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Using Facebook to Discuss Cultivation Issues Versus Traditional Sharing Methods

Oct. 26, 2017 |   By a Falun Dafa practitioner outside China

(Minghui.org) I have recently observed that many practitioners both inside and outside of China have opened Facebook accounts. Besides using this platform for telling people the facts about Falun Dafa, some have begun to use it to discuss problems they encounter during cultivation.

Practitioners openly publish arguments they were privy to between practitioners, their views towards other practitioners and even details of what was discussed at Fa study sessions on Facebook. These sparked off replies from many practitioners expressing their opinions on the matter.

Non-practitioners who happen to come across these discussions do not realize that the conflicts practitioners run into are to improve in cultivation. They do not understand that cultivation principles can be different than the laws of everyday society. When they read these discussions between practitioners, it will affect their view about Falun Dafa.

Facebook should not be used as a platform or the main platform for sharing among practitioners. One should respect traditional methods of sharing such as face to face discussions at local Fa study groups or through articles published on the Minghui or PureInsight websites.

If you feel the need to use other channels to voice your view because you cannot find any support through sharing in a Fa study group, or your article was not published on websites hosted by Dafa practitioners, shouldn't you look within? Perhaps you have not found a way to express your opinion that is acceptable to most practitioners? Couldn't the problem indeed lie with you?

I think it is not a small matter if one cannot fit in among practitioners. If you cannot share face to face or through Dafa websites and must seek other channels, aren't you deviating from the Fa?

If you feel that the issue you want to talk about is very important, why not write a good sharing article and publish it on the Minghui website so that more practitioners can participate as well as share their views on the matter? At the same time it would serve as a guide to even more practitioners and could benefit everyone.

On the other hand, even if only one or two non-practitioners have negative thoughts about Dafa as a result of reading Facebook posts that publish arguments among practitioners, or someone with ulterior motives uses these discussions to undermine Dafa, the individual has sinned against Dafa.

I think a veteran practitioner should support and proactively carry out effective communication using traditional methods. This is being responsible to Dafa and to the whole body.

I would also suggest that practitioners who own a Facebook account, to not comment on posts that openly discuss cultivation problems. Whether you like or dislike such posts, you are increasing the chances of such discussion being viewed by those outside the cultivation community.