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Change for Year Book Reporting of Worship Participation
In June, I learned that our general church will ask for worship attendance numbers in a different way in order to better account for digital participation. This change will become explicit in the next reporting period in early 2025, but will be for worship services in 2024.
I hope that you are beginning to find ways to identify and record your participation onsite and online. Even more, I hope that you are finding ways to adapt to these new hybrid types of ministry. The church has always used technology to spread the Gospel (dating back to Paul’s letters, the printing press, and more recent electronic technologies). There has been an adjustment period with many of these technologies, as we are experiencing now with various Internet-based technologies.
The best language to describe participation on location or in digital space is still evolving. Personally, I have found some thoughts from Jim Keat, Digital Minister of Riverside Church (New York), helpful – he now distinguishes onsite and online participation. You also can read some thoughts from our general church distinguishing between attendance and streaming views.
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