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149Gather Us In
Journal of Catholic Education, Vol. 23, No. 1, Summer/Fall 2020, pp. 149-161. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 International License. https://doi.org/10.15365/joce.2301102020
Gather Us In: Building Meaningful Relationships in Catholic Schools Amid a COVID-19 Context
Ronald D. Fussell Creighton University
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Catholic schools in the United States pivoted from traditional learning to a remote learning model to maintain continuity of instruction for students. This pivot has served as a catalyst for academic innovation in many Catholic schools. As Catholic schools turn their attention to the possibility of remote learning in the fall of 2020, it is important now to consider how remote learning impacts interpersonal relationships within the school community. This re- flective essay examines implications of relationship building in a remote learning context using Cook and Simonds’s (2011) framework for relationships for Catholic schools as a lens. By attending to the various relationships within the Catholic school community in a remote learning context, teachers and leaders together can take steps to ensure that the distinctive Catholic identity of the school community remains intact.
Keywords COVID-19, pandemic, community, relationships, remote learning
In March of 2020, Catholic school communities were challenged in ways that none could have ever predicted. With the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting social distancing mandates, Catholic
schools in the United States took on the unprecedented task of pivoting to remote instruction to maintain continuity of their students’ educational expe- riences. Many Catholic schools responded with grace, determination, and grit. Kitchen tables became school desks, basements became classrooms, and online meetings emerged as the fora for well-planned lessons. By the end of the 2019- 2020 academic year, the COVID-19 pandemic was the catalyst for true in- structional innovation in these Catholic schools. However, while instructional innovation is important, so too is relationship-building, and this is especially true in the Catholic school setting. Given the isolated, asynchronous nature of remote instruction, it is important to consider these broader implications of taking the entire educational enterprise online.
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With uncertainty regarding a return to face-to-face instruction in 2020, as well as the possibility of a second wave of illness that may prompt a re- turn to remote instruction, Catholic schools need to examine the impact of distance learning on the interpersonal relationships with which students are connected. After all, remotely or in person, the essence of community in Catholic education remains. Community is central to the mission of Catholic education, and Catholic schools are settings where students are to be formed as “persons-in-community” (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops [USCCB], 1972, §13). As the Congregation for Catholic Education [CCE] (1972) proclaimed, “the school must be a community whose values are com- municated through the interpersonal and sincere relationships of its members and through both individual and corporative adherence to the outlook on life that permeates the school” (§32). This emphasis on relationships and commu- nity begs the question, what should Catholic school relationships and com- munity look like in a COVID-19 context?
The Case for Intentional Community in the Catholic School Strong communities are essential for Catholic schools to achieve their
intended purpose. While this may seem to be an obvious and universal asser- tion for any school setting, Church documents and scholars affirm the es- sence of relationships and community in a specific Catholic context. Catholic schools are called “to create for the school community a special atmosphere animated by the Gospel spirit of freedom and charity” (Vatican Council II, 1965, §8). Their proper function is community - one that is illumined by the Gospel spirit and that prioritizes relationships between students and teach- ers (Miller, 2006). A school’s values are transmitted within and beyond this community through a robust network of interpersonal relationships (CCE, 1972). From the perspective of the Catholic school teacher, this idea of com- munity becomes the setting in which the teacher models the “kind of spiri- tual innovation which will manifest different forms of evangelization” (CCE, 1972, §23). In addition to teachers and students, a Catholic school community is inclusive of a range of other stakeholders, including parents, educational leaders, and non-teaching staff. All play a role in advancing the school’s mis- sion through interpersonal relations (CCE, 1997).
At the time of the publication of this article, 60 Catholic schools in the United States have announced closures that are a result, at least partially, of the COVID-19 pandemic (CATO Institute, 2020). With the pandemic exacerbating existing concerns about enrollment and school closures, it is even more important to understand how the concept of community can be a driver for school choice and enrollment.
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Parents value the tight-knit community of a Catholic school. Accord- ing to a recent study commissioned by the National Catholic Educational Association, one advantage of Catholic schools is a strong sense of commu- nity grounded in Catholic values, and the quality of a school’s community is a motivating factor that leads parents to enroll their children in Catholic schools (Mayhill Strategies LLC, 2018). These findings echo a similar study that found that of 18 potential motivating factors that led Catholic parents to enroll a child in a Catholic school, a sense of community was rated fifth (Gray, 2014). If the idea that nothing exists without relationships (Wheatly, 2002) is true, then parents who don’t perceive the communal and relational value of Catholic education for their children will likely seek it elsewhere.
The Realities of Relationship-Building in the Remote Learning Setting Normally, the primary opportunity for students to find their place in the
Catholic school community occurs in the classroom and is facilitated by the teacher. As the Congregation for Catholic Education (1972) stated, “the teacher can form the mind and heart of his pupils and guide them to de- velop a total commitment to Christ, with their whole personality enriched by human culture” (§40). What is the nature of this relationship in a remote learning context, and how does it invite students into a faith-filled learning community?
While research on the impact of remote learning on relationships in PK- 12 schools is scant, scholars have examined more thoroughly the nature of relationships and community in online programs in higher education. Un- surprisingly, cultivating community in these settings can be difficult (Lewis, McVey-Dyche, Chen, & Seto, 2015; Shi & Weber, 2017). This can be attribut- ed, in part, to the isolation that students can experience when they lack expo- sure to the environmental cues and social interactions that would normally be present in a traditional classroom setting (Liu, Magjuka, Bonk, & Lee, 2007). Diminished opportunities for face-to-face encounters with others limits distance students’ opportunities to experience the positive culture and climate of the school community (Rovai, Wighting, & Liu, 2005). When one begins to apply these factors in a PK-12 context, the concerns expand to intersect with developmental needs of elementary, middle, and high school students. This is not to mention other challenges related to remote teaching and learn- ing, such as the availability of technological resources to students and to the school, or the extent to which teachers and students have been equipped with the skills to succeed in a remote learning setting.
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However, there is hope, as a shift in focus to more student-centered ap- proaches to teaching and learning in the remote learning setting can build community between students and teachers in new and innovative ways. These directions prioritize the constructivist perspective that students can acquire knowledge by attaching new learning to existing life experiences. Accord- ing to Rovai (2003), “A constructivist learning environment . . . is one that is learner-centered, where the focus is on learning rather than teaching, and where active learning and cooperation through discussion take place” (p. 90). Holz (2017) recommends that a constructivist approach in a remote learning scenario a) prioritize real-word scenarios, b) enable dialogue, c) call teachers to provide questions instead of answers, and d) encourage the extension of lines of questioning in the learning environment. Findings such as these have clear implications on PK-12 remote learning practice in Catholic schools. If Catholic school teachers adopt a constructivist approach that prioritizes learner experiences over the delivery of content, then relationships between students and teachers can be strengthened, and students will more likely feel connected to a vibrant learning community.
Embracing a Charism of Relationships Noting the lack of an organizing structure in Church documents that
makes concrete the essence of Catholic education, Cook and Simonds (2011) proposed that Catholic schools would be well-served to view their existence through a framework of relationships:
This will be a challenging century for Catholic elementary and second- ary schools as they strive to maintain enrollments in a changing cultur- al context. We have argued in this paper that one way Catholic schools can meet this challenge is by refocusing their efforts. The framework presented in this article provides clear educational objectives and can be used to assist schools in this process of redefining themselves. The application of the framework to Catholic schools . . . gives educators a place to begin the process of educational change. If Catholic schools embrace this process of reenvisioning their purpose, they will be able to clarify what sets them apart from all other schools, more effectively recruit students, and enable their graduates to change the world by building relationships instead of fences.
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Specifically, as noted in Figure 1, they identified from Church documents areas of focus related to relationships with self, God, others, community, and creation. These relationships exist in an environment where students are inspired to synthesize culture and faith, preparing them to build meaningful relationships in the world:
Figure 1. A framework for the renewal of Catholic school. From “The charism of 21st-century Catholic schools: Building a culture of relationships,” by T. J. Cook and T. A. Simonds, 2011, Journal of Catholic Education, 14(3)( https://doi.org/10.15365/ joce.1403042013).
With the unprecedented contemporary challenges of the pandemic and their enduring effect on Catholic school communities, these words are in- credibly prophetic. So, as Catholic schools continue to navigate the unchart- ed terrain of long-term remote instruction, a renewed examination of this framework of relationships can help to ensure that Catholic schools remain true to their mission.
Applying a Framework of Relationships to the COVID-19 Context As Catholic school leaders and teachers consider the needs of students
through the lens of relationships amid the current context of the pandemic, specific strategies for how students can build relationships with self, God, others, community, and creation are drawn into focus. Intentional reflection and application of these strategies can help Catholic schools to reclaim their school communities in concert with what we know about how students learn in the online setting.
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Relationship with Self Cook and Simonds (2011) stated “for a person to be in healthy relation-
ship with others, a person must know and like him- or herself. Therefore, [their] model begins with a process of self-exploration” (p. 325). In a con- structivist learning setting, we know that the process of learning is student- centered, where students discover meaning in the intersections of prior experiences and new knowledge (Arends, 1998). All Catholic school teachers in the remote learning setting ought to be intentional about providing stu- dents with opportunities to reflect on these prior experiences so that these intersections can be discovered. These opportunities can take the shape of well-designed discussion forum prompts, reflective writing assignments, or other authentic forms of assessment that inspire students to reflect deeply on prior experiences within the context of new learning. Moreover, the learning process should attend to the formation of the whole person, leading students to become fully alive in their “mind, heart, body, and spirit” (Simonds, 2006). Reflective opportunities for students in the remote learning setting should account for all four areas.
Relationship with God Teachers’ efforts to guide students to develop relationships with them-
selves is not an isolated endeavor. Rather, opportunities for students to reflect on their relationships with themselves are always inclined toward a relation- ship with God. The Congregation for Catholic Education (1972) stated:
The Catholic school should teach its pupils to discern in the voice of the universe the Creator Whom it reveals and, in the conquests of sci- ence, to know God and man better. In the daily life of the school, the pupil should learn that he is called to be a living witness to God’s love for men by the way he acts, and that he is part of that salvation history which has Christ, the Saviour of the world, as its goal. (§46)
Cook and Simonds (2011) noted that for students to build a relationship with God, they must also build a relationship with Christ. One measure of whether a Catholic school’s educational enterprise succeeds or fails has to do with how well it enables students to build such a relationship. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (2017) elaborated that “when we encounter Christ, experience his love, and deepen our relationship with him, we become more aware of our own worth and that of others” (§15). Moreover,
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while students cultivate their relationship with God in the online forum, so too can they develop a greater appreciation of faith traditions other than their own, smoothing tensions to pave the way for meaningful relationships with others who may be different (Cook & Simonds, 2011).
Student relationships with God can be developed when faculty members serve as mentors and role models, providing opportunities for meaningful discussion and authentic faith witness (Cook & Simonds, 2011). To that end, teachers take on the task of engineering opportunities for such encounters the remote learning setting. Miller (2006) affirmed that “prayer should be a normal part of the school day” (loc. 318). As it is in the classroom, so too is it in a remote learning setting. Teachers should be intentional about building meaningful opportunities for prayer into online learning experiences. This is especially important if access to mass, sacraments, and engagement with a parish community are limited due to social distancing restrictions.
Relationship with Others As students develop relationships with themselves through prayer and
reflection, they build a foundation to develop healthy relationships with others - seeking to understand the context of those whom they encounter in a spirit of dignity and mutual respect. To that end, teachers can serve as the model for the student, providing an example of how to build appropriate relationships with self, God, and others that mirrors what Christ wanted for us (Cook & Simonds, 2011). When teachers model this behavior, it inspires students to build similar relationships on their own (USCCB, 1972).
While opportunities for building relationships with others can come naturally in the classroom, it is a more abstract process in a remote learning setting, where the structure and order of the traditional school environment give way to a more ambiguous process of learning. Asynchronous learning strategies such as discussion forums have become staples of the remote learn- ing model (Liberman, 2019). While asynchronous discussion forums allow students the time and space to reflect deeply in how they interact with others, concerns about the lack of face-to-face interaction remain. Moreover, syn- chronous, web-based conferencing services that have become popular during the pandemic are also limited in how they encourage organic relationship- building. It is for these reasons that it is important that the teacher be inten- tional about providing opportunities for students to engage and collaborate with one another as much as possible - sharing previous experiences and collectively building new knowledge on top of that.
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Relationship with Community A Christian community is not focused solely upon itself. Rather, the
community should be oriented in service to others, especially the poor, mar- ginalized, and those who need it most. Student relationships should reflect this outward orientation toward the local and greater community (Cook & Simonds, 2011).
Typically, students build relationships with the greater community by engaging in Christian service work. This type of service work ought to dif- fer from secular acts that are completed merely out of a spirit of general good will (Benedict XVI, 2009). Christian service is always motivated by the Holy Spirit; it is never merely a process for students to accrue service hours to satisfy arbitrary graduation requirements. By making service an authentic response to a social justice need, locally or globally, students will come to ap- preciate a greater impact on their personal context.
In celebrating his first Chrism Mass as the Bishop of Rome, Pope Fran- cis charged his brother priests to “be shepherds with the odour of the sheep” (Francis, 2013). This is an appropriate metaphor for teachers and students alike. However, social distancing restrictions can impede service-related activities that lead to direct contact with others. With that in mind, teachers need to be mindful in the remote learning setting to provide opportunities for students to apply new knowledge to solve problems in the world. Bring- ing new learning to bear on social justice issues can orient students to au- thentic Christian service at a time and place where it is safe to do so.
Relationship with Creation In their framework, Cook and Simonds (2011) were intentional about ar-
ticulating the importance of student relationships with creation. They stated “Catholic schools must consider how they can integrate faith principles across the curriculum to help students understand these complex realities” (p. 328). This focus on creation was reinforced by Pope Francis in his 2015 encyc- lical, Laudato Si’, which calls for “a new dialogue about how we are shaping the future of our planet” (§14). Francis (2015) identified a number of settings where such dialogue can take place, the first of which is the school setting.
A focus on caring for our common home may seem natural in some subject areas but more forced in others. Nonetheless, it is important that students develop this relationship with creation, even if learning is occurring remotely. Teachers can cultivate this care for creation through interdisciplin- ary approaches that allow students to see how connections between various content areas can support this emergent need.
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Bringing the Framework to Fruition in a Remote Learning Context As noted in Table 1, bringing this framework of relationships to life in a
COVID-19 remote learning context requires intentional action on the part of the Catholic school teacher. Instruction, both synchronous and asynchro- nous, should be designed to cultivate these types of relationships within the classroom setting. Moreover, Catholic school leaders play an important role, providing teachers with time and space to collaborate and plan so that these needs are consistently met in the remote learning setting. It is not enough for leaders to hope that it is happening. Rather, leaders need to take the time to monitor remote instruction to the extent that they are able to ensure that these approaches are present in instructional design. Finally, Catholic school leaders are called to make resources available to teachers and students so that these relationships can grow unfettered while students learn from home.
Table 1
Teacher Indicators and Leader Considerations for Relationships in a Remote Learning Context
Dimension of Framework of Rela- tionships
Indicators for Teachers Considerations for Leaders
Relationship with Self The teacher provides opportuni- ties for ongoing reflective practice in the remote learning setting that allows students to connect new knowledge with previous experi- ences.
Opportunities for reflection at- tend to the formation of the whole person - mind, body, heart, and spirit.
Opportunities for reflection occur asynchronously, which allows students the time and space for meaningful engagement.
What system is in place to allow school leaders to monitor the ex- tent to which students engage in personal reflection in the remote learning setting?
How are teachers provided with opportunities to collaborate and learn from each other about effective reflective practices for their students?
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Relationship with God The teacher serves as a mentor or role model, revealing to students their own reflections on their relationship with God.
The teacher provides opportuni- ties for students to reflect on the presence of God in the world around them.
The teacher provides opportuni- ties for students to pray mean- ingfully and offer intentions on a regular basis.
Students collaborate to develop and lead meaningful prayer that connects with prior experiences and responds to contemporary needs.
How do school leaders provide the same authentic faith witness to teachers that teachers are expected to provide to students?
How are teachers equipped to lead prayer? What training are teachers provided regarding dif- ferent styles of prayer?
Relationship with Others The teacher uses well-developed prompts to encourage online collaboration among students in both synchronous and asynchro- nous settings.
The teacher leads students in de- veloping norms for online learning engagement that promote mutual respect, Christian charity, and human dignity.
The teacher models care for the whole person in individual and group interactions with others.
The teacher designs instruction that is inclusive and respectful of the cultures and identities pres- ent in the remote learning setting.
How does the leader invite stu- dent feedback and input on the nature of their relationships with other students and with teachers?
What resources are made avail- able by school leaders to teachers and students for online collabora- tion and relationship-building?
How does the school leader moni- tor norms in the online learning environment to ensure that they reflect Gospel values?
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Relationship with Community The teacher provides opportuni- ties for students to apply new learning to current events and so- cietal topics that speak to social justice issues.
The teacher provides students with opportunities to address so- cial justice themes in a collabora- tive way in the course of remote learning.
How does the leader help teach- ers and students to understand opportunities for service?
How does the leader ensure that service learning is authentic, and from the heart, as opposed to merely a transactional process that aims to accrue hours of ser- vice to meet arbitrary graduation requirements?
Relationship with Creation The teacher accounts for care for God’s creation in the process of curriculum design and instruc- tional planning in the remote learning setting.
The teacher guides students in discussions about how new learn- ing can be used to improve our common home.
Teachers engage in interdisci- plinary approaches that allow students to apply new learning across content areas in support of God’s creation.
How does the leader monitor cur- riculum and instruction to ensure that students are provided oppor- tunities to apply new learning to solve issues related to our shared environment?
How does the leader provide opportunities for teachers to col- laborate across subject areas to design instruction that inspires greater care for God’s creation?
Conclusion The pivot to remote learning for Catholic schools in the United States has
undoubtedly been a challenge, and the spectre of returning to this format of instruction in the fall of 2020 might be disheartening to those who crave the face-to-face contact of a traditional Catholic school environment. But, these difficulties have already sparked innovation and opportunity. Catholic schools have indeed grown in new and exciting ways. Perhaps with the knowledge that Catholic school teachers and leaders have gained as a result of the pivot to remote learning, Catholic schools might embrace new ways to deliver in- struction to meet the diverse needs of a broader range of students. Or, maybe new experience gained by teachers and leaders might allow Catholic schools to develop intentional strategies to reach students for whom a Catholic edu- cation would otherwise be unavailable. However, regardless of where these
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innovations lead, it may all be squandered if Catholic schools don’t take this historic moment to reexamine and renew their identities.
Relationships are at the core of who we are as human beings created in the image and likeness of God. Pope Francis (2020) recently tweeted:
God created us for communion, for fraternity. Now more than ever the pretense of focusing everything on ourselves, making individualism society’s guiding principle, has proven illusory. We have to be careful! When the emergency is over we can easily fall back into this illusion.
When the storm has passed, and when this chapter in the history of Catholic education has been penned, what will our response have been? Will our schools have drawn students and teachers closer together in this time of crisis? Or, will Catholic schools have slouched into a setting where the tech- nology will have driven students and teachers further apart? This reflective essay makes the case for an intentional process of Catholic school renewal that focuses on relationship-building in the remote learning context. When Catholic schools enter into this process with courageous hearts and a pur- poseful focus on community, the unique and distinctive character of Catholic education can be preserved, even amid these trying times.
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__MACOSX/._Gather Us.pdf
Design_and_Implementation.pdf
Design and Implementation of Web-based Church Information Systems (Case Study : HKBP Kebon
Jeruk)
Armando Ondihon Kristoper Purba Master Program in Computer Science
Universitas Budi Luhur Jakarta, Indonesia
Meilieta Anggriani Porrie Master Program in Computer Science
Universitas Budi Luhur Jakarta, Indonesia
Supardi Master Program in Computer Science
Universitas Budi Luhur Jakarta, Indonesia
Muhammad Syafrullah Faculty of Information Technology
Universitas Budi Luhur Jakarta, Indonesia
Ernawati Dewi Master Program in Computer Science
Universitas Budi Luhur Jakarta, Indonesia
6th Meilieta Anggriani Porrie Master of computer Science
Budi Luhur University Jakarta, Indonesia
meilietaanggrianiporrie18@gmail
Abstract— HKBP Kebon Jeruk Church has a lot of data consisting of church data, Pastor data, Church server data, family data, marital data, baptismal data, and also about church agenda such as the schedule of activities Church, schedule of church service. The problem in HKBP Kebon Jeruk is that the Data is provided and managed manually, as well as difficulties in finding the necessary information. Therefore, the system needs to be built by the HKBP Kebon Jeruk Church to request church management data.The method used in the HKBP Kebon Jeruk system is the Extreme Programming method, and the analysis used is the PIECES analysis. The result of this research is to build the HKBP Kebon Jeruk system according to the needs of the user. Keywords— HKBP Church, System Information, Web Based, PIECES Analysis.
I. INTRODUCTION
HKBP Kebon Jeruk Church located at Jalan Puri Kembangan, Kebon Jeruk, West Jakarta. HKBP Kebon Jeruk also has members called Church congregations. HKBP Kebon Jeruk has a lot of data consisting of church data, Pastor data, Church server data, family data, marital data, baptismal data, and also about church agenda such as the schedule of activities Church, schedule of church service. The problem of HKBP Kebon Jeruk Church is a church administration management system that is still manual by using Microsoft Office Word and the number of documents stored in the form of physical archives or documents Including member registration documents Church, baptism and marriage are still use logging with the form. System becomes less effective because to complicate officers in archiving and Search data. HKBP Kebon Jeruk Church requires an information systems support service activities and help data management to produce useful and quality information. The method used in the HKBP Kebon Jeruk system is the Extreme Programming method, and the analysis used is the PIECES analysis. The result of this research is to build the HKBP Kebon Jeruk system according to the needs of the user. In a previous published study [1], the authors focused on the design and development of information
systems that cover all activities of XYZ Church. With the design and construction of information systems is the storage of all XYZ data the church becomes centralized and integrated in one system [1].
Another study put attention on Church Choir online communication and music Recording and streaming System [2]. The purpose of this research was a web-based software application along with a well-defined database system required to help provide a process that will bridge the break in communication between members of the church [2].
The differences in research with that has already been done is Design Management Information System HKBP Kebon Jeruk Church, baptism, and web-based marriage Generates an information system that displays Information about the church, server information of church activities, congregations, articles, the registration of church members, baptism and and management of all church data.
Based on that, the church servant has difficulty in looking for the information needed that is why the information system need to be built to handle data management of the church, primarily on the design and implementation of web-based Church Information Systems (Case Study : HKBP Kebon Jeruk).
II. RELATED THEORY
A. Definition of System
A set of elements standing in inter relations can be called as a system [3]. Definitions of classes of system can be divided into all systems, conceptual systems, concrete systems and abstacted systems [3].
Any aspects of an entity can be described in terms of three sets called as system concept. That three sets in the system concept are a set of elements, a set of interactions between these element and a set of interactions with the outside world [3].
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Fig 1. Conceptual Framework for System [3]
According to figure 1, we can see there are two kinds of highest level systems: real and conceptual system. Real systems can be consisted parts of interacting in space-time, exchanging material, energy or information with each other and with the environment. Meanwhile, conceptual systems can be consisted a set of inter-related informatical elements, which taken together, can be processed by and external processor to synthesize higher-level members in the informatics hierarchy.
A system consists of three kinds of things: elements (in this case: characteristics), interconnections (characteristics relate to and/or feed back into each other) and a function or purpose [4]. Figure 2 shown that the system test relatively simple where each definition will be examined if it contains these three things.
Fig 2. The System Test [4]
B. Definition of Web
A system of interlinked hypertext document accessed via internet called the world wide web [5]. The version of the web can divided into [5] :
1) Web version 1.0 First implementation of the web and lasted from
1989 to 2005, known as the first generation and includes core web protocols such as HTML, HTTP and URL. The characteristics are have read only content, available to anyone at any time, includes static web pages and use basic hypertext mark-up language.
2) Web version 2.0 Second generation, defined by Dale Dougherty in
2004 as read-write web, known as a platform where users can leave many of the controls they have used in this web version. The characteristics of this web version are
technology centric characteristics, business centric characteristics and user centric characteristics.
3) Web version 3.0 As third generation in 2006 and first coined by John
Mark off of the New York Times, known as semantic web. The characteristics of this web version are SAAS business model, open source software platform, distributed database, web personalization, resource polling and intelligent web.
4) Web version 4.0 Considered as an Ultra-Intelligent Electronic Agent,
Symbiotic web and Ubiquitous web. Web version 4.0 will be read write concurrency web.
5) Web version 5.0 Considered as Symbiotic web, decentralized.
Currently this web version is emotionally neutral, do not feel the user perceives.
6) Web version 6.0 Delivers web hosting services through an adjustable
architecture.
C. Definition of UML
A general purpose modeling language used for specifying, constructing and documenting the artifacts of software systems called the Unified Modeling Language (UML) [6]. The function of UML represents a collection of the best engineering practices that have proven successful in the modeling of large and complex systems [6]. Basic diagrams at UML are use case diagram, class diagram, statechart diagram, sequence diagram, collaboration diagram, component diagram, activity diagram, deployment diagram.
D. Definition of PIECES Analysis
PIECES method is one method that can be used in the process of analysis and evaluation of a system that has been running on a company. In the PIECES method, there are six variables used to analyze information systems, including [7].
1) Performance This analysis is carried out to determine the
performance of a system. This performance can be measured by the amount and speed of data produced.
2) Information and Data This analysis is used to determine the amount of data
and the accuracy of the information generated in a search by an information system.
3) Economics This analysis was conducted to determine the effect
of financial information systems and costs incurred. 4) Control and Security
This analysis is used to determine the supervision and control carried out so that the information system runs well.
5) Efficiency This Analysis is done to determine the efficiency of
an information system.
E. Definition of Extreme Programming (XP)
An agile methodology providing quality products and provides a chance to retort to ever-changing client needs
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called Extreme Programming (XP) [8]. There are six techniques that are recognized as agile development strategies, which are Agile Crystal methodologies, agile dynamic software development methodologies, feature- driven development method, lean software development, scrum and extreme programming [8].
III. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Fig 3. Research Methodology
From the figure 3 shown research methodology, here is an explanation :
1) Determine research topics At this stage, the researcher determine research
topics and a requirement in this final project journal work to complete.
2) Observation and Data, Collection At this stage, do a direct observation and conducting
interviews to conduct observations and business processes that are running to find out the information about the activities and events of worship HKBP Kebon Jeruk and conducts data, collections related literature and studies following titles that will be examined further.
3) Analysis of the problem using the Method Of PIECES Analysis problems of business HKBP Kebon Jeruk.
Collect the information from the existing procedures concerning the issue, the cause of a problem, as well as the effects of the existing problems using Analysis PIECES.
4) Planning
At this stage, will do the planning system built, by analyzing the needs of the new system based on the scenario of the needs of users of the system and how the system can respond to user interaction.
5) Design At this stage, the researcher using the modeling
design of the interface to describe an application that will be created.
6) System Modeling with UML At this stage, will be on doing modeling system to be
built, using the Unified Modeling Language (UML). 7) Coding
After the design, and data collection was completed. The application will be made directly using PHP and MYSQL. This stage, also have did some checking against a program implemented in code.
After the design, and data collection is complete, the system will be directly created according to the user needs. At this stage, also have did some checking against a program implemented in code.
1) Refactoring Do the refactoring stage, in the processes of coding
experience obstacles or problems. 2) Testing
After refactoring is complete, continue with the testing process. The testing process is used to test system according to user requirements.
3) Implementation After the system are analyzed, designed, and tested,
the system is ready to be implemented .
IV. RESULT AND DISCUSSION
A. PIECES Analysis
The results of the PIECES Analysis on systems running is as follows:
1) Performance Analysis TABLE 1. PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS PIECES Analysis
Current System Running
Performance In the management of the congregation still use paper, causing errors in the processesing of data, besides processesing data will take a lot of time.
From the table 1 performance analysis, the current system still using manual, still use paper that caused errors in processing data and took a lot of time.
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2) Information Analysis TABLE 2. INFORMATION ANALYSIS PIECES Analysis
Current System Running
Information The Information obtained is still less accurate and late in the delivery of the information.
From the table 2 information analysis shown that accuracy of information obtained is less at the current situation.
3) Economy Analysis TABLE 3. ECONOMY ANALYSIS
PIECES Analysis
Current System Running
Economy In the long-run, the cost required will be considerable enough because it costs out to buy paper and stationery.
From the table 3 economy analysis shown that the cost must be considerable because can lessen the bought of the papers and stationeries.
4) Control Analysis TABLE 4. CONTROL ANALYSIS
PIECES Analysis
Current System Running
Control The Anticipation of data, security is still not optimal, so anyone can open and modify data.
From the table 4 control analysis shown that the security for the data is still not optimal so it can be opened and modified by others.
5) Efficiency Analysis TABLE 5. EFFICIENCY ANALYSIS
PIECES Analysis
Current System Running
Efficiency In the creation of church activities and events must take a long time and seek the history of activities of church events, thus becoming inefficient.
From the table 5 efficiency analysis shown that takes time to seek the history of church’s activities so it became inefficient.
6) Service Analysis TABLE 6. SERVICE ANALYSIS
PIECES Analysis
Current System Running
Services There is a delay in service due to the recording and searching of congregational data, and the information have did manually with reams data,, so it takes a long time to obtain the desired data.
From the table 6 service analysis shown that a delay problem occur when recording and searching of congregational data.
B. System Needs Analysis
System needs analysis The system needs analysis consists of :
1) Functional Requirements Functional need is a necessity that contains any
process that is later done by the new system. The analysis of functional needs consists of :
a) The system can provide login for admin. • Admin can login to the website Administrator
page. • Admin can add all data to the website, such as
Add congregational data, add Pastor data. • Admin can edit all data into the website, such
as Edit congregation data, edit the pastor's data.
• Admin can delete all data into the website, such as deleting congregation data, deleting Pastor data.
• Admin can upload church agenda is a congregation newsletter, and a schedule of church activities.
b) The system can provide login for Pastor • Pastor can login the page of the website of
HKBP Kebon Jeruk Church. • Pastor can edit profile. • Pastor can upload church agenda is a
congregation newsletter, and a schedule of church activities.
c) System can provide login for congregation • Congregations can login the website of HKBP
Kebon Jeruk's Church. • Congregations can register. • Congregations can edit the profile. • Congregations can view the schedule of
church activities, and the Church news. 2) Non Functional Requirements
Non-functional needs are a necessity that emphasizes on the behavior properties owned by the system. Non- functional needs consist of :
a) Hardware To design and create web-based information
media it takes hardware device to make the application program run well. The specifications of the hardware used are as follows:
• Processor: Intel (R) Atom (TM) CPU N2800 @ 1.86 GHz.
• Memory: 2.00 GB. • Harddisk: 80 GB B.
b) Software Software that is used to support and design the
creation of Web-based information media must comply with the needs. The software used is as follows :
• Operating system: Windows 7. • Programmer language: PHP.
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• DBMS: MySQL.
C. System Design
System design using Unified Modeling Language (UML) Model: Use Case Diagram. System design consists of :
Fig 4. Use Case Diagram Proposed HKBP Kebon Jeruk system
From the figure 4 shown about Use Case Diagram Proposed HKBP Kebon Jeruk system, here is an explanation :
1) Admin Admin can login to the website Administrator page
,add all data to the website, such as add congregational data, add Pastor data, edit all data into the website, such as Edit congregation data, edit the pastor's data, delete all data into the website, such as deleting congregation data, deleting Pastor data, and upload church agenda is a congregation newsletter, and a schedule of church activities.
2) Pastor Pastor can login the page of the website of HKBP
Kebon Jeruk Church, edit profile, and upload church agenda is a congregation newsletter, and a schedule of church activities.
3) Congregations Congregations can login the website of HKBP Kebon
Jeruk's Church, register, edit the profile, view agenda
Church is a schedule of church activities, and the Church news.
D. System Implementation
The following is the login page of HKBP Kebon Jeruk Church systems can be seen in Figure 5.
Fig 5. Login Page
From the figure 5 shown about Login Page, here is an explanation : Login page that serves as an Admin, Pastor, and Congregations. That wants to go to the admin, Pastor, and Congregations pages. Admin, Pastor, and Congregations who wish to enter must be required to provide the correct username and password. If the Admin, Pastor, and Congregations do not provide valid username and password data, then Admin, Pastor, and Congregations can not enter the main menu and there will be a notice that the username and password provided is not valid.
V. CONCLUSION
The conclusions of the research are : 1) The absence of the system to process the data so that
there is an error recording data that takes a while long enough. Therefore it needs to be developed into the system of HKBP Kebon Jeruk web based.
2) The system advantages of the HKBP of the web- based Kebon Jeruk are : a) Can accelerate data processing. b) Able to present information quickly, precisely
and accurately. c) Data stored and organized neatly in one Web
database. d) System activities can be monitored properly and
securely.
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REFERENCES [1] Kurniawan, Y., & Cassandra, C, “Development of Church
Information System (A case Study approach)”. International Journal of Software Engineering and Its Applications, vol. 8. No. 12, 199- 208, 2014.
[2] Dr. Fubara Egbono, and Chinwe Ndigwe, “Church Choir online communication and music Recording and streaming System”. International Journal of Computer Applications Technology and Research Volume 6–Issue 5, 234-241, 2017.
[3] H. Sillitto, P. Godfrey, and D. Mckinney, “Defining " System " : a Comprehensive Approach Defining ‘ System ’: a Comprehensive Approach,” no. July, 2017.
[4] R. D. Arnold and J. P. Wade, “A Definition of Systems Thinking : A Systems Approach ScienceDirect A Definition of Systems Thinking : A Systems Approach,” no. November, 2015.
[5] K. A. Chhaya Khanzode Raisoni and R. D. Sarode, “Evolution of the World Wide Web: From Web 1.0 To 6.0,” Int. J. Digit. Libr. Serv. IJODLS | Geetanjali Res. Publ., vol. 1, no. 62, pp. 2250–1142, 2016.
[6] A. Lawgali, “Traceability of Unified Modeling Language Diagrams from Use Case Maps,” Int. J. Softw. Eng. Appl., vol. 7, no. 6, pp. 89– 100, 2016.
[7] Putu Risanti Iswardani, I Wayan Surya Pramana, and Yanu Prapto Sudarmodjo, “Design of Hotel Warehouse Management Information System Based on PIECES Analysis”. International Journal of Engineering and Emerging Technology, Vol. 3, No. 2, 2018.
[8] A. Hameed, “Software Development Lifecycle for Extreme Programming,” Int. J. Inf. Technol. Electr. Eng. ITEE, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 7–13, 2016.
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__MACOSX/._Design_and_Implementation.pdf
Pademic-Ecclesiology.pdf
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HTS Teologiese Studies/Theological Studies ISSN: (Online) 2072-8050, (Print) 0259-9422
Page 1 of 8 Original Research
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Authors: Gernaida K.R. Pakpahan1
Fibry J. Nugroho2 Priskila I. Benyamin3 Frans Pantan4 Wiryohadi Wiryohadi5
Affiliations: 1Department of Theology, Faculty of Theology, Sekolah Tinggi Teologi Bethel Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia
2Department of Theology, Faculty of Theology, Sekolah Tinggi Teologi Sangkakala, Salatiga, Indonesia
3Department of Research and Evaluation Education, Faculty of Research and Evaluation Education, Universitas Negeri Jakarta, Jakarta, Indonesia
4Department of Christian Education, Faculty of Christian Education, Sekolah Tinggi Teologi Bethel Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia
5Department of Pastoral Counseling, Sekolah Tinggi Teologi Bethel Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia
Corresponding author: Gernaida Pakpahan, [email protected]
Dates: Received: 22 Oct. 2021 Accepted: 22 Jan. 2022 Published: 16 Mar. 2022
How to cite this article: Pakpahan, G.K.R., Nugroho, F.J., Benyamin, P.I., Pantan, F. & Wiryohadi, W., 2022, ‘Pandemic ecclesiology: Church re-actualisation during the pandemic’, HTS Teologiese Studies/ Theological Studies 78(4), a7201. https://doi. org/10.4102/hts.v78i4.7201
Introduction Since the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, church services have changed drastically, which requires the church to adapt quickly to provide the best service. Restrictions on worship in church buildings during the pandemic and compliance with the application of health protocols are the obligations of each individual for the creation of joint health in the community. Empirical facts show that many churches are not ready to implement life in the new normal (Manguma 2021). The activities originally carried out onsite in the church building have now almost all shifted to a technology-based virtual world. It is undeniable that the availability of the latest technological devices and the skills to use them are also significant needs that must be met. Churches have appeared in almost every digital medium, including e-mail, websites, internet forums, videos and social networking sites (Hutchings 2013). Fellowships and congregation meetings are now commonly held online via Zoom, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Google Meet and other link-based platforms (Singarimbun 2021). Worship in the virtual world has become a church reality where there are interactions between individuals and the church community (Bock & Amstrong 2021).
The adaptation of virtual ministries is a challenge that the church must face wisely, considering how people are migrating from a world where initially social contact is determined by the physical presence and then changing to a virtual world where social contact is described by what appears on the screen (Dreyer 2019). This phenomenon is increasingly leading to changes in the model of civilisation. So, all activities of the society, including the church, will be carried out with a virtual civilisation model that touches every aspect of human life.
It must be understood that all church members do not readily accept virtual ministry, where online media is used as the primary way of communication in church life (Jun 2020). Although, historically, virtual services have existed for a long time, namely, when church services connect to technology. As the technology advances, the church also serves with newspapers, radio,
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has brought significant changes to the life of the Christian church in Indonesia. Such changes can degrade the essence of the fellowship of believers. The reality of the COVID-19 pandemic, which became the church’s starting point, has triggered a change in the pattern of carrying out its duties and services to the people and their environment. The church can adapt and transform its ministry innovations as a living organisation. The church needs to reinterpret the effectiveness of its presence through adapting new service patterns, namely onsite services to virtual services or hybrid services, to remain relevant to every dimension of rapid change in all aspects. This research study analyses the actualisation of church ecclesiology in the midst and after the pandemic. Using descriptive qualitative methods with interactive data analysis from Miles and Huberman, the following points have been found: (1) virtual ministry as a church reality, (2) a pneumatic encounter spirituality characterises the church, (3) ecclesiology in the context of universal communion and (4) the sacrament as a means of manifesting divine power.
Contribution: This study provides the concept of collaboration between ecclesiology as a principle and technology as a method. Ecclesiology and technology can realise the ministry of church unity. Collaboration between principles and methods in the church will build a flexible church in all conditions. However, the principles and duties of the church vocation are not neglected.
Keywords: communion; sacrament; pneumatic; virtual; technology; ministry.
Pandemic ecclesiology: Church re-actualisation during the pandemic
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Copyright: © 2022. The Authors. Licensee: AOSIS. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License.
Page 2 of 8 Original Research
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television and other media (Denson 2011). In a global world order that connects to the Internet, all church members realise that virtual reality is a reality that supports community life activities, including the church. However, many residents, especially the older generation, are still unfamiliar with these technological devices, and therefore, virtual services are not receiving a good reception. It seems that the old culture of social interaction is still a strong choice for this group.
The utterly different response by the younger generation, such as the millennial generation and the generation after it, where the Internet is vital in carrying out their life activities. Humans connected to the Internet get various conveniences in carrying out their life activities (Bock & Amstrong 2021). In addition, the availability of various platform facilities can provide space for humans to obtain a lot of information quickly and cheaply. In other words, technological facilities have helped humans to optimise their potential and achievements.
It must be realised that technological developments have provided new experiences and various benefits for humans; for example, virtual worship services provide many choices (Lövheim & Linderman 2005). Because apart from the worship held at the local church, everyone can easily access various services simultaneously. In other words, everyone is free to choose and follow worship according to their needs. Study materials enrich knowledge or find answers to various questions that arise in one’s mind. In addition to vast opportunities, one can choose the right time to not interfere with other tasks. Of course, it must be appreciated that there are members of the congregation who have a solid emotional bond with their church, prioritising remaining faithful to worship in their local church (Hosea 2019). The openness of access to information media has provided an opportunity for every individual to follow the worship he or she ‘likes’ according to his or her ‘needs’. Church membership can also switch from being an administratively documented membership in a local church to being a follower of certain servants of God on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and other social media (Rahmawati 2020).
The church, in particular, Gereja Bethel Indonesia, needs to actualise its service patterns and systems relevant to the community and environment with the practical implications of changing situations. The most important thing in the essence of worship is to experience fellowship or encounter with the life (Triune God). Therefore, worship is fundamental and absolute (Nel 2016). For Christians, worship can use various places and media, such as church buildings, public buildings, radio, television, Zoom, YouTube, Instagram, Google meet and other platforms. That is why the congregation needs to be continuously educated to adapt to the changing world without leaving its worship activities (Jun 2020).
These modifications change the experience of Christian spirituality from a physical encounter to a virtual one
(Sopacoly & Lattu 2020). Currently, the virtual ministry also can carry out missions virtually (Jun 2020). Church ministries have started to adapt to enter the virtual space, and traditional pastoral care is migrating to digital (Sanjaya 2020). The digital era provides an opportunity in the Christian dimension to measure the risk of moving worship to a virtual space (Horsfield 2015). An in-depth study is needed regarding the actualisation of ecclesiology during a pandemic. This study presents an analysis of ecclesiology during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study can provide the concept of a Pentecostal church that is relevant in every situation.
The church will not return to its full pattern and service system before the pandemic. Life will continue to run in a new dimension, and humans will experience the changes in the future. In this context, the church’s presence needed to transform innovation in carrying out its duties and vocations in a relevant way. Therefore, the Church is required to be able to develop creativity and flexibility in order to realise excellent service for the congregation. After the COVID-19 pandemic, there will be changes and updates that occur. Responding to this situation, the church is required to continue to exist and carry out its duties. On that basis, this research study is aimed at actualising the church’s ecclesiology during and after the pandemic. Thus, the discussion focuses on ‘how is the actualisation of church ecclesiology in and after the pandemic?’ This question is discussed in the following sections.
Research methods This study is a type of research with a qualitative approach, namely, research based on the philosophy of post-positivism where truth is by the nature of the object, used to examine the condition of natural objects, where the researcher as the vital instrument and research results emphasise meaning rather than generalisation (Creswell 2013). To present the data so that it is easy to understand, the analysis interactive model from Miles and Huberman is used, which divides the steps into several parts, namely data collection, data reduction, data presentation, and drawing conclusions or verification (Moleong 2014). The data were generated from interviews and questionnaires distributed to local churches of the Indonesian Bethel Church in Indonesia with representatives from each region, namely Western Indonesia, Central Indonesia and Eastern Indonesia. The selection of these three regions represents the prominent regions in Indonesia. Interviews were conducted with key informants, namely pastors and several congregations representing the younger and older generations. Furthermore, the data in the field are analysed to build a post-pandemic church building by paying attention to the changes that occur.
Virtual ministry as a church reality We live in an era of disruption, marked by massive innovation and changes in all aspects. It has fundamentally changed all existing systems, arrangements and landscapes in new ways. Then another fact is that the latest advances have followed
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this era in science and technology, which have contributed significantly to improving the quality of human life. That is why humans can connect easily and quickly without limits through the Internet-of-things facilities. In particular, information and communication technology facilities have enabled us to work more efficiently and effectively. The place is no longer the main obstacle for humans to carry out various activities. Meeting places and times have become more flexible (Lövheim & Linderman 2005). In this case, the church also benefits from the various facilities of the platform. Human activities had been carried out in the virtual world, including church services. Bock explained that the church always uses technology as a tool for worship. The church uses technology in line with the history of technology’s presence (Bock & Amstrong 2021). All forms of activity involving hardware ‘hardware’ and software ‘software’ in processing, managing, storing, distributing and utilising information are general understanding of information technology. From time to time, information technology has experienced significant developments. For example, starting with the delivery of information through scratching symbols on cave walls, the use of ‘kentongan’ sounds in villages to facsimile technology, computers, cell phones, ATMS (Benyamin, Sinaga & Gracia 2021). The use of smartphone technology and the massive use of social media through internet connections are what Hodkinson (2011) calls an integrated network of different communicative options. From its inception, the church has used this technology to spread the gospel message.
In history, when writing his letter in the New Testament, Apostle Paul used a pen and paper (papyrus), both of which were innovative technologies at that time. Martin Luther used the printing press to get the word of God into the hands of ordinary people. Even Billy Graham is famous for his revival services and televised evangelism. This means that the church found ways to convey the gospel’s message early on through a wide variety of available tools. Now is our turn to use social media to write about the next era in church history (McKinney 2014).
The extent to which a group of people who meet and interact online who can consider a community has been the subject of great debate over the past three decades. In the 1990s, scholars began to pay serious attention to technology and the methods people use to gather together online and the types of discussions and practices that are the focal point of these groups. There have been three waves in its history. The first wave, scholars initially approached the Internet with interest, as they sought to describe the practice of online living and the blurred boundaries of online culture. Do questions also asked about what happens online? How is it possible for this social aggregation to occur? Moreover, what effect does online life have on individual and group identity? The second wave put forward a critical discussion regarding the impact of the online community in the late 1990s. Hence, questions are asked such as ‘[h]ow do we study online mediated communities?’ ‘What is the role of online media for
congregational faith growth?’ The third wave is geared towards the theory of online worship and fellowship. These studies provide exciting conclusions about how religious groups might civilise technology, such as the Internet to be incorporated into the community and provide opportunities for self-expression within the community without boundaries (Hutchings 2013).
The ability of Internet to facilitate and mediate social relationships has shifted many people’s ideas about friendship, relationships and community in an era of networking based on digital technology (Campbell 2013). The Internet has brought the church as a community to a gathering point in the virtual world. The preference of digital practices towards networked culture changes the formation of social order that previously centred on loyalty and commitment to one community to a tentative community (Horsfield 2015).
As a community, the church is the body of Christ and the temple of the Holy Spirit. The church is a community of God’s people called from the world sucked into communion with Christ. Therefore, the church has a unique identity, namely God’s beloved people (cf. Pt 2:9). The church understands the visible and invisible church (Arrington 2015). Understanding implies that as the body of Christ, the Church has received a special call to live in unity to love one another. The church as the body (soma) of Christ signifies a special bond between the Christ and the church (Van Niftrik & Boland 2015).
Moreover, as members of the body of Christ, the basic logic is that believers must be closely related to one another based on Christ’s love (cf. 1 Cor 12:26; Setyobekti, Kathryn & Sumen 2021). The Bible clearly says that although there are many members, there is only one body (1 Cor 12:12). Through the testimony of the Bible, believers should realise that basically, God created the Church in various ways to love one another and be responsible for one another.
The Pentecostal Church also carries out its duties in koinonia, pastoralia, marturia, didascalia and others amid the dynamics of world development in all its aspects, namely social, political, cultural, and economic (Tanojo 2020). Church services will continue to take place amid various dynamics of changing times. That is why the virtual ministry is a necessity in carrying out the main tasks of the church, including fellowship (koinonia), marturia (witnessing), teaching (didaskalia), ministry (diaconia) and pastoralism (pastoralia). However, it is true that in practice, it needs reinterpreting as a result of social change. In general, fundamental changes in social life occur because of the underlying events, both predictable and previously unpredictable, such as natural disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic that have changed the way people live (Pradipta 2020).
Now, the virtual space has become an effective means of fellowship (koinonia) for congregation members. Due to restrictions on social interaction because of the COVID-19 pandemic, church services have moved to the Zoom room,
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YouTube, Instagram, and other facilities. Thus, all activities of worship, faith-building, counselling, and prayers are carried out online just like in the real world without reducing the essence of fellowship itself, namely celebrating God’s presence. Within the framework of Christian theology, it is understood that God is the spirit not limited by place, time and other means. He is pleased to be present in whatever media his people use (Parish 2020).
In the context of today’s digital era, churches are created virtually through digital worship, at least it has become an expansion of the Kingdom of God, which is no longer limited by territorial boundaries and geographical area because internet technology has brought freedom to express the form of service provided to the community digital today. The world in the digital era has presented a society that is familiar with gadgets, so daily consumption is present in cyberspace. However, live streaming services have become an option for everyone to choose to worship.
In the future, it seems likely that the number of individuals who use networked technologies to build a highly individualised form of religious belief will continue to increase (Howard 2011), especially in this research, namely the Indonesian Bethel Church congregation. Pentecostal Church is adapting to the conditions of the times. It includes a community of believers who participate in an online church service. The community that exists in an online church is a group of people. It is a virtual place where they meet; however, they participate online in nature: sing, listen, take notes, talk to each other and so on (Hutchings 2013).
The task of thechurch to be the salt and the light of the world through the testimony of its life can be realised through information and communication technology. It also means that the command of Jesus Christ in Matthew 28:18–20 can realise, namely making all nations become disciples of Christ
(Johns 2010). The use of information and communication technology to proclaim the gospel shows that there has been a shift in the pattern of church testimony, namely from onsite evangelism patterns to virtual or online ministry patterns. The ministry of evangelism virtually has an unlimited reach, beyond space and time, which has often been an obstacle in evangelism in the past. On a specific side, the information and communication technology has weaknesses and strengths, namely, misused in spreading the destructive content, such as hoaxes and others. However, the advantage is the flexibility and unlimited reach as long as it connects to the Internet. Therefore, the appropriate use of technology is an excellent blessing for implementing the church’s marturia.
The church is also in charge of teaching (didaskalia). Jesus Christ has become an ideal and perfect teacher or role model in teaching. He taught his disciples with a wide variety of approaches and methods. The teaching space he uses is not limited by place and time; but in every life situation, home, synagogue, by the beach, on the hill or in the temple. The fundamental focus and core of his teachings are the Kingdom
of God. Jesus as the Great teacher taught by the power of God, namely the power that liberates, heals and restores. His disciples experience spiritual freedom and are complete by signs of physical health (Chai 2021). The flexibility of Jesus Christ in teaching has a connecting point with learning patterns through virtual or online, which is not tied to a particular place or situation. Not only that, Jesus Christ used any means as his teaching aids. In the era of technology as it is now, the virtual learning process is believed to grow the congregation’s faith (Setyobekti 2017). Nevertheless, vigilance must still be activated because false teachings can often develop quickly and massively through virtual media.
Elvis noted that ‘adaptive pedagogy’ is shown by all stakeholders who imitate Jesus as a person who can adapt. Jesus took the same attitude of pedagogical adaptation that has marked his interactions with others throughout the gospels. In particular, his dialogue with Peter challenges the disciple’s understanding and commitment to him, which are part of Jesus’ larger pedagogical scheme (Elvis 2020). The most considerable adaptation is his incarnation. God became man, God as the soul’s guide that can adapt. Discipleship is not carried out statically but is a process according to its capacity (Sturdevant 2016).
Another duty and calling of the church are to shepherd God’s people, namely church members. Pastoral duties through virtual modes are very complicated because the limitation of church members is in the pseudo category, or it is difficult to distinguish between permanent and non-permanent members (Hardori 2014). However, it is understood that all visitors in virtual worship are entitled to the same service. Another complication is that their needs are always expressed clearly, honestly, and openly. Members also do not always reveal their identity (anonymous) as in real life (Bock & Amstrong 2021). Many of them live in the darkness of sin; however, they are people in need of pastoral care. That is why shepherding is done with the motivation of love, as the Great Shepherd has set an excellent example for pastoral work. A shepherd connects with his sheep (Lk 15:1–7; Mt 18:12–14; Mk 6:34; Jn 10:1–18). The good shepherd will seek out the stray sheep. He is even willing to leave a flock of sheep lost in search of a lost sheep (Snaith 1971). The goal is for all the sheep to enjoy and experience happiness and joy. The good shepherd will serve, care for and even be willing to offer his life (Jn 10:10). The Apostle Peter advised the church elders to shepherd the Church of God (1 Pt 5:2). Shepherding is done with humility and dedication. The church pastor must feed, care for, watch over his sheep and set an example of useful life.
One of the facts of life in a globalised world is poverty caused by many factors, including power, resources, policies, culture and education. The church must not turn a blind eye to this fact of life, and he must be proactive in providing diaconal services aimed at helping the improvement and development of a complete human being
(Leer-Helgesen 2018). One of the essential tasks of the church is to provide care to others, for example, assisting
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the poor and marginalised groups in a society. This form of service has been exemplified by Jesus Christ, namely providing healing to the sick, food to the hungry, water to the thirsty and release to the bound. Jesus Christ’s concern for the physically and spiritually poor is very prominent (Mt 5:3). Jesus Christ also said that the poor will always exist in the community (Mt 26:11). That is why the deacon ministry that began in the early church era (Ac 6:1) must be carried out continuously by the church throughout the ages (Leer-Helgesen 2018).
The church as a pneumatic encounter spirituality The experience of encountering God in the Trinitarian concept (father, son and Holy Spirit) is essential for worship in the church. Providing space in the experience of encountering the Spirit of God as the omnipresent who cannot be limited by space and time is a must (Macchia 2020). The narrative recorded in the history of God’s people and the church that they have repeatedly experienced difficult times but still feel God’s presence in the church as the body of Christ. This condition became the experience of Jesus in the face of temptation in the desert for 40 days. The fact of his victory over the temptation of food, position and power is a guarantee of victory for believers whom the Spirit of God leads in facing struggles (Gratia 2020). On that basis, it believes that even the pandemic period will not limit the Spirit of God working for his church. The Spirit of God is present as a power that comforts, strengthens, restores and accompanies his people in every situation and dimension of life. The following are at least three principles of a believer’s pneumatic encounter with the Spirit of God, namely:
Firstly, the church has a pneumatic spirit of spirituality, and the encounter with the Spirit of God provides space for its members to experience living fellowship with God and others (Vondey 2020). God’s providence during a famine, war, natural disasters, exile and other hardships. They were looking at experiences of prophets and leaders who kept their spirituality in suffering like Samuel, the man of God who kept praying for his goodness when facing pressure from the nations around Israel (1 Sm 7:5; 8:6; 12:19). Likewise, prophet Jeremiah prophesied the fall of people of Judah for their disobedience, and there was an invasion of foreign nations and the plunder of the property of the people of Judah. Even so, Jeremiah continued to convey his prophetic voice so that the people would continue to pray for God’s grace and mercy to become a reformer for them. In this case, it is clear that God’s immanence is still experienced through prayer and hope that Yahweh can help and be with the people (Jr 33:3). The same thing happened to Daniel, who kept awake in his perseverance, praying three times a day in the land of exile, for which he was threatened with punishment because it was considered a violation of the king’s commandment (Dn 6:11). In such a situation, Daniel still showed the spirit of his spiritual life, namely holding fast to God’s sovereignty over his life.
The powers of the Holy Spirit constitute the Church of Jesus Christ as his mystical body. Jesus called them together and made them members of his mystical body. Thus, the idea of the church as the mystical body of Christ is not an illusion. Instead, it is a way of expressing that church members live the divine life by the power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the one who makes the church and becomes the mystical body of Jesus Christ. From this perspective, the role of the Holy Spirit as the soul of the church is evident and visible.
Secondly, the church is a pneumatic fellowship in Pentecostal Church. The Spirit of God works beyond the boundaries of space and time (Macchia 2020). Jesus Christ wanted to convey the message in his conversation with the woman at Jacob’s well. The presence of the Spirit of God restores the understanding of Israelite worship practices that have centred in Jerusalem as a holy city. Likewise, the Samaritans considered Jacob’s mountain and well to be a place of God’s presence. However, God is present among people who worship him in spirit and truth (Jn 4:24) in all places and times. In general, from the understanding of Christian theology it is believed that the Spirit of God has the power to enter material space, but he cannot be controlled by matter (Rajagukguk & Sugiono 2020). The Spirit of God is present beyond space and time, so he cannot be controlled by space and time. Therefore, virtual facilities become a suitable means of expressing God’s presence, greeting his people in all places, spaces and times.
Thirdly, the church is empowering by the Holy Spirit. God wants man to develop his spiritual capacity continuously, and this is what Jesus Christ promised through the presence of the Holy Spirit (Gultom 2013). The presence of the Holy Spirit as a divine third person has the power to equip believers with spiritual gifts. In addition, the Spirit of God helps his people to enter into individual fellowship with him, fellowship with family, and fellowship in community, both physically and virtually. Thus, everyone can have pneumatic spiritual experiences in various dimensions of life.
Ekklesia as a form of universal communion One of the characteristics of the church is holy and universal. It means that the church is a community of all nations called and consecrated to belong to Christ. So, the main foundation of the fellowship of believers is unity in the body of Christ. Communion celebrated Eucharistic meal as a form of gratitude for the reality of the living communion between God and his people and the fellowship of fellow people who sucked into it. The following are certain essential things related to the church as a universal community:
Firstly, the church is considered as the body of Christ. As the body of Christ, the church should not be exclusive but inclusive. There appears to be a unified understanding that Christ is the head in the church’s inclusiveness, with the Church as a member of his body (Shenk 1996). With such an understanding, every member of the church and believer
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place himself or herself as an equally integral part of other fellow followers of Christ. The ultimate goal of the unity of the body of Christ is to worship and glorify Christ as the only lord and saviour of humankind (Arrington 2015). In order to maintain togetherness as members of the body of Christ, it is necessary to build harmonious brotherhood solidarity and love each other sincerely. The question is how to realise those lofty ideals during the current COVID-19 pandemic? Related to this question, technology and information facilities are the answer, that is, fellowship maintains through togetherness activities in virtual spaces with platform facilities, including Zoom, WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook, Google Meet, Instagram and others (Jun 2020). Humans have used these facilities to build social interactions without barriers of time, space, social, culture, language, religion, ethnicity and nation. Through virtual services, there are opportunities for all ethnic groups, irrespective of social and educational levels to become Christ’s disciples. This is the hope and prayer of Jesus so that his disciples can become one in realising the task of preaching the gospel (cf. Mt 28:19–20 and Jn 17:21).
Secondly, the church is a means of humanising one’s fellow beings. The Bible’s testimony says that all humans have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rm 3:23). The fact is that man’s sinfulness has made him suffer spiritually, morally, intellectually, emotionally, and physically. In such a condition of human helplessness, he needs the grace of God through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. Within the framework of understanding Christian theology, believers become representatives of Christ in carrying out the task of humanising their fellow human beings, namely conveying the good news or the Gospel of Christ to others. The duty of service is the call for all believers. Thus, the church needs to mobilise all members to carry out services to others using digital technology, especially millennials who are relatively fast and easy to master. Of course, it is necessary to provide continuous assistance to minimise the negative aspects of digital technology (Gelfgren 2011). What is equally important is that all services to humanising the fellow human beings must be based on noble values, namely the motivation of love, sincerity and dedication. The ultimate goal of services performed is to lead everyone to the decision to devote himself and all his competence to the glory of God.
Thirdly, Oikos is the forerunner of the universal Church. Home is the primary and first place where human life begins. Noble values of life that are instilled in the house become the forerunner of the values of life in the church community, society and nation. In other words, the quality of life of a church community and nation is the determined factor formed in the house (Oikos). Therefore, the church must educate Christian families regarding the importance of faith, character and service competence education according to the talents of each family member and church member (Chai 2021). The strategy needs to explore, find and develop optimally every potential possessed by each church member or family member to dedicate to realising the welfare of human life in all sectors (Pantan & Benyamin 2020). Indeed, church members with reliable competence and excellent character are
potential assets of the church, society and nation. In this context, the family is said to be the forerunner of the universal church. Thus, its presence as a community of church members widely represents the Kingdom of God on this earth.
Sacraments as means of divine power According to Christian theology, in general, the sacrament is a celebration interpreted as mediation or a visible symbol of God’s invisible grace. There are two essential sacraments in the Protestant Church: the sacrament of baptism and the sacrament of holy communion. In principle, the essence of the sacrament is a sign and seal set by God to mark and seal God’s promises in the gospel because of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross so that we award the forgiveness of sins and eternal life (Hadiwijono 2015). These two sacraments can be described as follows:
Firstly, the sacrament of baptism is a sacred act of God. From the understanding of Christian theology, the sacrament of baptism is visible evidence that human sins are forgiven and sanctified by the work of Christ on the cross. The believer receives supernatural power to transfer from the power of darkness to become the complete possession of Christ (Arrington 2015). God’s plan of salvation is realising in Christ through his coming, death and resurrection. It is a great mystery of God’s work because man cannot do it. Nevertheless, the mystery of God is now made manifest in the work of Christ, for it is Christ himself who carries out the mystery (Col 2:2).
Secondly, the sacrament of holy communion is a sign and seal of God’s covenant. This sacrament is a celebration of God’s great love for human beings. The critical meaning of the sacrament of holy communion is that God fulfils his promise through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, believers receive forgiveness of sins and eternal life. By performing a sign, Allah provides assurance of his mercy. Furthermore, the sacrament is interpreted as a seal that states purity to be trusted (Hadiwijono 2015). The celebration of Holy Communion can be interpreted as a warning to the reality of human life that cracked; however, there is an opportunity to fix it (Kruger 2018).
Based on the brief explanation above, the sacrament provides a theological message in its meaning. The depth and richness of the meaning of the sacrament of holy communion and water baptism are explained as follows:
The sacrament contains the saving power of God. Salvation is a fundamental need of all sinners, and this can only be found in Jesus Christ, who died on the cross. On that basis, the essential thing in the administration of the sacrament is the encounter with Christ in the living space of sinful humans. The media used, such as water and wine, are not the determinants of the presence of God’s power. However, God has the power to use all media as a means of his presence (Mpofu 2021).
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The sacrament is a means of experiencing the power of God. The Bible testifies that physicians are professionals who acts as healers. One of the crucial duties of the priests of Israel was to examine someone who was declared sick or someone who declared cured. Water is an essential means of purification to express one’s holiness and healing. Even in baptism, water is an essential means by which God expresses his saving power. Thus, the sacrament opens the way for a person to experience the healing power declared through the conviction of faith in Christ.
The sacrament is a means of experiencing God’s presence. Celebrating the presence of God in the sacrament is a special moment for believers to respond to the salvation that God has given them. Indeed, the nature of the sacrament cannot be reduced by the limitations caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Conclusion Based on the exposure of the study to the research observations, several conclusions can be drawn:
Firstly, change is necessary, and no person nor institution can avoid it. Therefore, the church must carry out a relevant process of self-actualisation in a world that experiences dynamics of continuous change.
Secondly, the development of digital science and technology is understood as God’s grace for his people (his church) to increase the productivity of religious services. Therefore, the church must transform the innovation and creativity of religious services based on digital technology. Through such efforts, the church effectively reaches the unreached world community.
Thirdly, the church must not lose its identity as a divine institution devoted to the extraordinary task of being the salt and light of the world. However, the church must not be exclusive but be inclusive.
Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank the Indonesian Bethel Church for providing the opportunity to conduct research observations.
Competing interests The authors declare that they have no financial or personal relationships that may have inappropriately influenced them in writing this article.
Authors’ contributions All of the listed authors contributed to the writing of this article. G.K.R.P. and F.J.N. acted as compilers of the research paradigm and concept. P.I.B. was instrumental in observing several churches and gathering information. F.P. and W.W. played a role in concluding the research results, translation, and layout.
Ethical considerations This study followed all ethical standards for research without any direct contact with human or animal subjects.
Funding information This research work received no specific grant from any funding agency in public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
Data availability Data sharing does not apply to this article as no new data were created or analysed in this study.
Disclaimer The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any affiliated agency of the authors.
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Two or Three Gathered Online: Asian and European Responses to COVID-19 and the Digital Church. By: Chow, Alexander; Kurlberg, Jonas. Studies in World Christianity, Nov2020, Vol. 26 Issue 3, p298-318, 21p. Publisher: Edinburgh University Press.; Abstract In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a rapid increase in the use of digital technology by Christian communities worldwide. This paper offers a cross-continental analysis of how churches in Asia (Hong Kong and Singapore) and Europe (the United Kingdom and Sweden) understand and choose to implement (or resist) online services or Mass. Undoubtedly, there are practical reasons behind differences which can be observed, such as the technological readiness found amongst church leadership and laity, and past experiences of public health crises, such as the 2002–2004 SARS outbreak. However, accompanying these developments are debates around the theological implications of digitising church ministries, and the general concern that the digital church is somehow not 'church' or, even, not 'Christian'. Different contextual perspectives help us to understand that the digital church offers a new dimension of the church embodied and, therefore, one that has the potential to live out the missio Dei within and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]; (AN 146528288) Complementary Index
Two or Three Gathered Online: Asian and European Responses to COVID-19 and the Digital Church
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a rapid increase in the use of digital technology by Christian communities worldwide. This paper offers a cross-continental analysis of how churches in Asia (Hong Kong and Singapore) and Europe (the United Kingdom and Sweden) understand and choose to implement (or resist) online services or Mass. Undoubtedly, there are practical reasons behind differences which can be observed, such as the technological readiness found amongst church leadership and laity, and past experiences of public health crises, such as the 2002–2004 SARS outbreak. However, accompanying these developments are debates around the theological implications of digitising church ministries, and the general concern that the digital church is somehow not 'church' or, even, not 'Christian'. Different contextual perspectives help us to understand that the digital church offers a new dimension of the church embodied and, therefore, one that has the potential to live out the missio Dei within and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.
Keywords: contextual theology; COVID-19; digital church; digital technology; internet; missio Dei
INTRODUCTION In the midst of the COVID-19 lockdown, Pope Francis made plans to live-stream Easter Sunday Mass on 12 April 2020 in an empty Saint Peter's Basilica. As news of this began to circulate, one bishop raised concerns, which the Pope later summarised:
The Church, the Sacraments, the People of God are concrete. It is true that at this moment we must make this familiarity with the Lord in this way, but to get out of the tunnel, not to stay there. And this is the familiarity of the apostles: not Gnostic, not virtualized, not selfish for each of them, but a concrete familiarity in the people.[ 1]
The view of this bishop underscores a concern that the digitisation of church ministry makes it 'virtual' – that is, it is digitally simulated and therefore not real. This can be noticed in an earlier 2002 Vatican report, 'The Church and Internet', which similarly states:
Although the virtual reality of cyberspace cannot substitute for real interpersonal community, the incarnational reality of the sacraments and the liturgy, or the immediate and direct proclamation of the gospel, it can complement them, attract people to a fuller experience of the life of faith, and enrich the religious lives of users.[ 2]
In other words, the 'virtual' is an insufficient substitute for 'real' community, sacraments and evangelism. Whilst we will revisit this in the final section of this paper, this statement recognises at least a limited complementary role of internet religious activity for what is 'real' in the church.
Furthermore, the Pope's reference to 'Gnosticism' is of no accident. Whilst the term is often used to denote a cluster of philosophical and religious systems of the first few centuries AD, such as in Irenaeus's Against Heresies, its ancient and contemporary usage is weaponised against that which is considered heretical. According to the Pope, the bishop was concerned that digitising Easter Sunday Mass results in a separation of the spiritual from the material. This underscores a general concern of critics coming from a variety of denominational backgrounds about digital church: disembodiment. According to Tim Hutchings:
For many Christian commentators ... community is not just communication but embodied presence, face-to-face relationships, discipline and the physical service of each member to the group. This argument emphasises the irreplaceable value of embodiment, and we encounter it in different forms from representatives of a very wide range of denominations ... The argument from embodiment relies on the conviction that online community (and church) operates as a replacement for and a retreat from face-to-face relationships, and the word 'substitute' appears frequently ...[ 3]
Part of this includes the key event of Christian history found in the Incarnation, whereby the God Who is Other than this world became human, within this creaturely world. This incarnational principle undergirds not only Christology, but also ecclesiology – an 'incarnational ministry' which extends Christ's work, after the resurrection, into the church's work in being (bodily) present in this world. Within Eucharistic theology, especially amongst Catholics, embodiment is also understood in terms of the presence of Christ's body and blood in the consecrated elements.
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, debates around whether the church can gather online have become even more sharp. This is because most governments around the globe have banned mass gatherings. Some Christian communities have argued that government-mandated distancing policies are an infringement on the freedom of religion. Others deliberate over whether the Lord's table can be administered and shared by individuals separated by an internet connection. Still others are concerned with the more fundamental question of whether two or three gathered online in Christ's name is still the church.
The cognate fields of digital religion and digital theology are dominated by studies conducted in Western societies, such as the United Kingdom and the United States. However, COVID-19 was initially an epidemic in Asia, especially in Sinophone regions, before it developed into a global pandemic. Hence, in this context, we determined it would be advantageous to develop a cross-continental study, exploring how select churches in Asia (Hong Kong and Singapore) and Europe (the United Kingdom and Sweden) understood and chose to implement (or resist) online services or Mass. We conducted fifteen semi-structured interviews with church leaders, most via video chat, and some churches have also shared with us web analytics data from the digital platforms used for their online services, especially around Easter. The research is based on selective engagement with the standpoints of church leaders and official church statements, as opposed to the views of the laity. It is also limited from fully considering those who have less access or less ability to utilise digital technologies. This study has not attempted to develop a focused social-scientific case study, but to explore broader theological points concerning the relationship between the church and digitality. The data we have collected offer us snapshots into how church leaders in these four locations deliberate over the use of digital technology in the wake of COVID-19. Surprisingly, explicit concerns about embodiment seem to be absent from most of these discussions; the more important points raised seem to be related to the less-than-real nature of the digital church. This paper argues that perspectives from various denominations and contexts help us understand that the digital church offers a new dimension of the church embodied and, therefore, one that is living out the missio Dei within and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.
PRACTICAL FACTORS AFFECTING DIGITAL RESPONSE A quick comparison of the contexts discussed in this paper would notice that the locations selected are broadly separated between Confucian (Hong Kong and Singapore) and Christian (the United Kingdom and Sweden) societies. Already,
generalisations have been made about these cultural differences shaping responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.[ 4] Whilst there may be some truth behind these correlations, a brief examination of these contexts reveals other practical factors which shape the digital responses of churches in these locations.
The first of these factors is related to how governments and societies have responded. In Asia, where the 2002–2004 SARS outbreak is still in recent memory, most churches in Singapore and Hong Kong switched to live-streamed meetings within weeks of the first confirmed COVID-19 cases in their respective locations, both on 23 January 2020. In Singapore, this was perhaps due to churches recognising their responsibility in slowing down the spread of the virus. Two of Singapore's earliest clusters of COVID-19 cases were in churches – Life Church and Mission, and Grace Assembly of God – which were later found to be linked through a shared Chinese New Year celebration on 25 January.[ 5] Singaporean theologian Roland Chia explains:
Under this particular circumstance, nobody would question the advisory given by the government. There is still quite a high level of trust when a national emergency like this is concerned ... There is no intention of defying any government advisory or instruction. It has worked well for us. It has also worked well for them.[ 6]
Such a view would less likely be expressed by a church leader in Hong Kong. The trust in Hong Kong between the government and the broader society has become fragile due to the social unrest of the Umbrella Movement (2014), the anti- extradition bill protests (2019–), and the government delay in closing its borders in the early weeks of the disease. Hong Kong church decisions to halt physical meetings and to switch to live-streaming were made during a time when there was much confusion and disagreement over how to properly control the spread of the virus.
By the time WHO declared COVID-19 a global pandemic on 11 March, European states were just beginning to realise the gravity of the situation. The United Kingdom announced a ban on mass gatherings on 16 March, followed by a more restrictive lockdown on 23 March which banned gatherings of more than two people of different households and closed places of worship. In contrast, Sweden did not follow the decision of most other countries. On 27 March the government announced a ban on gatherings larger than 50 people. This has meant that many churches in Sweden streamed services online but have done so from inside their buildings. Thus government policy seems to have directly limited the creativity of Swedish churches, which have not been forced to think outside the box in the same way as churches under stricter lockdown measures in other countries.
Another important factor that influences a church's adoption of digital technology in the wake of COVID-19 has been the digital readiness of society, church leadership and church members. Many Catholic, Anglican/Episcopalian and Presbyterian churches in the UK have scrambled to get the right equipment and know-how. For instance, the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales has provided the platform ChurchServices.TV for parishes to live-stream their Masses; however, it is only a minority who have chosen to utilise this provision. Canon Pat Browne, whose parish church has live- streamed Mass for years, attributes this to digital illiteracy amongst the clergy.[ 7] This is quite different from the situation in Singapore, promoted by the government to be a 'Smart Nation' since 2014. The Singaporean Catholic diocese has created well-produced outputs that engage young and old, with dedicated YouTube and Telegram channels. Furthermore, for a number of years now, the city-state's many megachurches such as City Harvest and New Creation have had their own dedicated smartphone apps. A similar development can be noted in Hong Kong, where there has been a rise in churches with strong online platforms, especially in the wake of recent protests, such as the Umbrella City Cyberchurch (est. 2014) and Flow Church (est. 2019).
However, the national or regional technological readiness of these contexts does not necessarily translate into church readiness. According to IMD's World Digital Competitiveness Ranking 2019, Singapore and Sweden were ranked second and third respectively.[ 8] Yet, whilst the Singaporean churches have quickly adjusted to the new situation, the Church of Sweden has been slower to adopt digital technology. Karin Sundmark, co-ordinator for services in the diocese of Lund, observes that some churches in the diocese have not broadcast services out of the assumption that their elderly congregants will be unable to access the technology.[ 9] The approach of the Wesley Methodist Church – the largest and
oldest Methodist congregation in Singapore – is markedly different. Church staff have actively assisted their senior members to overcome barriers by calling them individually to help them access the church's online services.[10] Benjamin Lee, one of their pastors, repeatedly emphasised the church's drive to find innovative solutions in light of the current situation. This attitude can be compared to that of Archbishop Antje Ackelén, who praised the innovation of many parishes during the COVID-19 pandemic, whilst maintaining that, in her role, she is a steward of church tradition rather than an entrepreneur.[11]
Thus, the theologically liberal but liturgically traditional Church of Sweden can be contrasted with the often conservative but utilitarian churches of Asia. As Simon Chan has remarked, Asian Christianity of all stripes tends to emphasise an 'essentially evangelical character'.[12] This lends itself towards the propagation of an 'old' Christian message through new forms of media, from print media to radio/television broadcast and contemporary music. This seems true of many Asian Protestants and Catholics. For the latter, we can see an example in the live-streamed Easter service of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore, which proved to be an impressive production including stirring videos about the body of Christ and a child- friendly talk explaining Lent.[13] Indeed, it appears as though churches which are more evangelically-oriented – or, better, evangelistically-oriented – tend to be more keen to employ digital technologies in their engagement and mission with the broader society and world.
Digital readiness or not, some churches have stepped up to the challenge. St Paul and St Georges, a low-church Scottish Episcopal congregation in Edinburgh, was very quick to switch its Sunday services to an online format. Before the lockdown, the church regularly welcomed 500–600 attendees to Sunday services; its first online service on 22 March reached more than 8,000 viewers.[14] Another example is Durham Cathedral, which never considered live-streaming prior to the pandemic. Today the cathedral is streaming services and daily prayers on Facebook attracting thousands of viewers. The web analytics from the cathedral's Easter Sunday service point towards an elderly demographic, with over 45 per cent of viewers falling within the 65+ age category. However, from the feedback the cathedral has received, it appears that many senior congregants, having been forced to use digital technology, are not only growing in confidence, but are even enjoying it.[15]
In part, the practical factors observed here nuance the analytical framework that Heidi Campbell describes as the religious- social shaping of technology.[16] Campbell's framework points towards the internal processes involved when religious communities negotiate new technologies. The researcher seeking to understand this process needs to be attentive not only to communities' specific traditions, moral codes and core beliefs, but also to how these are drawn upon in the intracommunal negotiations that transpire, and to how decisions are communicated to the wider community. The framework, then, rightly emphasises the role of tradition and theology. However, the external and practical considerations highlighted in our research suggest that, in reality, these negotiations are more complex. Furthermore, the speed at which churches embraced online services in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic meant that little time has been afforded for theological and liturgical reflection. A number of factors come into play as churches make speedy decisions to live-stream their services, most for the first time. Despite the seemingly haphazard way in which this digital turn has come about, most churches act out of their liturgical instincts, tacitly informed by the theological particularities of their ecclesial traditions. Yet, beyond theological considerations, other important factors include cultural presuppositions, governmental and societal responses, digital readiness and missiological dispositions.
THEOLOGY AND TECHNOLOGY IN TENSION Preoccupied with practical issues, few churches have purposely reflected theologically on the implications of using digital technology to deliver their services. It is evident, however, that many have acted and deliberated in ways that are largely consistent with the theology of their respective traditions.
Again it is interesting to note that despite Sweden being one of the most technologically advanced countries in the world, there is a widespread unease amongst the clergy of the Church of Sweden to digitally broadcast services. In an open letter published for his diocese on 27 March, Bishop Fredrick Modéus writes that 'the service is the nerve centre for us Christians. It is my strong opinion that services have to continue as long as it is possible for people to gather.'[17] As such, he advises his clergy to continue celebrating services in their church buildings and, if necessary, hold multiple services on a given
Sunday to accommodate government restrictions on mass gatherings of over 50 people. A few days later, however, he reverses his recommendation in light of health concerns and guidelines from the Ministry of Health, encouraging clergy to be creative in using digital means to continue making the gospel available to parishioners. He also emphasises the importance of keeping churches open as sanctuaries for individual prayer and for church bells to be rung as a sign of the church's presence in the midst of suffering.[18]
These letters typify the Church of Sweden's emphasis on place in their liturgy. 'The Church Handbook' from 2018 is influenced by Lutheran liturgy scholar Gordon Lathrop's focus on ordo or 'ritual ordering' in the gathered congregation.[19] Ordained theologian Frida Mannerfledt suggests there is a deeply ingrained liturgical sensibility within church hierarchy, which has resulted in an instinctive suspicion of digital spaces as a threat to the embodiedness of liturgy.[20] This liturgical instinct surfaces in an article by Karin Rubenson published in Kyrkans Tidning, a weekly newspaper associated with the Church of Sweden. She concedes that digital technology makes the situation of isolation bearable in these exceptional times, but without the physical gathering of believers in the sanctuary, the church is no longer as it should be. The assembly of physically-gathered bodies is so fundamentally instilled in the ecclesial reflexes of the Lutheran church, she contends, that 'our bodies cry out', longing to be present with one another again.[21] A small group of priests who have been vocal on social media go further than Rubenson and oppose the digital broadcasting of services altogether. Referencing 'The Church Handbook', Per Gyllenör, minister of a parish in southern Sweden, maintains that a service can only be celebrated in a sanctified space, presided by an ordained minister, wherein the gathered engage with all their senses in liturgical worship. He forcefully insists that the only logical conclusion of the directives stipulated in the handbook is that watching a broadcast service can never recreate the participation of the whole body and therefore is to be resisted altogether.[22]
Churches in the UK have on the whole been more positively inclined. Cardinal Vincent Nichols in a conversation with Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis and Archbishop Justin Welby gives a resounding endorsement of the role of digital technology in maintaining worship during the pandemic:
There's a kind of burgeoning of spirituality, a burgeoning of helping each other to pray and we're remarkably benefiting from these internet facilities. It's the house church of the early church combined with the technology of the twenty-first century. And for once the technology looks unambiguously positive in this period and I'm astonished by the creativity and the richness and the inventiveness of what's on offer to help us.[23]
Despite such positive appraisals, there are also British churches that are not digitally broadcasting their services during the lockdown. Whilst most abstain for practical reasons, such as lack of resources, there are those who express theological concerns. A Catholic parish priest, who wishes to remain anonymous, chose not to stream Sunday Mass since he holds that the 'private' Eucharist prescribed by the Catholic Church during lockdown implies a return to pre-Vatican II theology. He is, as such, wary of celebrating communion alone in the sight of a passive laity unable to participate. Nevertheless, he has used Zoom for Sunday 'gospel reflections' and bible studies, and thus is not opposed to the use of digital technology for religious gatherings per se.[24]
The sense that digitally-mediated services limit participation was repeated by several interviewees. On the other end of the ecclesial spectrum, whilst reverberating the longing for physical gatherings expressed by Karin Rubenson, Chris Juby, the Worship, Media and Arts Coordinator at King's Church Durham, a large charismatic evangelical church, has largely found online worship 'very meaningful'. Nevertheless, as a low church congregation, their primary theological question has been how to live out the 'priesthood of all believers' when worshipping via digital platforms. In their normal services this teaching has been translated into actively incorporating contributions from a wide range of people. They have found this to be more cumbersome online.[25] The issue of participation has also been raised amongst the leadership at a Brethren church in Singapore. Pastor Leong Che Yeong says that it has proved difficult to implement the Brethren format of 'open worship' in which any member of the congregation can say a prayer, read a bible passage, lead in worship or share a 'word' or testimony.[26]
Concerns such as these are consistent with the traditions of these low-church denominations. However, even at Durham
Cathedral this very issue has been one of the more prominent topics of discussion amongst the clergy. Canon Charlie Allen explains that in their regular cathedral worship there is a deliberate attempt to include a plurality of voices. Since lockdown, clergy have been live-streaming services from their homes, and several have felt uneasy with the format as it entails merely one person leading the worship, which can seem 'hierarchical'.[27] Given the cathedral's high-church tradition and the emphasis it often places on the materiality of worship, its univocal embrace of digital technology is noteworthy. Durham Cathedral primarily understands itself as a place of prayer and sees digitally-mediated prayer as perhaps less theologically problematic. Prayer is already mediated through material objects such as our bodies, prayer books, icons and rosaries.
Canon Pat Browne, a priest at the Church of the Holy Apostles, Pimlico, London, raises a related issue to that of participation. The church has been broadcasting Mass online for six or seven years and, thus, he unsurprisingly appreciates the benefits of live-streaming during lockdown. Nevertheless, he is clearly ambivalent: 'A lot of elderly say that the digital is a lifesaver, but it can never replace [physical gatherings]. God forbid that it will be replacing it.' He fears that the convenience of following Mass from the comfort of one's home might result in some members of the congregation not returning to regular Sunday Mass once restrictions are lifted. Live-streaming could thereby nurture an individualistic spirituality.[28]
These conversations note that, despite the benefits of digital technology, especially under the extraordinary circumstances of a pandemic, online services are still the less preferable option.
COMMUNION, ONLINE OR NOT Regardless of geographical location, amongst the churches that we have studied, those connected with more traditional denominations have tended not to administer communion online. Although there are some theological concerns raised with regards to these matters, most emphasise a consistency with their denomination's historic teaching on the question.
Most Catholic dioceses and a number of churches in the Anglican communion have allowed clergy to broadcast the celebration of the Eucharist, on behalf of the laity who cannot themselves participate in person, as well as encouraging the practice of spiritual communion.[29] Whilst this is consistent within an Anglo-Catholic Eucharistic theology, Kelvin Holdsworth, Provost of St Mary's Scottish Episcopal Cathedral in Glasgow, laments such practice since 'the gathering of a community is intrinsic to the Eucharist and we are all learning rapidly and unexpectedly what is intrinsic to the way we express our faith.'[30] Dave Richards, Rector of St Paul's and St George's Church, agrees with Holdsworth, explaining that 'if people aren't able to receive [communion], it's actually more of an act of solidarity for the priest not to.'[31] Whilst plenty of clergy have accepted the recommendations of church hierarchies, there are those who have proceeded with online celebrations of the ritual despite prohibitions. We may consider the views of Canon Dana Deelap, vicar of a village parish that gathers 'all sorts of Christians' in the Cotswolds and formerly a member of the Liturgical Commission of the Church of England. Deelap is uneasy with 'spiritual communion' for similar reasons to those stated above. After careful consideration, she decided to celebrate communion with her parishioners via Zoom during the Easter weekend. Acknowledging the importance of physical consecration and a physically gathered community, she asserts that, in essence, consecration is ultimately the work of the Holy Spirit, 'whose action is not contained within the crusts of a loaf, the walls of a church, or the doctrines of the Church, but who, through God's grace, meets us in bread and wine'.[32]
Another example of such contention can be noted in the Methodist Church in Great Britain. The Methodist Conference extensively debated this in 2015, producing the Conference report 'Communion Mediated through Social Media', which concludes that online communion 'compromise[s] the integrity of the sacrament'.[33] The pandemic has renewed this debate on social media. Whilst similar controversies can be found in other Methodist churches in the West, such as the United Methodist Church (USA), this seems less the case in Asia. For instance, Bishop Chong Chin Chung has instructed Singaporean Methodists to keep 'this rite sacred and not try to conduct Holy Communion on our own in our homes'.[34] Though no further theological rationale is offered, Benjamin Lee suspects that it conforms to the recommendations of the 2015 British Methodist Conference, although there does not seem to be any open discussion in Singapore challenging the conclusions of the British report.[35] This suggests a stronger tendency to submit to the local hierarchy, but also towards the endurance of the power dynamics of the colonial past.
Amongst churches connected with the Magisterial Reformation, the historical precedence has been to see two marks of the church in the Word and the Sacrament. In what is the first official theological statement on digital technology by the Church of Sweden, there is an unequivocal rejection of online communion. Citing Martin Luther's 'Large Catechism' and a statement by Dirk G. Lange, the Deputy General Secretary for Ecumenical Relations of the Lutheran World Federation,[36] the document refers to the relation between the Word and the Sacrament. It is in the speaking of the Eucharistic liturgy – reciting the words of Jesus during the Last Supper – over the elements that they are sacramentally transformed. Furthermore, as communion is an act that transpires in the local congregation, this gives additional rationale for this prohibition. As such, it is the physical distance between the Word and elements, and those assembled for celebration that is problematic with 'virtual communion'.[37]
Perhaps a similar concern for the Word and the Sacrament can be found in the historical legacy of Scottish Presbyterianism. Donald Macleod, retired professor of theology of the Free Church of Scotland College (now, Edinburgh Theological Seminary), notes that, until recently, Scottish Presbyterians tended to celebrate communion only a few times a year. Macleod further argues against such innovations as online communion and, instead, highlights that a greater tragedy would be the lack of the ministry of the Word.[38] On the other end of the spectrum, Albert Bogle, former moderator of the Church of Scotland and minister of the online community Sanctuary First, argues that even the ministry of the Word happens at a distance between the person who is speaking and those who are listening. With regards to online communion, Bogle argues, 'The Holy Spirit, is He not able to work through the internet? ... When the minister blesses the bread and the wine and sets it apart, is it the minister that [sic] does it or the Holy Spirit?'[39] In contrast to those deliberating the legitimacy of the online practice of the Sacrament in 2020, Bogle has been offering online communion since 2008.
Whilst communion is often connected to the body and the blood of Christ, arguments for online communion often point to the work of the Holy Spirit. Part of the rationale within the Reformed tradition may be built upon John Calvin's view that Christ is 'spiritually' present in communion through the power of the Holy Spirit.[40] This seems reflected in the Presbyterian Church in Singapore's proposed guidelines on communion, which offer three options to each constituent church: postponement until after the end of the pandemic, clergy performing small communion services in the homes of church members, or the administering of communion through live-stream. The last option '[a]ffirm[s] that Christ dwells amongst us by his Spirit even when we gather virtually'.[41] In the statement, the Synod explicitly underscores that these are recommendations, and that church members have the 'God-given liberty' to adhere to or differ on these proposals. We may also consider one of the first churches in Hong Kong to offer online communion, the evangelical Flow Church. When they were still holding physical meetings in the early days of the virus, communion was already adapted by asking participants to bring their own cups to the service to receive grape juice and prevent cross-contamination. When they ceased meeting face-to-face, Flow put out a statement offering a theological rationale for online communion, stating that the work of the Holy Spirit can be received everywhere and pointing to the sacramental nature of the act as an outward and visible sign of God's invisible grace.[42] Founding pastor John Chan, drawing on Karl Barth's understanding of grace, explains, 'Our communion is our doing, our response to God. It is a thankful action for us. This thankful act is important because it helps us to make things that already happened, happen in our minds and in our lives ... subjectively.'[43] In both these examples, church leaders highlight the laity's responsibility in being spiritually prepared and having a thankful posture before participating in communion.
Perhaps the most widespread acceptance of online communion can be found amongst churches which are known for their emphasis on the work of the Holy Spirit: Pentecostal and charismatic churches. Many in the UK and Sweden have administered the sacrament online, recommending those participating to prepare a cup and some bread ahead of the live- streamed service. A fairly unique example can be found in the Singaporean megachurch New Creation Church. Often described as teaching a health-and-wealth prosperity gospel, senior pastor Joseph Prince previously wrote of how communion has the potential to heal individuals from medical ailments, and that all Christians are called to be priests administering the sacrament in their own homes.[44] In February 2020, Prince preached a series of sermons which underscored that God protects his followers from viruses like COVID-19,[45] and even about how anointing oil protected a woman 'from the COVID-19 virus despite being in contact with someone who was infected. She and her family have cleared the quarantine period and are unharmed.'[46] Situated on the other end of the spectrum from Catholic Eucharistic theology,
the communion theology of Pentecostals and charismatics underscores perhaps the greatest democratisation of Christian ministry, through the priesthood of all believers.
THE DIGITAL CHURCH'S MISSIONAL ROLE A common denominator between the churches that we have observed in this study is the reach that their online services have had. With few exceptions, the number of views of online prayer and church services by far outstrips average church attendance. As already mentioned, St Paul's and St George's Church in Edinburgh witnessed a fantastic reception to their live-streamed Sunday service. Dave Richards explains that, in order to meet the spiritual needs of people online, it has created three new online midweek 'connect' groups and three new online evangelistic Alpha courses.[47] Likewise at Durham Cathedral, the high interest in their live-streamed services and daily prayer has caught the clergy by surprise. Charlie Allen is baffled by the thousands of viewers joining their daily prayers compared to the twenty-odd persons they normally have in the cathedral. Their viewers are geographically dispersed, and they are considering creating local groups in order to connect these individuals for mutual support.[48] For the Wesley Methodist Church in Singapore, which gathers an average of 5,000 worshippers, online services have not yielded larger numbers. However, Benjamin Lee suggests that they have seen an increased international audience and many members have been sharing sermons with friends on social media. The digital shift has made him aware of the possibilities of evangelism through digital means, but they have yet to 'leverage the opportunities' that this affords.[49]
Whilst web analytics of online views reveal certain trends, perhaps more important is how churches interpret this data vis-à- vis their mission. Several of the UK church leaders we interviewed are aware that newcomers to their services, now online, had previously been affiliated with Christianity but stopped regularly attending church. In part, this echoes what Libby Talbot, Associate Rector of St Paul's and St George's, states, that Christianity offers hope in times of adversity, and that online platforms are means of exploring religious faith in a non-threatening way.[50] Perhaps this also offers some legitimacy to the claim that the UK is a post-secular society, which has been witnessing a resurgence of religion – and possibly even more so now, albeit in an online format.
The situation is more complex in Hong Kong. According to the pastor of one evangelical church, which previously had 2,000 attendees gathering for their normal Sunday services, the switch to online services resulted in a drop to around 500 weekly viewers. Part of this was attributed to the less polished nature of online services, especially when compared to English- speaking international churches in Hong Kong which have generally seen a several-fold increase in weekly viewers. The pastor further posited that, for Cantonese-speaking Hong Kong churches, many congregants previously attended physical meetings out of fear of losing face for not being active churchgoers. The anonymity associated with live-streamed services allows those individuals to not participate online, without being shamed.[51] Of course, this is a rationale for anyone to miss online church services, whether they are part of a more collectivist context or not.[52]
In Hong Kong, another dimension includes a growing sense of confusion amongst evangelicals in knowing how best to be relevant in Hong Kong society today. This latter point seems consistent with the mission of the evangelical Flow Church, which was started in part to reach those who left the church because they saw Hong Kong evangelicalism as indifferent towards the recent social unrest. Flow grew from 100 attendees in the beginning of 2019 to approximately 500 by the end of the year and, in the first two months of Facebook Live services (February and March 2020), was witnessing over 1,000 live weekly viewers, including those based in Canada and the United States.[53]
Even in Sweden, churches have seen record numbers as people participate in services from their devices. However, whilst the evangelical free churches in Sweden have a prominent missional impulse, the Church of Sweden, which sees itself as the national church, views its role in society as largely vicarious. In a pastoral letter to the parishes in the diocese of Lund, Bishop Johan Tyrberg, reflecting on being church during COVID-19, suggests that whilst it is desirable that more people encounter the divine, the purpose of the service is not to gather as many as possible but that the Word is preached and the Sacrament celebrated.[54] Reflections on the evangelistic opportunities of digital technology are therefore largely absent. The mission of the church is not to reach the largest numbers of people but to continue to bear witness to Christ through its local presence.
Whether a church seeks to reach those who do not attend church – regardless of whether they previously attended church or they never set foot in a church building – or to bring together a spiritual goal with a civic one, the introduction of digital technologies offers new possibilities for the expression of the church's missional role, beyond the limits of space and geography. But it is not only a matter of the utility of digital technologies. Digital technologies raise questions of how the church's mission needs to adapt to the ever-changing realities of the present.
BEYOND THE COMPLEMENTARY NATURE OF DIGITAL CHURCH In the outset of this paper, we highlighted a discussion between a bishop and a pope about the risks of online Mass resulting in a Gnostic and virtualised church – a disembodied church. However, worship, prayer and liturgy are always mediated. Technology is an intrinsic part of Christian practice, whether that be a bible or hymnal printed and bound, stained-glass windows soldered together, songs of worship resonating through church organ pipes, or the ministry of the Word proclaimed through loudspeakers. The incorporation of new technology in church is itself unremarkable. Where contentions arise is whether digitally-mediated church practices are unreal, inauthentic, and disembodied. Countering charges of disembodiment, Catholic liturgical theologian Teresa Berger contends that 'no digital world can be entered, no website accessed, and no app installed without a body.'[55] To exemplify bodily engagement in digital liturgy, she points to a prayer app which suggests its users bow their head before swiping the screen to move on to the next page. What is novel about digitally-mediated Christian practice is not the use of technology nor that it is disembodied or 'unreal', but rather that corporate worship in digital spaces means that human bodies are not congregated in the same physical spaces.
From our research, we were surprised that there was a noticeable absence of much explicit discussion of (dis)embodiment in the debates during the COVID-19 pandemic. Perhaps part of the reason for this is that, in contrast with heads and theologians of global churches, such as the Catholic magisterium, most local and regional church leaders today are less steeped in philosophical notions of presence and embodiment framed in opposition to Platonic or Gnostic understandings of the world.[56] Rather, those who disagree with certain aspects of online church practices tend to offer reasons to prioritise historical precedence over and against technological innovations, or centres of power within persons and places against the loss of control to the masses and the outer trenches.
Even the strongest advocates of digital church suggest that online may not always be as good as face-to-face. Albert Bogle of Sanctuary First explains the significance of online communion with eschatological imagery: 'What we are doing on the internet is a foretaste of the reality of communion that we have in the physical place, which is a foretaste of the reality of the eschaton, of what will be in the consummation of all things.'[57] For Bogle, it is a pastoral matter. The internet provides access to communion to those who in the past would have otherwise been prevented from physically attending church services due to physical ailments. Whilst it is not the same as participating in communion face-to-face, it is no less real to those who participate in it. We need to not devalue the digital church. But the subtext is still there: as much as there are ways that digital is better than analogue, likewise, there also are ways that analogue is better than digital.
As we earlier suggested about the 2002 Vatican report 'The Church and Internet', is it correct to consider the internet as providing mainly a complementary role to church, or does it also have a supplementary contribution to make? All church leaders we interviewed who chose to adopt digital technologies in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic have said that their church recognises the immense value for an online presence and will continue to maintain some form of one in the aftermath of the crisis. This comes out of a realisation that digital technologies open new vistas for the missio Dei which were hidden in a pre-COVID-19 world. On the flipside, with all the benefits of any given technology, there are also new challenges which are introduced.
Digital technology is not just a novel and innovative tool to be instrumentalised in times of crisis, but digitality has become a key dimension of the way church is practised and, therefore, how Christians theologise. Scholars of world Christianity have for a long time spoken of the interplay between Christian thought and practice, in every new context it encounters. Digitality is but another context for Christians to hold in tension the 'indigenising' and 'pilgrim' principles.[58]
Notes
1 'Pope: we pray for expectant mothers, attentive to a "virtual" Church', AsiaNews (17 April 2020): http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Pope:-we-pray-for-expectant-mothers,-attentive-to-a-'virtual'-Church-49842.html
2 Pontifical Council for Social Communications, 'The Church and Internet' (22 February 2002): http://www.vatican.va/roman%5fcuria/pontifical%5fcouncils/pccs/documents/rc%5fpc%5fpccs%5fdoc%5f20020228%5fchurch- internet%5fen.html
3 Tim Hutchings, Creating Church Online: Ritual, Community, and New Media (New York: Routledge, 2017), 31. Hutchings goes on to highlight the range of those who have underscored this point, from Catholics to evangelicals such as N. T. Wright and John Piper. For an earlier discussion on this point, see Heidi Campbell, Exploring Religious Community Online: We are One in the Network (New York: Peter Lang, 2005), 119–23.
4 See S. Nathan Park, 'Confucianism Isn't Helping Beat the Coronavirus', Foreign Policy (2 April 2020): https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/04/02/confucianism-south-korea-coronavirus-testing-cultural-trope-orientalism/; Ian Inkster, 'In the battle against the coronavirus, East Asian societies and cultures have the edge', South China Morning Post (10 April 2020): https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3079176/battle-against-coronavirus-east-asian-societies-and- cultures-have; Pepe Escobar, 'Confucius is winning the Covid-19 war', Asia Times (13 April 2020): https://asiatimes.com/2020/04/confucius-is-winning-the-covid-19-war/
5 Timothy Goh and Rei Kurohi, 'Grace Assembly coronavirus mystery solved', The Straits Times (25 February 2020): https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/grace-assembly-coronavirus-mystery-solved-mega-cluster-linked-to-2-wuhan- tourists-via-a
6 Roland Chia, video interview with Alexander Chow, 28 April 2020.
7 Pat Browne, phone interview with Jonas Kurlberg, 1 May 2020.
8 IMD, 'World Digital Competitiveness Ranking 2019': https://www.imd.org/wcc/world-competitiveness-center- rankings/world-digital-competitiveness-rankings-2019/ (accessed 19 May 2020).
9 Karin Sundmark, video interview with Jonas Kurlberg, 14 May 2020.
Benjamin Lee, video interview with Jonas Kurlberg, 19 May 2020.
Lisa von Garrelts, 'Digitalisering – Rekordpåsk för kyrkan' [Digitalisation—A Record Easter for the Church], Techarenan (20 April 2020): https:// http://www.techarenan.news/2020/04/20/rekordpask-for-kyrkan/
Simon Chan, 'Evangelical Theology in Asian Contexts', in The Cambridge Companion to Evangelical Theology, ed. Timothy Larsen and Daniel J. Treier (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007), 225–40, at 226.
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore, 'Easter Sunday Mass 2020 – Livestream', YouTube (11 April 2020): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBp0edIArMU
Angie Brown, 'Edinburgh church congregation grows under lockdown', BBC (12 April 2020): https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk- scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-52262025
Charlie Allen, video interview with Jonas Kurlberg, 7 May 2020.
Heidi Campbell, When Religion Meets New Media (Abingdon: Routledge, 2010), 57–63.
Fredrik Modéus, 'Ställ inte in gudstjänster – fira fler!' [Do not cancel services—celebrate more!], Church of Sweden (27 March 2020): https://www.svenskakyrkan.se/pressmeddelande/stall-inte-in-gudstjanster--fira-fler? publisherId=3235445&releaseId=3273911&webid=1729437, Jonas Kurlberg's translation.
Fredrik Modéus, 'Vi tar ansvar och ställer om' [We are taking responsibility and are switching], Facebook (2 April 2020): https://www.facebook.com/fredrik.modeus/posts/10157540350308052
Kyrkohandboken för Svenska Kyrkan [The Church Handbook for the Church of Sweden] (Stockholm: Verbum, 2018). See Gordon W. Lathrop, Holy Things: A Liturgical Theology (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 1998).
Frida Mannerfeldt, video interview with Jonas Kurlberg, 5 May 2020.
Karin Rubenson, 'Corona är en ut ur kroppen-upplevelse för kyrkan' [Corona is an out-of-body-experience for the church], Kyrkans Tidning (15 April 2020): https://www.kyrkanstidning.se/teologi/corona-ar-kyrkans-egen-ut-ur-kroppen-upplevelse
Per Gyllenör, video interview with Jonas Kurlberg, 19 May 2020.
Catholic Church England and Wales, 'Faith leaders on prayer and worship during the pandemic', YouTube (3 April 2020): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoVD2pegDJA
Anonymous, email correspondence with Jonas Kurlberg, 1 May 2020.
Chris Juby, video interview with Jonas Kurlberg, 30 April 2020.
Leong Che Yeong, video interview with Jonas Kurlberg, 22 April 2020.
Charlie Allen, video interview with Jonas Kurlberg, 7 May 2020.
Pat Browne, video interview with Jonas Kurlberg, 1 May 2020.
'Holy Week and Easter in 2020', Church of England (1 April 2020): https://www.churchofengland.org/more/media- centre/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-parishes/holy-week-and-easter-2020; 'Online worship: "From my home to your home"', Scottish Episcopal Church (20 March 2020): https://www.scotland.anglican.org/online-worship-from-my-home-to- your-home/. For spiritual communion, see John Paul II, 'Encyclical letter Ecclesia de eucharistia of his Holiness Pope John Paul II': http://www.vatican.va/holy%5ffather/special%5ffeatures/encyclicals/documents/hf%5fjp- ii%5fenc%5f20030417%5fecclesia%5feucharistia%5fen.html, section 34; Church of England, 'Guidance on Spiritual Communion and Coronavirus': https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2020- 03/Guidance%20on%20Spiritual%20Communion%20and%20Coronavirus.pdf (accessed 22 May 2020).
Kevin Holdsworth, 'What if this is the end of the Eucharist?', What's in Kevin's Head? (5 May 2020): https://thurible.net/2020/05/05/what-if-this-is-the-end-of-the-eucharist/
Dave Richards, video interview with Alexander Chow, 7 May 2020.
Dana Delap, 'How we shared the bread and wine on Zoom', The Church Times (14 April 2020): https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2020/17-april/comment/opinion/how-we-shared-the-bread-and-wine-on-zoom
The Methodist Church, 'Conference Reports 2015: Communion Mediated through Social Media': https://www.methodist.org.uk/downloads/conf-2015-37-Communion-Mediated-through-Social-Media.pdf (accessed 22 May 2020).
Chong Chin Chung to the Methodist Church in Singapore, 6 April 2020: https://www.methodist.org.sg/images/2019- nCoV/episcopal-letter-to-methodists%5f06apr20.pdf
Benjamin Lee, video interview with Jonas Kurlberg, 19 May 2020.
Dirk G. Lange, 'Digital Worship and Sacramental Life in a Time of Pandemic', The Lutheran World Federation (23 March
2020): https://www.lutheranworld.org/blog/digital-worship-and-sacramental-life-time-pandemic
'När vi inte kan fira nattvard under coronakrisen' [When we cannot celebrate communion during the corona crisis], Church of Sweden (23 April 2020): https://internwww.svenskakyrkan.se/default.aspx?id=1490718
Donald Macleod, 'Online Communion Services?' (10 April 2020): https://donaldmacleod.org.uk/dm/online-communion- services/
Albert Bogle, video interview with Alexander Chow, 8 May 2020.
John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion 4.14.9.
'Proposed Guidelines on Holy Communion during COVID-19', Presbyterian Church in Singapore (1 April 2020): https://www.presbysing.org.sg/news-2020-04-proposed-guidelines-on-holy-communion-during-covid-19.htm
Flow Church, 'Youguan Flow Church wangshang shengcan yiji qi shenxue jichu' [Concerning Flow Church's Online Holy Communion and Its Theological Basis], Facebook (12 February 2020): https://www.facebook.com/flowchurchhk/photos/a.252167298662675/608250346387700
John Chan, video interview with Alexander Chow, 8 May 2020.
Joseph Prince, Eat Your Way to Life and Health: Unlock the Power of the Holy Communion (Nashville, TN: Emanate Books, 2019), 185.
Joseph Prince, 'Can You See The Angels Protecting You?' (2 February 2020): https://www.josephprince.com/sermon- notes/can-you-see-the-angels-protecting-you; Joseph Prince, 'Protection From Deadly Viruses – Answers From Psalm 91' (9 February 2020): https://www.josephprince.com/sermon-notes/protection-from-deadly-viruses-answers-from-psalm-91
Joseph Prince, 'Anointing Oil For Healing And Protection' (16 February 2020): https://www.josephprince.com/sermon- notes/anointing-oil-for-healing-and-protection
Dave Richards, video interview with Alexander Chow, 7 May 2020.
Charlie Allen, video interview with Jonas Kurlberg, 7 May 2020.
Benjamin Lee, video interview with Jonas Kurlberg, 19 May 2020.
Brown, 'Edinburgh church congregation grows under lockdown'. Surveys in the US and the UK have noted an increased engagement with religion in the midst of the pandemic, many through digital media. Claire Gecewicz, 'Few Americans say their house of worship is open, but a quarter say their faith has grown amid pandemic', Pew Research Center (30 April 2020): https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/04/30/few-americans-say-their-house-of-worship-is-open-but-a-quarter- say-their-religious-faith-has-grown-amid-pandemic/; 'Many Brits look to faith during lockdown', Tearfund (3 May 2020): https://www.tearfund.org/en/media/press%5freleases/many%5fbrits%5flook%5fto%5ffaith%5fduring%5flockdown/
Anonymous, video interview with Alexander Chow, 29 April 2020.
We need to be careful not to strongly dichotomise between 'shame' vs. 'guilt' cultures or 'collectivist' vs. 'individualist' societies. Andy Crouch helpfully argues some ways that social media has reintroduced the role of shame in Western societies. Andy Crouch, 'The Return of Shame', Christianity Today (10 March 2015): https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2015/march/andy-crouch-gospel-in-age-of-public-shame.html
John Chan, video interview with Alexander Chow, 8 May 2020.
John Tyrberg, 'Att Vara Kyrka i Coronatider' [Being the Church in the Age of Corona], Church of Sweden (8 May 2020): https://internwww.svenskakyrkan.se/lundsstift/fran-biskop-och-stiftskansli
Teresa Berger, @Worship: Liturgical Practices in Digital Worlds (Abingdon: Routledge, 2018), 18.
For Catholicism, transubstantiation was articulated when scholastics were shifting from a (Neo-)Platonic understanding to a more Aristotelean understanding of Eucharistic presence. See Laurence Hull Stookey, Eucharist: Christ's Feast with the Church (Nashville, TN: Abingdon, 1993), 46–50.
Albert Bogle, video interview with Alexander Chow, 8 May 2020.
Andrew F. Walls, 'The Gospel as Prisoner and Liberator of Culture', in The Missionary Movement in Christian History (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1996), 3–15.
~~~~~~~~ By Alexander Chow and Jonas Kurlberg
Reported by Author; Author
Alexander Chow is Senior Lecturer in Theology and World Christianity in the School of Divinity, University of Edinburgh, and is co-director of the Centre for the Study of World Christianity. He is author of two books, most recently Chinese Public Theology: Generational Shifts and Confucian Imagination in Chinese Christianity (Oxford, 2018).
Jonas Kurlberg is Programme Manager for the MA in Digital Theology, Cranmer Hall, Durham University, and Deputy Director of the Centre for Digital Theology. His book Christian Modernism in an Age of Totalitarianism: T. S. Eliot, Karl Mannheim and the Moot was published in 2019 (Bloomsbury).
Copyright of Studies in World Christianity is the property of Edinburgh University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.
__MACOSX/._Two or Three Gathered Online.pdf
Two-Way_Communication_During_Covid-19_A_Lesson_from_Indonesias_Church_Online_Worship.pdf
Two-Way Communication During Covid-19: A
Lesson from Indonesia’s Church Online Worship
Richard G. Mayopu
Department of Information Management
Chaoyang University of Technology
Taichung, Taiwan (R.O.C.)
Long-Seng Cheng
Department of Information Management
Chaoyang University of Technology
Taichung, Taiwan (R.O.C.)
Abstract— This study intends to define communication
science, specifically two-way communication performed by the
church through pastors when worship is held online using the
digital platforms YouTube and Facebook. Although social media
platforms which offer numerous functions and alters the
communication style of communicators and communicants has
been widely applied in online worship service, however, from
available published literature, we still have considerable of
unanswered concerns regarding the adaptation of religious
institutions during the Covid-19 Pandemic. Therefore, this study
aims to discover answers about the question “How does the
Church as a Christian service institution implement two-way
communication using the YouTube and Facebook during the
Covid-19 Pandemic Period?” using a qualitative technique as
well as a literature review. According to the findings of this study,
there is a difference in the communication style of the Church to
the congregation when they participate in online worship,
particularly through digital platforms such as Facebook and
YouTube.
Keywords— Digital Church, Two-Way Communication,
Digital Platform, Covid-19, Social Media.
I. INTRODUCTION
Indonesia is the country that was also affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Data from John Hopkins University shows increasing of infected case in 2020-2021. In July 2020 total case per seven day a week is around 1000s cases and increase in July 2021 to 55000s cases per seven days a week. This is worst situation in the country that has limited health facilities and technology support system. This is the “new kind of bad disaster ever had”. Certainly, this situation is not only a physical health disaster, but also a mental health disaster in general[1]. There is a sense of dread and stress that can contribute to a long-term trauma experience. This is merely one of the Covid-19 Pandemic's consequences [2]. In fact, many areas are impacted, and one that must be monitored and researched is the shift in communication methods among diverse sections of society, which must also shift.
It is important to highlight that there has been a huge shift in the way individuals connect with one another, particularly in the sphere of communication. When the communication process in the contact must be governed by rules established by authorities at the worldwide (World Health Organization) or national levels, with the goal of breaking the virus’s chain of transmission. The interaction of Angkringan traders in Salatiga city was studied by Mayopu 2020, and it was discovered that traders and purchasers or consumers had to
adapt to the "new" manner of interacting and communication. Keep a safe distance, wear a mask, and wash hands frequently are the three authority calls. Washing hands has little effect on communication, but when communicating with a mask and having to maintain a certain distance, it has a significant impact on the transfer of expression during the communication process.
During this pandemic, the influence of this comprehensive communication will absolutely affect the communication pattern of church services. When it comes to communicating with all members of the congregation, the church, as an institution that also serves as a communicator, goes through a variety of changes. Especially in terms of liturgy services, particularly weekly services, as well as numerous ecclesiastical celebration services held during holidays such as Christmas and Easter.
Recent study in England conducted by University of Oxford[3] has found change pattern of congregation participation in worship at church. However, this study still believe that the online worship is not quietly effective. Physical presences have the quality to understanding the liturgy. On the other hand, the online worship doesn’t have the effective understanding of liturgy. Therefore, online worship still has disadvantages and need to be improves by the church.
In this research, we try to figure up the disadvantages of online worship. The church just only focused on the messages to be delivered to the congregation whereas the feature of the online app such as YouTube and Facebook have the limitation for the worship. At the first time the application has launched, just to connect people with others and share the photo or video and the moment people want to share. This is the real problem and issues, because not any activity is compatible with the apps.
The church appears to participate in a unidirectional or linear communication pattern while serving the weekly liturgy. The church, on the other hand, is expected to employ various communication application platforms to broadcast weekly services to the congregation public via social media platforms as part of the development of Covid-19. A YouTube Channel and a Facebook Account or Fan Page are two platforms that are often used. These two platforms promote two-way engagement and communication, which is, of course, “opposite” to the notion of weekly worship or worship that takes place physically in a church setting.
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To sum up, social media has been widely applied in online worship during Covid-19. However, from available published literature, we still have considerable of unanswered concerns regarding the adaptation of religious institutions during the Covid-19 Pandemic. Therefore, this study aims to discover answers about the question “How does the Church as a Christian service institution implement two-way communication using the YouTube and Facebook during the Covid-19 Pandemic Period?” using a qualitative technique as well as a literature review.
II. LITERATURE REVIEW
A. Communication
Some experts employ a range of approaches to communicate the communication concepts embodied in the communication models they developed. In fact, the evolution of communication theory, which may be unaware of, is that many professionals come from non-communication backgrounds. They work in fields other than communication, implying that communication is a highly interdisciplinary science.
For instance, the Shannon and Weaver [4] model prioritizes the presence of signals and transmitters in the communication transfer process, which is heavily inspired by these two people' scientific backgrounds, notably physicists. Moreover, the communication semiotic scientist Charles Sanders Pierce, who developed a communication semiotics model by developing a topological model of signs in communication, namely objects, representations, and interpretants, which are heavily influenced by mathematical scientific backgrounds, thus the development of communication models is based on the positivist and pragmatist paradigms.
B. One Way Communication
One-way communication or linear communication is quite closely related to the theory of One Step Flow Communications. The definition of One Step Flow Communications is a communication process that is delivered by the communicator to the communicant and with the belief that the communicant does not respond directly. This theory was introduced by Elihu Katz in the 1930s to 1940s by looking at the phenomenon of the development of mass media at that time where the mass media was only concerned with delivering one-way messages to the public.
This means that the communicant will only be passive when responding to messages delivered by the communicator. This communication process is often referred to as the hypodermic needle theory. The assumption is that when the needle (of course there is liquid medicine in it) is injected into the patients, the patients can only receive the injection without giving a significant resistance reaction. We know that when patients come and submits themself to a doctor or health professional, they are actually "giving their whole life" to be treated by doctor or health professional. There is a feeling of "surrender" from the patients in order to get treatment for the disease. Thus, when the doctor or health professional gives an injection of medicine into their body, the patients cannot refuse it because they need the treatment.
C. Two-way communication
Two-way communication is a continuation or solution of the one-way communication model. If one-way communication does not heed active interaction (weakness of
one-way communication), then in two-way communication there is interaction, reciprocity, and equality in the communication process. The communication model developed by Laswell is two-way communication approach focused on interaction [5]. The keywords of the Laswell model are "Who Says What in Which Channel with What Effect" which is condensed again into two words "What Effect". This means that the effect becomes an expected value in the Laswell model. This model was further refined by Grunig [6] and is often used in studying two-way communication [7]. Two-way communication generally occurs when the process of sending and receiving messages by two people who are socially in the same position and with a balanced frequency or occur reciprocally.
D. Information Communication Technology in “Church
Digital Ministries”
As technology people, humans today cannot stay away from technology, especially information and communication technology (hereinafter abbreviated as ICT). Humans currently live in an era of technology that provides various conveniences in living life. In this regard, ICT created social media where the initial function of social media was to connect someone with other people in the virtual world or take advantage of internet connection facilities. The church is also required to take part and be involved in the use of this technology. Although every new technology is present on this earth, it can be a solution to a problem, however, it creates new problems. Therefore, wisdom is needed in adapting to technological development.
III. METHOD
This study used a qualitative approach [8], in applied communication method [9] specifically using a literature study method. The study focused on the theory of two-way communication. The unit of observation in this research is Communication of Church services during the Covid19 pandemic. This is online observation and focused on the comment section in the official channel of the churches in Indonesia. In addition, the technique to analyze the data obtained from the observation is use the semiotic approach. The unit of analysis is the Communication Process using digital communication media on social media platforms that are quite popular among the Church, namely YouTube and Facebook. The various supporting features of two-way communication embedded in these two platforms will be one of the progressive contributions of thought, especially in the communication process of Church worship during the Covid- 19 Pandemic. Data collection methods, using observations and documentation of various literature that make it possible to answer research questions. Figure 1 shows the steps of literature review adopted from Wang’s model of traditional literature review.
Fig. 1. Traditional Literature Review Models [10]
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According to the diagram, there are six stages of literature review method. Defining the problem include the research question has placed on the Introduction section. The research question also became the first stage on this research. In the second, we searched the literature from the digital or electronic database of article’s that write about the topic related to the research focus. We focused on Sage Publisher (top 15th search result with key words “online worship”) and Elsevier data base (top 15th search result with keywords “online worship”). N=30 articles and selected narrow to 12th relevant article’s to be reviewed (10th from Sage and 2nd from Elsevier). The next stage is read and formulated the critical thinking and selected the chosen issues which often shows on the literature. Furthermore, we organize the data and writing up the review and combined with the observation trough digital platform and analyzed the data.
IV. DISCUSSION
A. Service Communication during the Covid 19 Pandemic
TABLE I. LITERATURE REVIEW ONLINE WORSHIP
Titles, Authors, Years Journals Theories
include
(explicit &
implicit)
Anglican adaptation to
pandemic disease: a historical
perspective Anglican. James F. Turrell,
2022[11]
Anglican Theological
Review,
DOI:10.1177/ 000332862110
61093
One way
communicat
ion
Current Trends and Resources in Worship, Graham Fender-
Allison 2013[12]
The Expository Times, DOI:
10.1177/0014524613509
324
One Way Communica
tion
Making Connections: Christian Worship and Public
Witness, Sally A. Brown and
Luke A. Powery, 2013[13]
Theology Today, DOI: DOI:
10.1177/0040573612473
032
One Way Communica
tion
Online Communion, Christian
Community, and Receptive
Ecumenism: A Holy Week Ethnography during COVID-
19, Sarah Kathleen Johnson
University, 2020[14]
Studia Liturgica,
DOI: ps://doi.org/10.117
7/0039320720946030
Two-Ways
Communica
tion
Online Religion in Nigeria:
The Internet Church and
Cyber Miracles, Innocent Chiluwa, 2012[15]
Journal of Asian and
African Studies,
DOI: 10.1177/00219096 11430935
Two-Ways
Communica
tion
Online worship: a learning
experience
Hannah, Hannah Alderson and Grace Davie, 2021[16]
Theology, DOI:
10.1177/0040571X2098
5697
Two-Ways
Communica
tion
Religion on the Internet:
Community and Virtual Existence, Franz
Foltz, Frederick Foltz,2003[17]
Bulletin of Science,
Technology & Society, DOI: 10.1177/02704676
03256085
The
Two-Ways
Communica tion
Rethinking ‘active participation’ after a
pandemic, Matthew Salisbury,
2021[3]
Theology, DOI: 10.1177/0040571X2110
56792
Two-Ways Communica
tion
The Korean Church’s
Reflection on Worship,
Church, and Mission in the Calamity of the COVID-19
Pandemic, Chung-Hyun Baik,
2021[18]
International Bulletin of
Mission
Research, ps://doi.org/10 .1177/239693932096766
5
Two-Ways
Communica
tion
Viewing the impact of Covid-
19 through the eyes of retired
clergy, Leslie J. Francis and Andrew Village,2021[19]
Theology, DOI:
10.1177/0040571X2098
5698
Two-Ways
Communica
tion
Worshipping colliery gods in
China: A religious view of
The Extractive
Industries and Society
Two-Ways
Communica
resource extraction and mining
safety, Xiuyun Yang, 2021[20]
journal, https://doi.org/1
0.1016/j.exis.2021.1010 41
tion
Current Communication Trends in Church
Sermons, Evgeniy M.
Morozova, 2015
The XXVI Annual International Academic
Conference, Language
And Culture, 27–30 October 2015,
DOI: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2
015.08.101
Two-Ways Communica
tion
Based on table 1, church services have undergone very drastic changes during this Covid-19 pandemic. This change can be said to be 180° different. Why is that? because in every church tradition, one-way communication is priority strategy, however during the pandemic, it turns out that there are a lot of indirect communication processes or face-to-face communication. Therefore, this can be a leap forward or a stumbling block.
Furthermore, discussing the first to communicate that is not face-to-face and does not communicate directly, certainly, some responses can be received directly, but it is inversely proportional if the communication process uses communication aids in this case ICT. There will be meaning and purpose of the message that will be delayed or even not conveyed properly. Therefore, in this communication process, adjustments must be made, both from the communicator and the communicant. If in the pre-pandemic period, the communication process between the pastor and the congregation at the time of the sermon at the church could be done very calmly and comfortably (this method has been applied for centuries) amid the congregation, the bus responded directly not only to how they paid attention to the content of the sermon delivered. , nevertheless, expressions such as laughing, nodding their heads that show understanding of the content of the message, and understanding every gesture or nonverbal communication [21] delivered by the Pastor.
Changes in this communication process have become imperative. The Covid-19 pandemic is only accelerating changes in service communication patterns. Before the Covid-19 Pandemic, the Church was already faced with extraordinary challenges regarding Information Communication Technology (ICT). How come, aspects of people’s lives have turned to the use of ICT, therefore the Church inevitably to make these adjustments. Not a few at this time, churches use Website as the media or channel to communicate or deliver information about Church activities which are usually written in the congregational newsletter, which is usually about information on activity schedules, financial reports and others that are considered important to be delivered to the congregation or members. Communication used on the Website is also using the principle of unidirectional communication, except for Web 2.0 or the latest version.
If we only look at how the ordinances or service liturgies are applied online, it can be quickly and immediately found that not much has changed. The liturgy of worship in general, continues to run according to the traditions of the Church's ministry. Starting from the call to worship, Intercessory Prayer, to the confession of the Apostles' Faith, it is still carried out as it should. Precisely what is the focus that needs
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to be considered is the form of communication and the response of the Pastor's communication to the congregation.
In this study the authors highlight the digital platforms that are often used, namely Facebook and YouTube. Facebook has a Live feature to display live broadcasts or live streaming, namely live worship services or, more specifically, sermons. This feature certainly provides a new experience for the Church, especially the Pastors who deliver their sermons through this facility. Pastors who are public speakers also must adapt quickly to this new experience.
In Public Speaking skill, [22] there are three main considerations while a person speaks in public; 1) Audience: communicants that can be homogeneous or heterogeneous, which is the target of communicators when preparing and delivering messages. 2) Topic: is material that has been prepared, of course, based on the big topic that you want to discuss. For instance, if a Pastor delivers a Sermon during Christmas or Easter, the big topic of the Sermon's message must match the momentum. The selection of Bible verses and the determination of examples and humor to be included in the content of the Sermon must be adjusted. 3) Equipment: this is the technical assistance needed in this modern era. Every technology used must be able to support clarity, clarity of the content of the message conveyed. For instance, the use of a microphone, Lcd Projector, Sound system, and others. This is certainly not a core part of public speaking [23] for some public speakers under certain conditions, but in this study, the authors found that this greatly determines the course of events or Church Service activities.
Highlighting the use of software, congregants who wishing to join the online service must have an account. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the use of this technology adequately by the congregations. This is also a challenge for the congregation, considering that not all congregations in Indonesia are "technology literate"[24]. Certainly, it is necessary to conduct a more in-depth study to find out the various reasons for this "technology literacy"[25]. Therefore, there needs to be a common understanding between communicators and communicants. Both also must understand technology, if one of them does not understand or cannot adapt, then the communication process cannot be optimum, or it is usually called “Noise or Distortion”. Two Ways Communication Model in Church Services
Mutual interaction is the "spirit" of two-way communication. If during this pandemic every element of society must adapt in various ways, then this applies to the communication process as well. Many adjustments must be made, starting from communicating with having to wear a mask and maintaining a distance of at least 1.5 meters. In research conducted by Mayopu (2020) regarding communication patterns in Angkringan (traditional food corner) in Salatiga, during pandemic, there was a "failure" in seeing the direct expressions of communicators and communicants. The expression is hindered by the mask that is used to cover part of the face and must maintain a distance so that the intonation of the voice must adjust (High Volume).
This adaptation process of course has a new impact on the congregation. The message delivered during the service by the communicator, in this case, Pastor obtains a response from the congregation who attended the service, but the
question is Does the response look like an expression during an offline service? Certainly, it is different. The congregation's response could not be seen by the communicator because at the time of the sermon, the communicator only saw a limited audience who were allowed to attend the service, even the Church council on duty during the service.
The congregation's response is only represented by a few emoticons, and it is available in the application. In addition to emoticons, congregational responses can be made by using the comment feature. This feature is a feature that is quite helpful for the congregation to express their feelings when attending the service. If the congregation can put their feelings into writing, then the possibility of real expressions from the congregation can be deliver to the Pastor. This also happen if the pastor also takes the time to pay attention to any comments or reactions from the congregation through the features provided by platforms, both Facebook and YouTube.
This response can also be expressed in various expressions such as angry, moved, care about the sermon delivered by the Pastor. However, this is limited by a few types of emoticons. There may be other expressions presented through the insert image or animation, but it must be admitted that in fact, these expressions cannot represent the direct expression of the Pastor. This response will be very different when the Pastor conducts face-to-face meetings with the congregation.
Furthermore, the response can also be seen more deeply. If the Worship Process is carried out in the Church Building, the Congregation and all those present in the church will greatly appreciate and respect the Sacredness of the Church Building so that the Congregation will very much maintain a “courteous and polite” attitude in communicating both verbally and non-verbally. Even if the congregation does not agree with what the Pastor said, he will choose to remain silent and listen. However, this is certainly different from the conditions when the congregation responds to the Online Service through Facebook or YouTube. Public can freely give a disapproving response to the sermons, it may give a response of rejecting or disagreeing with what is delivered by the Pastor, it can happen, and it can be delivered directly in the comment’s section.
Fig. 2. Screenshot Christmas worship 2020: Premiered December 25th 2020 GKJ Purwokerto Source :YouTube Channel GKJ Purwokerto https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWX75Lq2JDs accessed on March 19th, 2020 08.21 a.m.
Figure 2 very clearly shows the difference between Offline and Online Services, especially in the response and expression to the Christmas Worship Video. This is just a concrete example that Pastors, and Churches need to be aware of. However, one thing that needs to be realized is that
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in the world of social media, the term Netizen is known. Net citizens are accounts that circulate in cyberspace and carry out any activity and are only controlled by Platform voters. For example, the YouTube channel is always monitored by the YouTube admin or manager by the privacy and security policies of the platform. The point is that netizens are not members of the church. For instance, on the @GKJPurwokerto channel, several accounts can use their real names or pseudonyms and comment on these posts. So that the communicator or pastor or church cannot confirm that the account commenting on this is confirmed to be the @GKJPurwokerto’s Congregation.
This incident is certainly different when we attend the offline Service [13]. All those present can be ascertained members of the Church or at least have an emotional bond with the Church. in contrast, it is even possible that the account following the service is not a member of the Church or may even come from another religious background.
In the picture, the dislike response to the post is displayed. As of the screenshot, 7 accounts clicked the dislike button which is a representation of their dislike of the post. This is relevant evaluation material for the Church. The Church's readiness to see the various features of this communication is certainly important, especially when it comes to the authority of the Church, Pastors, and other important elements. Are Pastors ready with this kind of open expression of dislike in every service they lead? This is certainly a challenge considering that in Offline Services, the response from the congregation is always "polite and very respectful and respectful of the Church, Pastor and every element in it". This is contrasts with Online Worship which is attended by members of the congregation or non- congregational members who can freely give any response, including dislike of the details of the online worship service.
Fig. 3. Weekly Worship Pola Tribuana Kalabahi Church Source: @Gereja Pola Tribuana Kalabahi Facebook Account https://www.facebook.com/gerejapola.tribuanakalabahi.7
Figure 3 has shown the communication that occurs on the account of the Pola Tribuana Kalabahi Church. This live streaming post for the Sunday Service 07 March 2021 provides another perspective on this communication process. In addition to what has been described in Figure 2, Figure 3 provides confirmation communications to the Communicator. There is a response to Noise or Distortion in the Live Streaming. Visible account (Communicant) that provides information to the Communicator regarding technical problems. Sound System issues become the core of the communication. There is an account @BramPanduwal which informs you that the sound from the devotional post has completely disappeared. This is one of the differences between offline and online Services. Unlike the online worship service, this is the active participation of the
congregation through a quick response when they find these communication disorders.
B. Reflection on Communication during the Covid-19
Pandemic
This research provides recognition as human beings, we must always be able to adapt to various circumstances, or in a Christian perspective, and this pandemic is a challenge and a trial from the Almighty for mankind. In the perspective of development science, development is not only physical, namely building infrastructure physically but also the character and mental development, especially in the Covid- 19 pandemic situation.
In this research, development can be associated with building an appropriate communication process can be explained simply as follows: “The Process to build and create the communications style during the pandemic covid-19”. Any physical activities are limited by this situation, but communication doesn’t. Information Technology Assistance Communication with various platforms including digital platforms such as YouTube and Facebook still have many limitations. Therefore, the Church must be able to adapt quickly to build a distinctive style of communication with the mission of the Church's ministry.
We provide table 2 as below to extract the distinguish between online[26] and offline worship based on the two- way communication has expected from the worship process. There are four parts to be extracted such as feedback characters, feedback time, participant, and identity. We found that online has the limit to express the meaning of the messages which communicated by the participant. Online has delayed response depends on the connection and gadget they use.
TABLE II THE DISTINGUISH OF ONLINE AND OFFLINE WORSHIP BASED ON TWO-WAY COMMUNICATION
Online (Communication)
Worship
Offline (Communication)
Worship
feedback
characters
Limited characters provide
by the Apps.
Unlimited characters
provide by human
expression (on the spot/ face to face)
Feedback
time
Delayed response Immediately response
More time Available On the spot during worship
Bullying Good response
Participant Public Private Congregation
Identity Fake account (Real) Human or member
of the church
The result of this research is we found the distinguish of online and offline worship based on two-way communication and also, we suggest that two ways communication in the church must be adjust by the church because based on the distinguish of online and offline worship, this kind of communication is having the different purposes.
V. CONCLUSION
This study concludes that communication using the digital platforms YouTube and Facebook is an option, thereby the Church can still conduct worship and reach the congregations. The church is adapting to this pandemic situation. Actively use and utilize various service features
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provided by the digital platform. Furthermore, another finding is the control over the reaction of the congregation or more precisely Netizens (Internet citizens) who can't be stopped when they express their opinions or respond to online worship posts from the Church.
It is necessary to be adjustments in communication. Especially the Church, which always uses one-way communication, must adapt to changes in communication. The change from communication to two-way communication is a must in the 4.0 era as well as during this Covid19 pandemic. Certainly, this research also has many limitations, such as discussing cases in certain churches in more depth. Another obstacle is this research is a literature study which necessarily will be more interesting if conduct field research. Therefore, the recommendation for further research is to design field research directly on churches that have problems or even do not have obstacles in adapting to the Covid-19 pandemic. This research is trying to give some suggestion for the church in the way they are running the liturgy or doing online worship. The online worship is totally different rather than offline worship. There are some “regulations” must be adjusted and it might take a little effort and adjustment. The church should know the detail of YouTube and Facebook features and follow the update of these developing apps.
VI. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This work was supported in part by Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan (Grant No. MOST 110-2410-H-324 -003).
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