TheHeresy.com
Leighton at theheresy.com identifies a good “comebacker” to the accusations that online is a “less moral” place; a “den of iniquity” or some such categorization:

“Many of my personal friends who have entered vocational ministry lasted only a few of years. The reasons are complicated and have been the subject of debate. Many of the people that I know were not prepared for how carnal some of the people in their church were. When they entered ministry they moved from the outer circle to the inner circle where far fewer things are hidden from view. It is very common for people to become disillusioned when they see the dark side of their faith community. I believe the same kind of disillusionment is beginning to happen online. I’ve been blogging for about a year and a half and I’ve already be labelled a hypocrite, immature and a cry baby. I have friends that have endured far worse. However I still believe in this form of Christian community just as I still believe in the church. I refuse to let the dark nature of humanity eclipse the good that can be found in sharing our thoughts and stories. ”

This reminds me of the Quentin Schultze book that I found to push a lot of my buttons about how quick people are (especially the “unitiated”) are to attack the appropriateness of online community from a theological point of view. Schultze took what I thought to be a rather elitist and unseasoned point of view, lifting up the “virtues” of ftf over online on the basis of associating online relationships with some of the “seedier” elements that can iundeed be found in online places. But , as Leighton points out, some of the “virtuous” communities of church-dom are not always as they claim or seem to be. Along the same lines, there are exemplary and personal exchanges taking place online which in some cases far surpass the experience of many today as they seek personal community in traditonal places. Many traditional formats and instances certainly miss the boat and do not touch much of the core of the inner lives of their participants.

I think there is a mutually beneficial interchange to be found between the online and the face to face; between “clicks” and “mortar”. Both can support each other. Online can make available an enduring conversation, and even revive old conversations with new dialogue.