Our Final Question
“Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” Exodus 3:5 [NRSV]
Do you agree with the statement, “Face-to-face and online connections are equally important to the digital age church?”
We asked this question, raised by Ryan Panzer in Grace and Gigabytes (Fortress Press, 2020) as our final question of all those we visited. Without exception worship leaders, content producers, and pastors all agreed. Responses from online worshipers were generally in agreement, but were more nuanced. At the heart of the question is the hard reality and genuine opportunity that we all face: online options are not going away. “I’ve heard, ‘when are things going back to normal?’ -but this is the new normal.” Pastor Kate Zywicki, Calvary Lutheran, Clarkston, Michigan
Intern Pastor Tim Jacobsen, St. Mark Lutheran, West Des Moines, Iowa, asks “How do we give people the opportunity to engage and connect?” He notes that we need to continue teaching people what ways of engagement are available to them, both in-person and online.
Are virtual and in-person participation both real participation? Pastor Bob Bekkerus, St. Mark, asserts that virtual and in-person are equally real. The people online assume that they are participating. This was driven home to him when he attended a worship service with his own children and his tween had no concept that the sermon had been a video projected in the worship space. It was real.
The question is not about whether online worship and connections will replace face-to-face interactions. Some may return to offer only face-to-face worship, but many established congregations will continue to offer face-to-face worship alongside of new online options. “Yes, I absolutely agree with that statement,” says Becky, an online worship host, from St. Mark. “It’s not the same, she continues, “I don’t think it will fully replace things.” Another worshiper from St. Mark, notes that “I don’t know that you can replace being in-person because it is easier to interact.” But she asserts that having an online presence is more important than ever to reach a younger generation because everything they do is on their phone or online.
Another online worshiper at St. Mark states that she is not sure they are equal, “I think face-to-face is better, more beneficial for connecting with people. But during a pandemic, online is a great option.”
Does everything need to be streamed?
St. Thomas/Holy Spirit Lutheran in St. Louis, Missouri, is committed to having one “no camera” service each week where people can gather together and know that their participation and presence is known only to those people in the room. Pastor Jill notes that giving people the option not to be on camera allows them a measure of safety and eliminates any confusion about permission. As a pastor, I, Erik, know that I am on the radio and now visible through the livestream. I am accustomed to conversations at the grocery store or ballfields that begin, “I heard you/saw you at church this week.” I know and am always aware that what I am doing may be seen widely. Worship participants may be disoriented/disconcerted by similar conversations when they recognize that they are occasionally visible online. There is no practical way to guarantee that an individual worshiper will not appear briefly online when a service is streamed. In fact, online worshipers like to see who is present in the room. This may be more important to longtime congregation members who may be ‘checking up’ on their friends and family members, but digital only worshipers also find value in the gathered group or communal experience even at a distance.
Pastor Jonathan Heierman, Calvary, astutely observes that an individual can still have a preference for in-person or online worship. People can prefer one over the other. The challenge for worship leaders is to continue to weigh how face-to-face and online worship are important to the future of a digital age church.
During the past year, congregational leaders and members may have felt that they have been running a long race without their shoes. Instead of framing that experience as though we have been missing something important for the journey, we are bold to stand with Moses and experience the place where we are as holy ground. God is revealed in this holy place where face-to-face and online worship exist together. May we continue to go where God is leading.
Rev. Kristina Weber, Senior Pastor Trinity Lutheran, Jamestown, North Dakota
Rev. Erik Weber, Senior Pastor St. John’s Lutheran, Jamestown, North Dakota
July 2021