I’m a pretty serious participant on the Internet. My business depends on it, and my wife (Beth) and I use it for all sorts of communication with each other: IM, email, etc. I use an RSS aggregator, Firefox, del.icio.us, and other tools for interacting with other folks across the ‘net. Also Flickr and several blogs, for contributing to the content out there.
But my church (MDPC) participates in none of this. The web site is mostly static, and certainly one-way: there are not chat rooms, bulletin board/forums, or any way to contribute my ideas, thoughts, prayers, etc. There is no RSS feed, no blogs, and no IM. There is no electronic “community”.
And even though we now have a fairly large (5 people), professional communications department, I’m not sure I see this changing. Tonight I read a post which makes me wonder if MDPC’s problem is not just one example of much larger problem: The American Christian church is designed around a model of one speaker talking to many people. In other words, it’s broadcast. Pastors/churches talk; people listen.
The Internet, on the other hand, seems to support and encourage peer-to-peer connections (much to the chagrin of the music industry). By posting on my blog, my voice can be heard by one, several, or millions of people. By reading other people’s blogs, and looking at their pictures, and chatting with them on IM, I can connect with their lives. It is, or can be, a very intimate medium.
Conceptually, that intimacy and openness should be a good fit for a church devoted to following Jesus. Imagine a place where we can share our stories, build relationships, and learn about Jesus together, in a place that transcends geography and physical limitations. What an incredible opportunity!
But the American church doesn’t yet “get” this model. It is not so much opposed to the Internet (though there are some churches that can’t stand it) as it just doesn’t understand it. How can it exist in a place where individuals are empowered to create, think, and imagine in a global marketplace of ideas and examples?
Although the American church is in a different universe from the Internet right now, I have to confess that I think followers of Jesus Christ can use the Internet in wildly effective and innovative ways. That will be fun to watch. And I’ve got a few ideas on how to jump start this.
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