FIDorisTim

Faith Integration Wikispace: Technology, Cyberspace and the Forward Advancement of Faith Communities
As we see the progression of web 2.0 tools, ever-increasing computer processing, and perhaps even the invent of artificial intelligence; we as educators know how difficult it is to stay ahead of the "technology curve". In the Education field, we must try to keep with the the children who are native the the technologies and meet them half-way, if not more, to inspire them and teach them how they are able to learn. This same must apply to other areas of our lives. Doris and I decided to come together to research, brainstorm, reveal what we have found about local churches and faith communities in the area and how they are responding to the technology wave of the new Millennium. We've chosen to attack this idea in two phases. 1) See what they are currently doing to reach out beyond their borders and 2) Brainstorm on how they can utilize technology to broadcast their message.

Lastly, we've reflected on our spiritual journey thus far in our lives and what religion has done to us a people of faith.

1. What does your chosen organization do to reach beyond its walls to people in the surrounding community? Churches are a great resources for community outreach. The churches we have been able to be a part of have done several things that make them stand out.

We are particularly keen on the fact that certain faith communities bring in Priests from less fortunate nations, bring them into the homes of parishioners, to learn the ways of American culture and have them serve in Sunday masses. They are able to take these experiences back to their countries. It's the exchange of cultural viewpoints and lessons/moral values learned that really puts the points of the Bible and the teachings of God into perspective.

Aside from Priest Mentorships, they also set up groups to serve the specific needs of the community. Whether it be youth groups, needy family support centers, alcohol/narcotics anonymous support groups, Bible studies, marriage preparations, etc. This list can go on and on because the Churches in our communities are there to serve the people. Where there is a need, there is a church to fulfill it. Funny enough though, people do not realize that the churches have so much to offer. This information is usually disseminated via word of mouth, a paper bulletin, or perhaps the local newspaper that the Church must pay out for each advertisement. Some Churches have gone away with these traditional fashions and have turned to technology to help boost their memberships.

Some churches advertise events on local websites such as [|The San Gabriel Tribune]. Our family has attended several events, such as festivals that offer games and performances for children. We even attended a church, that at Christmas time recreates Bethleham village on their property. All I did was do a search on a local calendar and there it was advertised. These local calendars offer churches a free way to get their message out. I am actually surprised more churches don't think to post. Another way churches reach out is by offering private school services. This is a great way to reach out because many people outside of their church will send their children.

Most large churches are starting to see how powerful a good web page can be. It is more than just having a page, but it is what churches are choosing to do with the pages that count. How many times have I come upon a church that has not updated their calendar of events since last year? Too many! I came across this web page by the [|First Baptist Church of McKinney] that has a very cool site. They have created two entry portals, one for newbies and one for members. Each leads to purposeful pages. The area for guests gives information about what their church believes, directions, ministries and events. Whereas the area for members has links where they can donate money, an e-newsletter and a place where they can post prayer requests, as well as view videos of past services and events. This church understands the power of a web page. Yes, I have to click on an extra button to get to the information I would be looking for, but the impression is that when I click the information will be suited to exactly what I need.

2. How can they use technology to reach out? - currently crystal cathedral versus low income smaller churches (example) There really does seem to be a gap between small churches and large churches and technology use. According to the [|Barna Group], 48% of churches that have less than 100 adults have a church website, compared to 91% of larger churches with more than 250 adults attending. In some ways it is similar to that what happens in some schools. They think that technology tools are “outside” of their budget and that they can get by without it. So they choose to do without. When integrating techonology into their church, they usually go in two directions. They are embracing social networks like myspace and face book to reach beyond their walls. At the same time they are seeking out software to help with their administration needs. Though this software is not a way to reach beyond their walls in a way of retaining their members. They also look to fellow parishioners to develop, maintain, and create content for a "homebrewed" website, that may or may not serve the intents and purposes for the church. [|West Angeles Church of God in Christ] uses software to keep up with it's 15,000 members. They have information stored in databases on each member and are able to send out quarterly tax statements to it's members. non english speaking communities. More and more churches are seeing the technology gap and are asking themselves what can we do to close this gap between our church and our members.

3. Please include a reflection on what you learned talking to people of other faiths, and how you can share your faith in the future. -Tim My family never used to be as spiritual or religious, especially during my up bringing. It was Christmas and Easter and maybe Thanksgiving, but other than that it was never. Even at best we were at church for no more than 45 minutes (show up late, leave early). My grandmother who lived with us was always at church. maybe 3-4 days a week, and always on Sunday. If it wasn't at church it was at least an hour or so dedicated to her rosary. I always wondered when, I was a kid, how someone could devote so much time to being quiet and still. I was always involved in sports and so was my sister. This normally conflicts with a Sunday mass. Especially in the morning time. As I grew older and sports didn't play a factor any longer, my grandmother encouraged me to go with her to mass, and I went. it was this time that she went that she knelt down to sign the cross upon exiting the pew and she heard a snap. She tore a ligament in her knee. I carried her out of church and took her to the car and drove her home. From here her health deteriorated with surgery after surgery and rehab stint after rehab stint. Through this long process I would take my grandmother to her doctors,I was there to help stretch her out in rehab and of course we would have lunch and talk and go to church. It was really a painful time to see do well then fall back over and over again. Finally too many things made her journey complicated and they told her she just had to be put in a home where they can watch her and rehab her onsite. We both hated this because it meant our time to visit was over. No more church, no more car rides and definitely no more lunches. She eventually passed in the home and I was quite angry for a while. I never agreed with the doctors decision and I never agreed that she was doing that poorly. But when I was at her funeral, it wasn't until then, sitting at the church that I realized it. This whole ordeal had brought us closer together. It got me interested in going to church again. I was able to share a piece of my faith with my grandmother and she was able to share a piece of herself with me. They say that faith and religion have odd ways of presenting themselves to you and this was just one of those times. I think about her a lot, especially on Sundays during mass, and I know that my being there makes her pleased that I have found God and see an importance of being a faithful person to Him.

-Doris My first memory of church is going to a little Sunday school and singing Jesus loves the little children! But another memory that sticks out is going with my brother door to door. He was much older than me but he would bring me a long with his wife. I was just a kid 8 or 9. We would go and knock and then he would just talk to people. It was crazy because a lot of people would just open up and talk about their lives, past experiences with churches or just whatever was going on so that we could pray for them. I think of now and our dependence upon technology and how many people have opened up online like they did when we would go door knocking. Even then, people wanted to be connected. So now churches and spirituality are online and no longer is it churches that have to go door to door. Instead they just have to set up the "house" and those seeking information come to them. I think that the future of technology and churches will be interesting. Already we see the beginnings of church courses being offered online such as ordination and bible studies. There are sites for churches to post podcasts and social network, [|Life spaces]. There are churches that live stream services, [|North Valley Baptist Church] and [|Streaming Faith]. I think it would be interesting to see streaming churches or video services. This would bring the church to a whole new level. Yes, it opens the door to skipping church and just watching it from home. It also takes the social factor out, which is a huge part of going to church. But it would be good for those who have to stay home because they are sick with the flu or for those who are home bound or in a hospital. Plus, it would give people who are not part of the church a chance to attend and get an idea of what the church is about from the security of their home. Some may resist but the question is can God exist online? I believe so. Should churches put themselves out there to create an online community? I think there is a need to be filled and by using technology churches can adjust to a new generation of people. It is similar to what we are learning in adjusting teaching and curriculum to fit the needs of the digital native. Just as technology and access to it has changed the way people learn, it has also changed the way people view spirituality and religion.

For further available reading and articles based on our information, please reference the links below as well as the ones embedded in the article.

[|Guts Church], in Tulsa Ok, is using Facebook and myspace to bring in new members. What is exciting is that not only are they using their Facebook page, but they have even bought ad-space to get the word out about major events. Their hope is to reach the college and career group. [|Satellite churches]: pre-recorded sermons on dvd [|Interview: http://www.technewsworld.com/ story/33078.html?wlc= 1235443020] [|Article about churches and technology http://www.npr.org/templates/ story/story.php?storyId= 4788676]