I stumbled across this book in the library and was very intrigued the subtitle: Searching for the Image of God in the Digital Age. Since selfies and more broadly, social media, is something that we are all affected by, I was curious about what a Christian response would look like.

Drawing on art and art history, literature, psychology, sociology, theology, and scripture, Detweiler aims to uncover the history of the selfie, the pressures that are in it, and how Christians might respond to a selfie. Each chapter focuses on one aspect – the selfie through art, through memoirs, the instagram pressures of the modern age, etc.

Overall, I thought the book was very interesting! I’ve never really thought of the selfie through the perspective of art (especially self-portraits) or literature (i.e. memoirs) and I think Detweiler made some good points about the pressures of social media. As he put it:

“We have made them [the next generation] change their names and scrub their Facebook profiles in anticipation of college applications and professional interviews. We have subjected them to performance reviews at early ages, forcing them to “grow up in public” in ways that we have never endured. The social-psychological pressure to project a healthy, whole, and satisfied self is immense (and sometimes debilitating).”

In light of that, how wonderful it is that we are called to rest in Jesus, who says “come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). If used for self-reflection, the selfie isn’t an inherently bad thing. I liked the passage that dealt with Foucault’s argument that Christianity requires a repudiation of ourselves:

“Contrary to Foucault’s critique, Christianity is about more than just renouncing the self; it is about truly seeing who we are called to be. Awareness of our imperfectability is a great starting point. We acknowledge how far we’ve fallen short of God’s divine perfection. We are released from the burden of performance-based spirituality. With salvation and the forgiveness of sin comes a freedom that can propel us forward on a lifelong pursuit of spiritual maturity.” 

I’ll also share Detweiler’s key reflections because I think they are good for all Christians to keep in mind as we continue to stay on social media:

1. We are not defined externally (by how many people like or follow us)
2. We are loved and valued by God independent of our performance
3. God’s unconditional love for us doesn’t mean that our choices and actions don’t matter. But they should flow out of a healthy relationship with God and our selves. 
4. As we follow Jesus, we are being transformed by the Spirit into God’s likeness
5. This allows our actions to spring from a sustainable well of genuine (rather than coercive) love
6. We are free to be ourselves, to express ourselves on social media with an eye toward the health and well0being of our (online) neighbours
7. We can create and photograph and paint and write to bless others and extend justice rather than seeking to elevate our own reputations
8. The resulting circle of generosity can lead to a reformation of community, grounded in healthy selves encouraging each other to thrive.

While I generally found the book to be thought-provoking, I did also think that Detweiler could be careless with his words sometimes. Take for example, these two lines:  “Once our photo is on the internet, almost anyone can monkey with it. Ask former congressman Anthony Weiner, now a registered sex offender, how quickly a political career can unravel.” From the way the sentences are arranged, I thought that Weiner was the victim of a manipulated/monkeyed image. However, a google search showed that Weiner was convicted of sending explicit pictures to a minor – I don’t think that qualifies as being a victim of virality or of something monkeying around with your picture! That’s called being caught for sexual crimes!

Another example: “We need the knowledge of self (and our limitations) to soften the knowledge of God, which can puff us up” – I understand the line as asking us to beware of becoming Pharisees, who had the head-knowledge of God but not the heart-knowledge. But the way the sentence sounds, it makes it seem like knowing more about God is a bad thing; which it isn’t! True study of God should increase a sense of awe about the nature of God, the very opposite of puffing us up.

It’s little things like these that made me pause and wonder exactly what Detweiler was saying (though his principles at the end made me think that it’s probably careless writing). The fact that he doesn’t take the chance to link it to worldview studies is also a missed opportunity, as is the section where he acknowledges that public piety is a dangerous thing because he doesn’t really delve into the topic. Those are a few missed opportunities that could have made the book richer.

All in all, this was an interesting approach to the topic of selfies. I appreciated the various ways Detweiler approached the topic and he did a good job arguing that the act of taking a selfie doesn’t have to be narcissistic, but can be used as a starting point for introspection or aspiration. I think the book is more suited for Christians who are already familiar with the Bible and would like to explore some current topics through a Christian lens.

Featured Image: Photo from Canva