Preparing Pastors For Digital Church: 3 Reasons Why Seminaries Should Require Courses In Hybrid Ministry
We live in a world that is driven by technology. You can earn a degree online, have a telehealth visit with your doctor, and start your oven from an app on your phone. Technology is integrated into the fabric of our lives and has made accessibility the norm. While the Church continues to think about how technology can serve her congregations, many parishioners are already leading a life that is inundated with technology.
Oftentimes when people hear conversations about technology and the church, they think about LED walls, camera rigs, and projectors (although these are important to the conversation), but when I think about technology and the Church, I think about modes and methods that enable the Gospel to thrive in this digital age. These times demand that Pastors and church leaders adapt and begin thinking about the modes and methods of technology that might help them to better connect with their congregations digitally.
Post pandemic, some churches returned to their traditional ways of doing church; because when people don’t know what to do, they do what they know how to do. Tod Bolsinger, author of Canoeing the Mountains: Christian Leadership in Uncharted Territory says it this way, “when we get to moments of deep disorientation, we often try to reorient around old ways of doing things. We go back to what we know how to do. We keep canoeing even though there is no river.” [1] The river is drying up. The old ways of doing ministry have changed and continue to change rapidly.
While there are conferences that offer workshops on effective ways to navigate the “rivers” of hybrid church, seminaries, the institutions that have been charged with providing theological education and strengthening the practical skills of pastors, have been slow to incorporate hybrid church curricula into their educational offerings. While there are some seminaries that do offer such courses, there are so many that do not.
To better equip pastors for future ministry, I argue that there are at least 3 reasons why seminaries should require courses on how to do hybrid ministry.
Technology Is Everywhere & In Everything
The first reason I believe seminaries should offer required courses on how to do hybrid ministry is because technology is everywhere and in everything. Parishioners who line the pews of our sanctuaries every Sunday live integrated lives with technology. Generations that are coming of age fully embody what it means to be a ‘digital native’; technology is woven deep into the fabric of who they are.
My grandmother, born in 1926, struggled with the concept of using a cell phone; it felt foreign to her. She didn’t see a need to be reached while she was away from the house or out running errands. On the other hand, my niece, who belongs to the Alpha generation, does not know a world without cell phones or social media. For her, a world without these two things wouldn’t make sense. My grandmother and my niece come from two different generations that were socialized to communicate in two different ways.
Pastors are called to minister to both generations. Seminary is the place where pastors can collaboratively strategize how they can minister to both generations in an effective and impactful way. The future, and even now, calls for adaptive leadership.
Pastoral Care Will Happen More Online
The second reason I believe seminaries should offer courses on hybrid ministry is because pastoral care will happen more online. “The opportunity to build God’s kingdom online every day is enormous. Not only can online church be the front door to faith for millions, [but] your church can be the lifeline to Jesus for your members and local community.” [2] The presence of a digital ministry in a church gives pastors and ministers instant reach in the world. With the click of a button, pastors can extend pastoral care.
When I was in seminary, we were required to do a preaching practicum as well as a clinical pastoral care practicum. These courses were designed to give pastors and ministers hands-on training in preaching and pastoral care with the hopes that it would prepare them for real-life ministry. While these invaluable courses equip pastors and ministers for ministry, the future demands an even stronger focus on online integration with pastoral care.
The Alpha generation might prefer a FaceTime pastoral visit rather than an in-person visit. This might sound like a foreign concept to some, but again, this generation has been socialized in an environment inundated with technology. What may seem foreign or useless to some, is normal for them. They may also prefer a text message to a phone call. Training pastors and ministers on how to navigate these digital spaces in a way that is ethical and appropriate can provide exponential value to a congregation.
FaceTime, text messaging and social media are all great platforms for extending pastoral care. This is not to suggest that some pastoral care needs don’t necessitate in-person care because they do; however, digital tools offer valuable support and will likely become more important for future generations.
Pastors Need A Theology of Technology
Seminary is the place where many Pastors and church leaders are first exposed to the meaning of theology and how it informs their own practices and beliefs. What a pastor, and subsequently their church, believes about technology informs how they use it to impact ministry.
The Church has a theology for everything. Womanist theology, liberation theology, practical theology, etc. All of these are important and needed. However, so many pastors lack a Theology of Technology. A Theology of Technology centralizes God and God’s message while using the tools of technology (cameras, social media, live streaming, etc.) to magnify and propel the reach of the message. It is one thing to have technology at our disposal, it is an entirely different thing to know how to maximize these tools for expanding God’s kingdom. A good Theology of Technology understands that the medium is a tool, designed to amplify the message, not alter it.
One of the primary purposes of theological education is to help pastors and ministers think critically regarding issues of theology, faith, and religion. Technology, and its role within the church, cannot be left out of the conversation or the curriculum. Teaching a Theology of Technology helps to debunk myths about using technology in the church, provides context on how God has used technology throughout human history for God’s purposes, and equips pastors and ministers to build hybrid ministries that thrive.
Conclusion
In a hybrid model, digital ministry isn’t the finish line; fostering in-person relationships and connections remains a core value. But if that never happens, training pastors to build and implore digital ministry that effectively administers online care and foster real connections can help the Church grow exponentially in this digital age. Can they be exposed to some of these ideas in a one-hour workshop? Yes. But deconstructing and reconstructing theology takes time and curriculum. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither will our hybrid ministries be. We need structure and resources.
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[1] Bolsinger, Tod E. Canoeing the Mountains: Christian Leadership in Uncharted Territory (p. 92). InterVarsity Press. Kindle Edition.
[2] Craig, Angela. Online Jesus: A guide to community, discipleship, and care online (p. 10). Kindle Edition.
