Comments on: Cartoon Reflection: Biblical Preaching

By: Matt Glover

Matt Glover — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 05:45:42 +0000

Thanks Paul - I’ve always suspected that over the long haul, I purely online expression of community/church would be missing something.

WE are designed to intereact with others, but I think that interaction is of the physical sense. Online can add to it, but not replace it.

By: Lucas

Lucas — Wed, 15 Nov 2006 14:57:34 +0000

Gushfun Paul?

By: Paul

Paul — Wed, 15 Nov 2006 11:47:39 +0000

Having spent a pretty long time doing the online community thing (sharing prayer, etc - the whole deal) on the Gush website, I reckon the constraints of online communication would really make it hard to do the whole thing in an authentic way that would keep everyone coming back - beyond what’s already happening anyway.

I read a book called Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman a few months back (attempted review on my blog if you’re interested). He reckons that when TV started to take off, everyone’s first reaction was to say “We have to get church into that medium!” Postman doesn’t think it works for a number of reasons. It’s really good to be innovative for sure… but I think we need to make sure with online stuff that we go to the medium with the message, rather than going at the message with the medium.

-Paul.

By: Rachel

Rachel — Wed, 15 Nov 2006 08:06:40 +0000

Lucas: There’s some American Christian websites that have been doing that for years. I used to go into one. it was kinda like a chat room but had someone type a “message/sermon” and people would write prayers. people didnt type when preaching was happening,just read and wrote at end if wanted to. it was mainly based on being taught about a passage in bible etc or praying 4 one another-no singing(obviously)and communion as we know it was simply thanking and repentance etc.perhaps people grab bread and drink at home,who knows! hope that’s food for thought about ur curiousity!

By: Matt Glover

Matt Glover — Wed, 15 Nov 2006 04:40:57 +0000

I’ve experiemented with online church a few times now - there’s lots of possibilities. However, I’m not sure that it could ver really replace face to face stuff, but in addition to it, I think it holds lots of potential.

And a question: Is worship something we ‘listen’ too?

By: Lucas

Lucas — Wed, 15 Nov 2006 00:50:20 +0000

Yeah, good point. I’d like to see Barnabas, Mark, Sylas etc. posting replies. And there’s couldbe some heated discussions betweem Paul and Simon.

By: Dave

Dave — Wed, 15 Nov 2006 00:17:56 +0000

Well, that could be interesting… we’re hopefully going to be starting forums (at some point), on the youth website… I’ll see about trying to organise that. That would be fun though.. organising a time with all different time zones. But Matt, I like the cartoon.. very cool!! I think in today’s society, if Paul was doing his stuff in the here and now, I wouldn’t be surprised to find Paul writing long e-mails and blog posts…

By: Lucas

Lucas — Tue, 14 Nov 2006 23:24:02 +0000

Hey there Matt,
What do you think of the possibilities of an ‘online church’ experiment. A time where people get together at the same time online, share prayers, listen to worship, read a sermon then grab coffees and discuss about it on a blog? Well, not quite like that, but try and come up with a way to break down the online 24/7 community into a definite time of ‘church’ where people try and do it at the same time. Or others ways of being deliberately ‘church’ rather than ‘community’ online?

By: Alison

Alison — Tue, 14 Nov 2006 23:18:56 +0000

heheheheh. clever.

By: Sue Crocker

Sue Crocker — Tue, 14 Nov 2006 12:41:22 +0000

I’m forwarding this to my pastor. We’ve just started a message board, but there haven’t been that many posts there yet.