Social Media, Narcissism, and the Christian Response

Have you ever heard the story of Dorian Gray? If you have, feel free to skip to the next paragraph; if not, allow me to summarize. Dorian Gray was the only novel written by Oscar Wilde. His story followed the life of a young aristocrat, Dorian, who desired nothing more in life than to retain his youth and beauty. To do so, he met a painter and traded his soul for his beauty. The painter painted a picture that would age and change with the ravages of time, while Dorian himself never changed. Dorian then embarked on a life of debauchery in which he entertained his every whim and desire, and his painting was the only evidence of the destruction of his soul. After twenty years Dorian saw his painting which he normally kept hidden, and he was mortified to see the true state of his soul. He was so distraught that he took a knife and stabbed the painting, but when he stabbed the painting which displayed his corrupted soul, he actually killed himself.

The story of Dorian Gray is a remarkable parallel to the use of modern social medias. Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Online Dating sites, and many other networks like them enable us to create an identity altered in the way we prefer. We have all learned to display that which is most beautiful and desirable about ourselves, while carefully shutting the door on our flaws. Like young Dorian, we can hide and distort those little things that we don’t want others to know about. In short, the modern man is capable of reshaping his own image in the way that he desires irrespective of the total truth.

I am not trying to make the argument that social networking is wrong. Like all other things, the medium itself is not sinful, it is the way we put them to our use that brings forth the use of the terms right versus wrong. The application of the medium is the topic of my concern.

In our modern world, self marketing is the name of the social game. As children watching television, we devoted ourselves to learning the art of advertising. As adults living in the great boon of social networking, we now have the opportunity to put our lessons into practice. And we have some impressive practitioners of self promotion in our world today.  Look at Perez Hilton, Tila Tequila, Paris Hilton, or any reality television star; these people have done nothing of note besides shamelessly push their own carefully crafted identities, all while hiding their true self away from the public eye. These people have taken Dorian’s story and made it their own.

As Christians, we should recognize this practice of self promotion for what it is; unabashed narcissism. Obsession with self. Over-inflated belief in our own importance. Sinful pride. We should take great pains to make sure that we do not fall into the similar trap of venerating, glorifying, and deceitfully creating our identities for all the world to see. We should stand guard over our hearts and recognize the only person worthy of promotion, praise, and sincere confidence; Christ. We cannot trust these digital veneers which men (including many popular Christian leaders) create of themselves, and we should not promote or boast in our own self-defined identity; as Paul wrote in Galatians, boast only in the cross and Christ crucified.