Weekly Outlook - The Instagram saga continues 📸

Dear readers, It has been a hectic 24 hours for the Outlook team. I find myself doing breathing exercises and listening to classical music as I write this, trying to settle my nervous system enough to offer some perspective. For those busy with Ash Wednesday services or your personal lives, here's what's gone down.  On February 19, 2025, our Instagram account was suspended for allegedly violating community standards. We were not informed which standard we violated — even after requesting clarification. Our appeal was reviewed and denied within 10 minutes, leaving us no recourse. Our account, along with all the unique content we created for it, was gone. Yesterday, we published an editorial letting our readers know what happened and where they could now find us on social media. This article also outlined some of Meta's ethics with which we, as an organization, do not align. The editorial went (Presbyterian) viral, resulting in 1,000 new followers on Bluesky and more than 13,000 views in less than 12 hours.  Today, early in the morning, our Instagram account was reinstated by Meta with an apology.  Our team has been up since 6 a.m. connecting, planning, and drafting our next steps forward. After all that, do we return to Instagram?  We have ultimately decided to hold firm to our reasons for criticizing Meta and our vision for the future of Outlook's social channels. We will not be returning to the platform. You can read more about that here. We are still discerning the next steps. Other press outlets have shown interest in telling our story and some friends have reached out to counseling legal action.  For now, I find myself sitting in the gray area of social media — which is where I often find myself as a Christian, marketer, digital native, and theologian. These are the things I know to be true:  Meta continues to prioritize corporate interests, limit user control, relax hate speech policies, roll back fact-checking and end DEI initiatives. (Read more about that here.) This does not align with Presbyterian Outlook's ethics. Nor does it align with my own.  On Facebook (another Meta platform), the Outlook received an incredible outpouring of love and support yesterday from our followers and readers. We believe that it was your attention, your care, your outrage that ultimately led to the reinstatement of our Instagram profile. Social media, even Meta, can still do the work of connecting and working together towards a cause.  When our account was deleted, I felt dejected and small.  I wrote something along these lines yesterday on my personal Facebook profile, and a friend commented "Who has the power?" Using my own words, she reminded me that I do have power. We do have power. Another friend messaged me that she has been seeking out "hush harbors" online for years. Resistance is possible.  It feels that we are living in a sea change moment when it comes to social media. I believe our use of social media, as individual and faith-based nonprofits, will look different a year from now. Exactly how, I'm not sure yet.  For now, I'll keep listening to classical music and breathing deep. Maybe I'll even make a cup of tea and watch my dog sleep, so unbothered by it all. Perhaps there's a lesson there, too. Peace, Rose Schrott Taylor Digital Content Editor P.S. A day before our editorial about Instagram went live, I published an essay by Brendan McLean on the viral anglerfish video. For those working to hold the good and the bad of social media together, Brendan has some words of wisdom.

Five months after Hurricane Helene, Black Mountain Presbyterian Church continues providing recovery and relief by Layton Williams Berkes Presbyterian Outlook banned by Instagram by Teri McDowell Ott Our Instagram is back — but we’re still leaving. Here’s why. by Teri McDowell Ott Lessons from the viral anglerfish video by Brendan McLean  The Rev. Jihyun Oh announces an interim leadership team for the Interim Unified Agency by Rick Jones and Mike Ferguson Curiosity: An innate gift and a lifelong pursuit by Mike Ferguson In case you missed it... Knock at the Sky: Seeking God in Genesis after Losing Faith in the Bible Liz Charlotte Grant addresses recovering fundamentalists, inviting them to rediscover the relevance of Scripture throughout the pages of "Knock at the Sky," writes Emery J. Cummins. Boycotts accompany prayer as faith leaders prepare for a Lent of protest The Rev. Jamal Bryant said he hopes 100,000 ‘conscientious Christians’ will have signed up by March 5 to mark the ‘season of denial’ by fasting from shopping at Target. — Adelle M. Banks Registration for the Atwood Institute for Congregational Courage now open The Rev. Sharon Risher will keynote the Sept. 24-27 training at Massanetta Springs Camp & Conference Center. The power of the pilgrim Keatan King and Omar Rouchon hope secular sites of racial justice work can become the grounds where future church leaders find their lives' work. Dear Aunt Osibe and Uncle Ernest: A letter to my ancestors Gail Henderson-Belsito remembers two people who embodied all that is civil and right. Jesus’ call to curiosity: Detaching from what we think we know Being curious takes vulnerability and courage, writes Teri McDowell Ott, but this is the soft, fertile soil from which spring flowers bloom. Fresh Outlook Bible Studies: “Revelation” In four sessions, “Revelation: Professing Christ Today” by Mark D. Hinds seeks to create an inclusive environment for discussing and reflecting on the political ramifications of following Christ.

Order today! How do we hold space for grief while clinging to hope? Grieving Change and Loss, a daily Lenten devotional from Presbyterian Outlook, embraces the complexity of loss in its many forms — from lost health to fractured friendships — and invites you to encounter the resurrection promise anew. Explore grief’s six stages each week with reflections, Scripture, and prayer.