Church people used to communicate primarily face to face. Even though I grew up with phones (those heavy black things with a spiral cord), there was something in my genes that preferred talking directly to a person when I had a request to make, or a proposal to give. That is no longer the way it is though.
Late last night one of my grandkids got a new Android phone for his birthday. This morning before school he had already uploaded a number of Android pictures directly to his Facebook page, feeling quite cool. Since we are Facebook friends, I saw the pictures, shot back a comment saying, ‘Hey, Tre, more swagger??’ To which he replied, ‘Lil bit’. And off to interact with who knows how many other teens, all while eating his Wheaties before school. Maybe humans will evolve towards loss of vocal cords.
Since religion is a social phenomenon more than a private one, church kind of needs social interaction. But that isn’t going to happen as much anymore centered around give and take during the potluck carry in, intimate conferences in the kitchen, or parking lot meetings. It is going to be, and already is, much more electronic in nature. How many video clips have you already seen, of people on cell phones walking into a light post?
They built cathedrals in Europe at city center plazas for a reason. That was the crossroads where lives intersected, and people communicated. To do that today, we need to learn to navigate where Tre does, while eating his Wheaties. Till now, CLC’s dabbling in electronic conversation has been mostly a one way conversation. We send out email messages with information. Our web page has been a static post for the world to view. If there are any responses at all, they usually come in person, at the next Sunday gathering.
We are going to try to ramp it up a bit, folks. In addition to the weekly email, we are developing several blogs, where CLC can put out content electronically. New blogs, like this one, will automatically get posted to our CLC Facebook page. They will show up as thumbnails on the CLC web home page. But besides content from CLC downward to you, you can respond electronically in the same kind of interactions you can get from a Facebook group. And it ought to be easy for you to find our blogs and our Facebook page, because going forward there will be links to them in our weekly emails, and on the CLC web home page. And if you link to them, they will come to you automatically, on your own Facebook page. Most important, that has the potential for not just CLC member interaction, but interaction with the whole electronic community, (including your grandkids).
Why bother, you might say, not our thing. Just leave it to the next generation. No! Bother! Even though it goes against your nature. You cared about communicating with kids in Sunday School 50 years ago. Well, they aren’t in Sunday School anymore. So forget about them? Or, go where you can talk to them. Or don’t we care anymore?
We are going to provide some substantial electronic tools for communicating with people where they are today. We are planning some formal content from CLC to input into those tools. But in the end, it does still come down to you. We can build the electronic tools to allow you to meet on today’s plaza. But you are the souls who have to do the social interaction. Some things never change. And think of how you will impress your grandkids.
