One meme that struck my funny bone read something like, “social media may never have made the lame walk,but it has allowed the dumb to speak.” Like most memes, it was meant to generate laughs; they work, when we recognize something true in the joke. We’ve all encountered a number of eye-roll worthy content on the internet. And maybe we are even guilty of contributing to some of it. Who hasn’t posted something in haste and only felt regret afterwards?
The issue with social media is that it is social, but we often forget this as we share far too intimate or crass content with numerous individuals. Boundaries are ignored. And some days, it feels like the Wild, Wild West. But instead of shoot-em-ups, puerile insults are shot.
Through the use of online platforms, we’ve all been given our own soap box to do whatever we like with. Once upon a time, you had to be the crème-de-le-crème to get notoriety, but now, if you can lip sync a scene from your favorite movie, you may go viral. Seconds after hearing some kind of news story, people rush to their platforms to explain what is going on or how to respond. All of these actions don’t require real talent or thought, just access to the internet. It is extremely unforgiving and chaotic.
When we communicate, we have a duty to do just that: communicate. To speak intentionally and truthfully, exercising prudence and modesty. We need to shoulder the responsibility that our words hold weight; what we say and how we say it are not careless issues.
“But I say unto you, that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall render an account for it in the day of judgment.” Matthew 12:36
If we turn to St. Thomas Aquinas, he states that language is an external tool meant to communicate truth. And as an external, it is governed by modesty. Modesty because it is “the virtue that moderates all the internal and external movements and appearance of a person according to his or her endowments, possessions, and station in life.” Modesty is an “integral part of temperance.” CCC 2521. Temperance must imbue our language.
Language is a gift as well as a tool, and just like any gift or tool it can be abused or taken for granted.
Language is a crucial topic because, taking Aquinas’ definition, we must have an understanding of Truth. Not your truth, or Bob’s truth, or the TV News’ truth, but rather capital T—Truth; Truth found in Christ. Truth upholds virtue.
Conversely, many utilize this gift as a way to express one’s every changing emotion, gossip, over share, pry, manipulate, meddle, and ultimately, damage. It’s not governed by the virtue of modesty and temperance, but waves under the false flag of authenticity, aka unbridled emotions.
This is a particularly damaging outlook, since ungoverned emotions are not virtues, even though modernity treats them as such. In fact, modernity seems to insist that disordered emotion should be our understanding of “truth” because it’s what we feel. And oh, what is more raw than that? Somehow forgetting the fact that such emotions are the most changeable things in the world.
So, we must have a healthy understanding of emotions. Our emotions should be governed by our intellect. As the Catechism affirms, “passions are neither good nor evil . . . they are morally qualified only to the extent that they effectively engage reason and will.” CCC 1767 What we choose to do with our emotions is where we step into moral territory. This is why we need to stand guard against the hyper-emotionalism of today. When we let our emotions take charge, we allow our reason and will to go on holiday. While this is often justified as “being genuine” or “speaking one’s truth,” it’s actually a self-insult to our God-giving dignity and call to sanctity to state that our worst and most unreasonable qualities get to the core of who we are.
Instead, we need to utilize the lost art of discernment. Discernment is exercising prudential judgement. It’s the ability to distinguish what is wise and prudent from things that are foolhardy. We live in a constant flow of information, where emotions reign supreme; that atmosphere suffocates discernment because it allows no time for pausing and thoughtfulness. Instead, we give credence to our initial emotial response, act, and fail to think. This kind of thoughtlessness is one of the usual suspects when it comes rude or condescending content, misleading information, manipulative speech and so forth.
Instead, we should question our emotions. We must understand how to best wield these neutral tools. We can start by asking basic questions such as: Why do I feel this way? Is it valid? How can I appropriately process this emotion so I can move forward in a productive manner?
When we let down the boundary governing our emotions, our speech suffers dramatically.
Our language should be worthy of who we are as individuals made in the image and likeness of God.
Our language should respect that same dignity in those around us, fortifying us against gossip, emotional manipulation, and vulgarity.
When we gain control of our language, choosing not to just say everything that pops into our craniums, elimating vulgarity, or sharing thoughtless content, we grow in strength. Strength of mind and strength of character because we implement thoughtfulness into our speech, remembering that our words hold weight and we need to shoulder that as a holy responsibility.
