TLC-ing

Online community, conflict, and curiosity

I recently got “baptized” into the TLC through a conversation craft jam session with my new internet friend, Christian Baxter. Christian is an ex-praise-and-worship bandleader who now leads a new conversational improv band of followers and participants who converse on the 'groundless ground' of the YouTube algorithm.

In this jam session, we delved into topics like integral and developmental philosophy, in-person vs. digital community, and the stages of development that communities and relationships tend to go through as they mature or short-circuit.

Watch the whole thing here:

TLC Defined

What exactly is the TLC? Technically, it stands for This Little Corner, as in 'this little corner of the internet,' but that's about where its confirmed boundaries begin—and end.

At the risk of cringing my fellow TLC-ers, I will sprinkle some of my own definitional flavors into the glorious soup of structured chaos.

Decentralized

The TLC is a non-hierarchical emergence* of playful hospitality through virtual group conversations that usually stream live on YouTube but, in some cases, are pre-recorded. It seems like everyone uses the Streamyard web-app, which naturally limits the number of on-screen people to about 10.

Diversity

I have witnessed atheists, protestants, Orthodox, Catholics, Jews, meta-modernists, and developmentalists having theological and philosophical conversations that often turn spicey—a few women here and there, but otherwise pretty bro heavy. I could speculate on what that's about, but I'll save it for a TLC convo.

Long-form

Sessions last between 30 minutes and 6 hours.

“Kayfabe”

I had to look this word up: "the tacit agreement between professional wrestlers and their fans to pretend that overtly staged wrestling events, stories, characters, etc., are genuine."

I'm still figuring out how this piece fits into the TLC, but I hear the word tossed around, and my gut impression is that some hosts vest themselves in a playful/sometimes gritty persona that masks an authentic love for the Samaritan passing by on their Youtube surfboard.

Kayfabe acts as the encircling gargoyles of medieval churches, protecting the holy space from demons while simultaneously inviting the wandering fool into a safe space.

Branding LARP

Most hosts with extra time on their hands take branding really seriously, sprinkling in a healthy dose of homemade video sequences and effects. Partly, this pokes fun at the world of advertising, but just beneath the surface of the sometimes heavy-handed postmodern irony is a sincere inner child calling out to my inner child with a deftness that easily bypasses my soul’s Compliance & Insurance Department.

Learning and healing

Seeing yourself talk long-form on video is one of the closest things to the fires of heaven. Holy shit, I say “like” a lot.

Rhizomic ecclesiology

Part of the TLC is talking about what the TLC is. This might feel exhausting to the outsider, but it’s fascinating to witness and participate in the strangely organic mosaic of emerging digital spaces. It reminds me of Christopher Alexander’s architectural concept, “Pattern #8: Mosaic of Subcultures,” from his book A Pattern Language.

Making up words and phrases

There are very few agreed definitions, but lots of playful language jazziness.

• Breaking the fourth wall: When people transition from lurking to showing their faces on any channel for the first time, they shatter the facade that we are isolated beings out here on the internet.

• Metagelical: Somewhere between post-evangelical and post-postmodern.

• Christian Absurdism: Every soul’s Compliance & Insurance Department has cracks where Christ’s light can shine through. The absurd is where these cracks often form.

• TLC-ing: I invented this word on the spot. TLC isn’t fixed. It’s a process of evolution that constantly adapts to whoever pulls the Thread of the kingdom of God within. I respect anyone who leaps to the other side by breaking the fourth wall.

Call to action

As a new convert, I admit I’m in the annoying honeymoon phase. I don’t fully understand all the aspects of this movement, but I am up for learning, stumbling, and getting back up again in front of everyone. If you’re interested in checking it out, you can either:

a) pray to the YouTube algorithm

or

b) check out some of these channels that I enjoy:

• Paul Vanderklay (PVK)—Founding contributor and arguably the Godfather of the movement: https://www.youtube.com/@PaulVanderKlay

• Luke Thompson—Influenced by Orthodoxy, Rob Bell, David Bentley Hart, Spiral Dynamics, St. Gregory of Nyssa, Fr. John Behr, and Universalism. This is the channel where I broke the 4th wall: https://www.youtube.com/@WhiteStoneName

• McMo—Music and philosophy with mystical kayfabe ethos and branding: https://www.youtube.com/@GrimGriz

• Grizwald Grim—I did a double-take at first with this channel—couldn’t quite figure out his angle, but it’s growing on me, and he has some shamanic branding that inspires me to drop approving “f-bombs”: https://www.youtube.com/@GrimGriz

• Christian Baxter—Did my first “Randos” conversation and follow-up “conversation craft” podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@christianbaxter_yt

• Sam @Transfigured—Straight ahead high-level theology: https://www.youtube.com/@transfigured3673/videos

• Grail Country—I haven’t spent as much time on this channel, but they are very active, and appreciate their contributions: https://www.youtube.com/@grailcountry

* I feel a lot of similar energy to the Emergent church/conversation of the early aughts, except with more nuance and more tools.