Has anyone read the book, “Making a Mess and Meeting God: Unruly Ideas and Everyday Experiments for Worship,” written by Mandy Smith? I stumbled upon this book when browsing a few blogs and this book appeared to be a grace moment in worship planning. Any thoughts?
A blog by Mark Pierson on a suggested website called, Clayfire Curator, spoke about the depth called for in worship planning. Pierson challenged listeners to ask the deeper questions, challenging worship planning to not just “fill in the blanks.” He dared and suggested that worship planners intentionally create a worship event that helps people to engage with the Trinitarian God and sustains people in their following of Christ in the world. It made me ask the question: How much space is there for freedom in worship...
At a recent Tech Talk, the speaker suggested that just as a church keeps their lawn maintained, equal attention should be given to the church's virtual lawn. If hospitality is an important ministry to a church, what does hospitality look like online? Must a website allow for digital communication to happen online (like a blog, link to email...etc.) or is a steady website, functioning more like a sign, hospitality? Is the goal to have a website function like a sign to help people find a church, or is a website...
I recently discovered, the Star Tribune’s Acts of Faith Blog. Writer, Rose French, contributes a blog entry almost daily on some topic of religious or spiritual matters. In a recent article titled, “Survey: Churches turn to electronic giving.” French reports that, “A recent study by LifeWay Research found that 14 percent of all American Protestant churches offer online giving.” Although, this is not a pressing question, what will happen when giving is all online? “Fewer and fewer Americans cash their paychecks...
Have you ever had a class assignment that has changed your life? The Spirit can work in strange ways. One assignment that has thoroughly empowered many actions in our family’s life is a research paper exploring: Climate Change and Theology. The discoveries my husband and I made in researching for this class have demanded of us a journey into intentionality. It is one assignment that has disrupted our life! Thank you Dr. Guillermo Hanson for this disturbance! For our Ministry and Media class, we are assigned...
I am at this point a middle of the road connecter online. I don’t have a phone with immediate internet connection, but I try to regularly check all my online communication tools whenever I can. This week I have run into two concerns/questions: Am I connected enough to satisfy relationship demands? and What do our stories mean when so much can easily be already known? Am I connected enough to satisfy relationship demands? “Here’s my cell phone number, just call, email, or text me here and you can reach me...
In the Cluetrain Manifesto, a dialogue initiated by corporate activists about the growing internet community and its functioning is happening, and their first of 95 theses is that “Markets are conversations" (Dr. Mary E. Hess references this in her book "Engaging Technology in Theological Education"). Conversations are already happening, but we will have to decide if we will have a voice in those conversations, or not. And if so, how will we be active in them? What religious resources should be available on platforms...
In an article written by Henry Jenkins, Director of the Comparative Media Studies Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, titled, "Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century," digital media and the necessity of engagement is discussed. The digital divide, transparency, and ethics are all issues that must be faced to engage in this living media culture. How can the culture support low-income families so they do not fall behind because of not having access...
Why MySpace? Why Facebook? Why not another? Embodied Racism? Chapter six in Mary Hess’ book, “Engaging Technology in Theological Education,” and Danah Boyd’s article titled, “White Flight in Networked Publics? How Race and Class Shaped American Teen Engagement with MySpace and Facebook” both taught and challenged me to engage in dialogue about racism & media in a new, honest, and communal way. Hess writes, “I am painting the picture in stark colors to enflesh Frankenberg’s observation that...
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