Snippet: Is Online Church Church?
snip·pet | ˈsnipit | noun a small piece or brief extract.
Here’s a snippet from an interview with Alan George, who ran online churches for one of the largest churches in the U.S.:
“My mom, for many years, lived in India. If she would call and say on FaceTime video, ‘Hey, I want to talk to the grandkids. Put the kids on the phone.’ If I were to tell my mom, ‘Mom, I know you miss the grandkids, but you won't have the best experience through a FaceTime video call. Let's wait for six months until you're here in person and then you can talk to them.’ She would slap me through the phone. I mean, that's how she is. It's like, ‘Get the kids on the phone.’"
There’s been a lot of debate going on in Christian media about online church that has intensified since the end of quarantines.
In this debate, some argue that online church is not only here to stay but that the church needs to invest heavily in it. That sometimes means, for a few proponents, firing some current staff and hiring staff that will focus on the online experience and on pastoring folks online. (For those who take it that far, I suspect they may not be learning anything from the recent stream of stories about toxic church cultures and pastoral abuses of power.)
I’ve also heard and read of a small number of churches that were streaming or offering services on line that plan to cease that altogether once the pandemic is over because of deeply held theological beliefs about what constitutes the church gathered.
Since I resonate with their theological convictions, and there’s a part of me that likes bold moves like that (a part of me that is, I suspect is most oftentimes toxic), I appreciate Alan George’s statement about his mother as a corrective and as a way of keeping my feet planted in realities that are equally theologically important.
Yes, we’ll continue to offer online options for a variety of reasons.
No, I don’t think it can replace in-person gathering for the able-bodied person over the long term.
Yes, there are exceptions—Christians who are able-bodied but live hours away from a healthy church or who live in areas of the world where there is persecution of believers or any number of other exceptions.
And I’m thankful for churches that have the staffing, finances, and expertise to offer not only a great online experience but also online pastoral care and discipleship, and even opportunities to serve others and connect face-to-face online over the long term, while encouraging all that can gather in-person to do so.