"Can we be Virtual as Well as Virtuous? JesusPhish Challenges Christians to Move Quickly and Safely into the 21st Century”
Enabling Christians to communicate, collaborate and participate using technology to Share Christ with the World!
(PRWEB) June 17, 2005 -- "Can we Be Virtual as Well as Virtuous? JesusPhish
Challenges Christians to Move Quickly and Safely into the 21st
Century”
JesusPhish founder Dean Hartmann says, “Technology has changed
the way we do everything. We can close our eyes and wish it away or we can
embrace it and use it for the betterment of the people we care
about.
JesusPhish Online Christian Community founder Dean Hartmann says
that most Christian communities are not yet aware of the dangers they are facing
in a technological world.
Hartmann is concerned with the lack of response
by Christian communities to the rapid changes around them.
“It is not a
lack of faith, far from it. The problem is that most churches simply do not
realize just how dangerous these changes are, and they aren't preparing for
them.”
Hartmann says that church groups are still living in the
pre-Internet period. “And that would be fine, as far as faith goes. But what
they don't get is that technology is changing the rules. They have to adapt to
this, or they'll lose ground and in some cases wither away.”
“I've talked
to church leaders,” he says, “and they all say the same thing. Attendance at
church services is declining. Involvement with ministries is declining,
financial support is declining. But it's not because of a lack of faith; it's
because of competing distractions, caused mostly by technology like the
Internet. JesusPhish is harnessing that technology for that very
reason.”
Hartmann thinks that what is needed is for churches and
Christian Organizations to embrace this technology, to use it to strengthen the
community rather than weaken it.
“If people have stopped going to
services, then we've got to start taking the services to them. If people have
stopped being involved with church activities because they are too busy, then
we've got to make it more convenient for them. If young people have lost
interest because it's too old fashioned, then we've got to reach them in a way
they'll relate to.”
He says that he created JesusPhish so that churches
can offer cutting edge communication tools and resources to their
members.
“We set up a public group and also private, secure groups for
individual churches on the internet. People can just log on and hear the
minister's last sermon if they missed it. They can participate in committee
meetings. They can request prayers. Daily bible studies are available, and many
other Christian resources. I am most excited about the new video conference
rooms, where people can actually hear each other's voices and see each other on
video or simply text chat with each other world wide free!”
“A growing
number of households now have internet access, so they no longer have to miss
out on being involved with the church, or with the general Christian community.
This is a new form of outreach, where we bring the church to the person. We
think that’s going to open up whole new worlds of Christian
communication.”
“We believe that communication breeds participation and
we have committed ourselves to using technology to Share Christ with the
World!”
The official pre-launch of the JesusPhish Christian Community
site is on June 17, 2005 at http://www.christianwebsiteonline.com
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/6/prweb250445.htm