Congregational Library

The Argument in Favor of Facebook

 

Background:
Until about two weeks ago, I was always a reluctant Facebook user. I joined up in 2007 when a cousin convinced me it would be a great way to keep track of our mutual relatives whom we didn't normally get to talk to. OK, but the format, the signal:noise ratio- these things kept me from really taking advantage of this tool. I certainly always had reservations with the cavalier measures the Facebook administrators took regarding privacy and their unwillingness to allow users to leave always made me feel like I was living in an Eagles song.

Good Outweighs the Bad- My tipping points for using Facebook more:

1. There's the Library's page and its 96 (as of this very moment) fans. Clearly we're reaching people, and I should be involved in providing information to them to keep them interested and make sure the Library's on their radar.
2. I can write here in Typepad and have it cross-posted on our page, which is very efficient.
3. For me- I can look at my homepage and find out what friends and colleagues are doing. Once I hide 99.9% of the quizzes and applications that are listed there, I start to see some good and useful information.  Since my husband started using it as his primary social network, that was my major tipping point, and now that I'm in the groove, I have the chance to keep up with not just the classmate from elementary school, Aunt Wendy, but all those archivists that I only see at our regional spring / fall meetings.

Facebook is just a means to an end:
Keeping in touch with colleagues is a goal I've renewed since attending the New England Archivists' spring meeting this past weekend. I somehow forget every time how much I get energized by talking to people in my field. There's always new ideas or opportunities to collaborate, too. While talking to folks, often-times Web 2.0 topics came up, and specifically Facebook. Some were comfortable and active, while others were hesitant as I was just two weeks ago. With that reluctance still fresh in my head, was able to talk about the finer points of the system while remaining sympathetic to the negatives.

I'll probably never be a quiz-taking rah-rah cheerleader for Facebook, but if I can keep the Library's fans a bit more engaged and maintain connections with collegues, it's worth it.

-Jessica Steytler

Congregational Christian Historical Society's Celebartory Kickoff Event

Join us as we celebrate a new partnership between CCHS and Boston's historic Congregational Library. Our featured speaker will be author, Eve LaPlante, discussing "Why Congregational History Matters Today." Ms. LaPlante is the author of American Jezabel, a biography of Anne Hutchinson and Salem Witch Judge, a biography of Samuel Sewell. This event takes place Monday, March 23 at 3:00 p.m. at the Wellesley Hills Congregational Church, 207 Washington Street, Wellesley Hills, MA 0248. http://www.hillschurch.org

Free and open to the public.

Cultivating your Church Library - March 21

Join us at the Hills Church in Wellesley for this workshop with other church librarians. Claudette Newhall will lead discussions on creating, managing, and promoting your church library/resource center on Saturday, March 21 from 10:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Registration is required. Program fee is $10. Contact us at 617-523-0470 x 4 or email sthomas@14beacon.org.

Follow Up Lunch for Records Mangement & Preservation For Congregational Churches

Join fellow alums from the Records Management class for lunch, networking, and updates on Friday March 20 from 11:30 AM - 1:30 PM at 14 Beacon Street, Boston. Share your projects and find out what your colleagues have been doing with theirs. This is also a time to ask archivist, Jess Steytler, questions that may have come up since the class.

Program fee: $20. Advanced registration required. Email sthomas@14beacon.org or call 617-523-0470 x 4.

Brown Bag Lunch March 18

Join us at noon on Wednesday, March 18 to hear Dr. Garth M. Rosell discuss his book: The Surprising Work of God : Harold John Ockenga, Billy Graham, and the Rebirth of Evangelicalism. Ockenga was pastor of the Park Street Church and co-founder of Fuller Theological Seminary, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, the National Association of Evangelicals, and Christianity Today.

Dr. Rosell is professor of Church History at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, Massachusetts and has lectured on a variety of college, university and seminary campuses. His most recent book is a history of Park Street Church which celebrates its two hundredth anniversary this year: Boston's Historic Park Street Church: The Story of an Evangelical Landmark.

Free and open to the public. Please bring your lunch.