How is our rapidly-changing hyperconnected culture impacting the church? A recent Associated Press article that ran in USA Today discussed how the internet has become the hottest place to build a church. A number of congregations are creating “internet campuses” where visitors can do much more than just watch an internet stream of the local worship service.
These sites are fully interactive and come with their own pastor, live chats, 1-on-1 prayer through IM, communion, and in some cases have conducted long-distance baptisms. As the article says, “The move online is forcing Christians to re-examine their idea of church. It’s a complex discussion involving theology, tradition and cultural expectations of how Christian should worship and relate. Even developers of Internet church sites disagree over how far they should go.”
In response to the article, Jesse Rice, the author of The Church of Facebook, states, “The way we think about and experience church is shifting quickly and radically. Membership in Internet churches is exploding while mainline denominations continue to see their pews emptying fast. What’s going on here and what should be our response?” In The Church of Facebook, Rice takes a hard look at the Internet-driven trends effecting the church worldwide and invites readers to consider, through humor and well-researched information, how we can truly be “the hands and feet of Jesus” in the disembodied worlds of Facebook, Twitter, and online faith communities.
Online social networks like Facebook and MySpace are connecting people like never before. With hundreds of millions of users, they’re creating almost limitless potential to redefine our personal worlds. It’s a movement that’s changing how we form relationships, perceive others, and shape our identity. In his book, Rice takes a deeper look at the movement which, at its core, reflects our need for community. “Our longing for intimacy, connection, and a place to belong has never been a secret, but social networking offers us a new perspective on the way we engage our community,” Rice explains.
This new perspective raises new questions:
This new perspective raises new questions:
1. How do these networks impact our relationships?
2. In what ways are they shaping the way we think of ourselves?
3. And how might this phenomenon subtly reflect a God who longs to connect with each one of us?
Social networking is no fad; it has become a fact of life, especially for teens and twenty-somethings. The Church of Facebook is essential reading for parents and pastors who want to understand this trend and its impact on their children and congregations. Rice’s discussions will engage social networkers of all ages and stages who are wrestling with the very real issues of identity, meaning, purpose, and friendship within the context of virtual communities.
In the end, The Church of Facebook moves readers toward understanding God’s work in the body of Christ, the church. Rice challenges readers to consider new perspectives regarding their social networking habits and how those habits may point to deeper heart issues and, ultimately, our hunger for Jesus.
“What are we to make of the future church?” Rice asks. “How do we go about cultivating authentic community and transformative discipleship within disembodied online environments? It’s more important than ever that we understand the cultural forces pushing and pulling at the church, and how we can best engage them.”
The Church of Facebook by Jesse Rice David C Cook/October 2009 ISBN: 978-1-4347-6534-5/192 pages/softcover/$12.99
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