2 John 12 I have much to write to you, but I do no wan to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to visit you and talk with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete.
It is not possible to over estimate the importance of face to face conversations. They form the basis for all of human interaction. The subtle shifts in facial expression, the slight changes in vocal intonation, the context of the surrounding space and environment all play important roles in understanding a conversation correctly. In normal times it is hard to get conversation right. Now behind masks and over digital means it is almost impossible.
Oh how we long for face to face communications. We want to see the twinkle in the eye of someone we love. We want to catch the interplay of the lilt in the voice and the gentle hand motion that accompanies it. We also want to see the stiffening of the jaw line and know that danger might be just around the corner.
There is one thing I haven’t liked for years, and that is talking on the phone. I tend to cut them short. I’m not sure what it is about phone calls that I dislike, but I do dislike them. But there is one thing I dislike even more: Google Meet, Zoom, FB Live. It is nice seeing someone’s face and hearing a semblance of their voice, but they just remind me of just how much I miss face to face. And I don’t want to be reminded.
Long before these digital means of communication there was something called “pen and paper” communication. My mother still writes letters and cards. She is in her 90’s and has not learned digital communication. Instead she writes and receives written communication. Her letters speak of a much simpler time when people slowed down and thought about what they were going to say.
Today we just tweet at a moment’s notice without much thought at all. We Instagram every waking moment, as though anyone really cared about every moment! Our lives are so filled with empty trivial communication, we don’t even know what face to face communication is. We sit across from each other at a restaurant and the phone is between us and our companion.
The Apostle John wanted to be able to communicate more than writing could contain. He wanted to use his body language, his tone of voice, and probably wanted to be able to say much more than he had paper to write. He wanted to communicate Face to Face.
Someday we too will be able to communicate face to face. Oh, how I long for those days!
The Arnold Journey 