A New Social Media Horizon
March 12, 2025
Dear co-conspirators and friends of Galileo Church, of whom there are so many I can hardly keep up,
Grace to you, and peace, from God our Source and our brother-Lord Jesus. I’m hopeful that the Spirit of the living Christ is present to you today.
Every time I say “I’m done! There is no more tech to learn; I have conquered (or at least become competent) on every platform!” God has a big ol’ laugh at my expense. And now God is laughing again. Because the Missional Logistics Team, Spiritual Care Team, and pastoral staff of our church have discerned together that it’s time for a social media change.
At the end of this month, we’re migrating our intra-church communication from Meta (Facebook groups and Messenger) to Discord; and we’re ditching X-formerly-known-as-Twitter in favor of Bluesky.
Here are some of our reasons:
We can’t fix everything that’s wrong in the world, but we can deny the MAGA-sucking oligarchs at least some of our patronage. The social irresponsibility of Meta and X allows cruelty to proliferate, leaves vulnerable people more exposed online than ever, and encourages disinformation that really hurts people. We can’t stand having all of that in our lives, so we’re taking our conversations elsewhere.
We’re exhausted by the endless barrage of materialistic, body-shaming, none-of-their-damn-business advertising on Meta and X. The lie that these platforms are “free” is untenable; we are their product and they’re selling us, using us up faster than we can be restored. We want less capitalism in our lives, so we’re leaving.
We’re sick of being played by the algorithm, the enslaving math that serves the oligarchs by serving up what will keep our worst selves glued to our screens – outrage, ridicule, a cultivated sense of helplessness, sexual exploitation, and all those cute kittens who did not ask to be famous in this way. We are breaking the yoke of oppression by denying the algorithm any more of ourselves.
We are inspired by folx younger than ourselves (waaaay younger than I) who have just said “nope” to their parents’ social media addiction and platforms. They recognized the Meta-n-X toxicity before we did, so we’re learning from their wisdom. Isn’t that in the Bible? “And a little child shall lead them…to Discord.”
So here’s what our social media array will look like:
Starting March 31, all of our active Facebook groups are shifting to Discord Servers and Channels. These are the places we can talk to each other and breathe free.
Our X/Twitter account still exists, but no new posts will appear there. Our X bio directs people to our Bluesky account @GalileoChurch.
We’ll keep our public-facing accounts on Facebook and Instagram. I can post invitations and announcements that we want people out there to know about. We want to be discoverable by people who are hunting for the good news of God’s reign.
Here’s a little map of what Galileo Discord looks like for now:
Galileo Church, Open to All server
announcements channel, where we’ll announce stuff that’s coming up
living room channel, where we can share prayers or vent or ask for help or just say hello
memes-and-memes-only channel, where we can post, y’know, memes
parents-n-guardians channel, where families can be in solidarity, because bringing kids of any age to church is the Lord’s work, bless y’all’s hearts for real
Leadership Teams server
various configurations of our leadership have channels, including MLT, SCT, finance team, G-group facilitators-n-conveners, pastoral staff
you’ll be invited into this one if you serve on any of our leadership teams
Missional Support Squad server
all the rotations for Sunday worship roles have channels here
you’ll be invited into this one if you’re in any of those rotations
Please note: Starting March 31, Discord servers and channels will replace our plethora of FB Messenger groups, regular FB groups, text groups, or GroupMe groups that are used for any of these configurations.
For later: we plan to add a G-Group server for our Spring round of G-groups, so everyone in a G-group can communicate through Discord – and maybe meet over Discord, too, rather than Zoom! Details TBD.
But I don’t know how!
Wait, you say you don’t know how to Discord, and maybe in dog years you’re too old to learn new tricks? Never fear; our Tactical Officer Steph is ready to help us all into this brave new space. (She taught it to me, and I’m a pro now!) Join Steph for Discord training:
Onsite in the Big Red Barn, Sunday, March 30, after worship. We’ll have some food. Bring your device/s so you can literally walk through the steps with Steph.
Online via Zoom, Thursday, April 3, 7 pm Central. Yes, it’s a few days after GD-Day. It’s the best we could do. Here’s the link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84940155914
Want to read up in advance of a training session? Lydia wrote a “How to Discord for the Olds” to help her mom out, and she’s given me permission to share it with you, too. It’s delightful, and it’s available as a Google Doc here.
Blue skies ahead!
Friends, this is gonna be a good move for our church and for each of us. Our online communication will change, including new voices who were never or are no longer active on the F-book. I can feel my mental health improving as I contemplate getting some distance between me and Zuck, me and Elon… I never meant to be stand that close to either of them. Did you?
If you’ve got questions or concerns, reach out to me or Steph or anybody on the MLT or SCT. We’ll be happy to help in any way we can.
I will sing to you a new song, O God!
Upon a [new platform] I will play to you!
Psalm 144:9; modifications mine
peace – Katie