Laussane
This paper was written by Jonas Kurlberg, Nam Vo and Sara Afshari for the Theology Working Group.
Introduction
Already in the early days of the internet, Christian individuals and groups saw the potential in the technology for fellowship, outreach and evangelism. Digital technology has long been adopted by enthusiasts, but also marginal groups such as those living with disabilities or in hostile areas. In places such as Iran, for example, churches expanded their activities online in order to include individuals and communities who were otherwise difficult to reach. For such people, online churches and communities have become the only means to worship and fellowship.
While churches have used digital technology for decades, the COVID-19 pandemic took digital adaptation to a new level. As the virus spread in many parts of the world during the spring of 2020, churches had to adjust to government imposed lockdowns, restrictions and social distancing measures. In response to this dramatic upheaval churches were forced to alter their practices and activities. For churches with sufficient resources, one of the most tangible ways in which their practices changed during this period was the widespread application of digital technology to worship, pastoral care, discipleship, and missions.
At the beginning of the pandemic, as pastors and ministers rushed to create digital provisions with little time afforded to training and deep reflection, they largely acted in accordance with their theological instincts.[1] While some church leaders felt unease about the concept of being church online, evangelical churches have historically tended towards the utilitarian use of media technology, in which technology is understood as a tool that can extend human capacity and that can be used towards different ends and purposes. This disposition might derive from the Protestant tendency to give prevalence to content (the message of the Bible) over medium (the Church).[2] However, as scholars from media studies and sociology have demonstrated, technology changes the rules of play of human interaction.[3] While not denying human agency, technological artefacts create environments in which certain courses of action are more plausible than others. It is not least because of this non-neutrality of technology that it is imperative for theologians and church leaders to pay attention to the socio-religious shaping of technology and its theological implications.
Digitally mediated Christian practices raise three broad categories of questions: basic questions pertaining to active participation, presence, relationship and embodied practices of worship; design questions; and questions regarding content and translation. It is to these issues that this paper attends. By attentively listening to Scripture and the theological wisdom of the church, as well as aspiring towards digital literacy, we seek to engage with some of the more pressing ecclesiological questions that the use of digital communication technology raises for the church today. The paper does not offer definite answers nor does it seek to define the Lausanne Movement’s Theology Working Group’s position on digital church. Rather it seeks to give impetus to the ongoing negotiations between technology and the life of the church and invite further conversation.