A2: Multisite Bullpen Discussion

This is going to be hard to blog...it will be really "stream-of-consciousness" stuff...sorry -- I tried to keep up with the conversation, but it's quick. Mostly these notes are for me, to spark thoughts later as I debrief...Please don't feel like you have to read! Is multisite theological? the panel has a struggle here with..."is this even church?" and "what are the practical implications?" Is this the "Wal-Martization" of the church to where there will only be like 3 churches in the United States. They also plant churches if they have someone gifted and called to teach. If they have this, the plant, if not, they go by satellite. (Interesting distinction) Will we shrink the pool of gifted communicators? Erwin -- we can't make the video thing work, even though we're multi-site. "If you're not giving people to create the new (teaching abilities) then we have a dilemma there." "Does the need for multisite churches highlight a problem in the body of Christ that there is a lack of apostolic, visionary, entrepenurial leaders?" This is not new... mainline churches have been following orders of service dictated by a book for a long time -- this isn't much different than doing it via video. So maybe the question is where did the Roman Catholic Church miss the boat with it's "multisite approach" that it required a Reformation -- because the multisite phenomenon may face the same struggles. Bill: (echoing a conversation with an RCC cardinal) "We know the weak link in reproducing churches all over the world would be inferior teaching from parish to parish." Bill: Now we have the technology that we can overcome some of this weak link. Bill is struggling. He knows that video works ("it works")..."but what is the it?" Craig -- where does the anointing of the Spirit stop?? At the "live" presentation -- or does it extend to the video site? African Americans don't seem to gravitate towards video venues. Does this tranfer across racial/cultural lines? Can you trust in the character and integrity of someone that you only know via video? "you can fake it in person or on video" If you use a lot of different speakers, you don't transmit core values and core values are important. How do campuses address the specific needs of their campuses? Sometimes campus pastors teach and they preempt the video to address the specific issues/tensions of particular sites. "We trained people to think of church via video." We get distrustful that we don't know people online...and yet people wear masks in our lobbies all the time! We may be putting too much stock in what happens in face-to-face interaction and too little stock in what happens in online relationships. sorry these notes are so bad (I can't believe that anyone is still reading) It's lunch time!