Internet and the Church

I am fascinated with the possibilities of the Internet, especially as it relates to the church. Many persons use Web pages, blogs and podcasts as primary sources of information and often without discernment of credibility. I know because we hear them quoted in Bible studies and Sunday school classes. Therefore, a recent United Methodist News Service commentary by Matt Carlisle caught my eye when I read:

Today, the Internet is impacting religion as Johannes Gutenberg did with his invention of movable type printing and the publication of the Gutenberg Bible in the 15th century.

There are more than 211 million Internet users in the United States, or 69.9 percent of the population. (InternetWorldStats.com, March 07)

This and other statistics that Carlisle includes in his commentary seem to uphold my argument that we need to pay more attention to our church Website and use e-mail, text messaging etc. for more effective communication. The time has come to get serious about this.