practice for the 2014-2015 school year. What you discover may surprise you.