Social media and evangelism: Using social media as a catalyst to explore mission (original) (raw)
Related papers
Social media and its effectiveness in evangelism
2019
Over the years, technology has been used as a medium for spreading the gospel from as far back as New Testament times, with the coming of the social media, many finds it easy to interact and to share stories. Evangelism which is sharing the gospel of Christ to the world, the church is yet to harness the potential of using social media to evangelized, this paper adopt a simple statistic to point out the effectiveness of using social media to reach out to thousands who uses social media like Facebook, WhatsApp, twitter, Instagram, WeChat, Snap-Chat and the rest on a daily basis.
Kościół i Prawo
Evangelization is a task and mission commissioned by Christ to the Church as an institution, but it is also the task of every member of the community of believers. Christ calls us to go with the good news wherever there is a person. Today’s human being lives in two worlds – the real one, but also in the digital one. Therefore, it is important that the process of evangelization takes place not only in a traditional way in the real world, but also that the Gospel is present in the digital world. The subject of this article is the issue of on-line evangelization, including the use of social media. The aim is to show that the presence of the Gospel in the digital world is necessary, but it carries many opportunities and threats.
Abstract— Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and Social Networking Websites have become forces to reckon with in the task of information dissemination in the 21st Century. Having a divine mandate to evangelize the world as pre-pointer to the second advent of Jesus Christ, these two forces have become tools of invaluable worth for the Christian who realizes and believes this mandate and is committed to active participation towards its realization. This paper provides some insight into the various strategies deployed by Babcock University, Division of Spiritual Life for evangelism and gospel outreach using the tools of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and Social Networking Websites. The research also identified the challenges faced and also provides recommendations on how to effectively use ICT and Social Networks Websites for evangelism. Index Terms: ICT, Evangelism, Social Network, Spiritual life.
2021
ABSTRACT: As nearly half of the global population is on one or more social networks, the churches need to relate to this rapidly expanding phenomenon. The churches have regarded social media primarily as a tool to fulfill their ministry, so generally in positive terms. However, the negative side of social media requires a proper response from the church, perhaps mainly by serving those who are directly affected by it. But social media is more than just a tool, according to the theory of mediatization, social media deeply influences all aspects of personal and public life. This paper explores what the appropriate response could be on the part of the church to this new reality which poses difficult challenges. KEYWORDS: church, social media, mediatization, ministry, technology
Yet the Church must remember that Social Media also poses threat especially in the spiritual and moral life of the person engaging in it. Knowing these threats, the Church is therefore called to not only venture into evangelization but of becoming a voice that proclaim Christ in the wilderness (cf. John 1:23). In this regard, this paper aims to point several moral challenges shown by the social media and how the Church is responding to these challenges.
Community, Discipleship, and Social Media
Christian Education Journal: Research on Educational Ministry, 2015
As Christian educators how should we view social media? Friend or enemy? Embrace or ignore? Encourage or discourage it? How does social media affect relationships, especially relationships in terms of community and discipleship? Can social media be used as part of a discipleship strategy? The uses of social media are evident in many congregations today. This article explores the philosophical, theological, and practical questions about the uses of social media as part of a discipleship strategy. Who are the people using social media and how does their use affect the church's discipleship strategy? The article concludes by recommending some key questions that ministry leaders must ask if they are to consider using social media as part of their discipleship strategy.
Hong Kong Journal of Catholic Studies, 2023
The medium of evangelization has been evolving in the last four centuries. From oral, print, to digital media, the transmission of the Gospel progresses along with technologies. Outlining the shift in these last few centuries, this paper highlights the increasing significance of digital media as tools of evangelization and examines the translatability of the Gospel in a different medium. This paper employs the methodology of digital theology, that is, in what ways does digital media alter or transform theology, to examine the linkage between social media and Christianity. More specifically, this paper will evaluate in what ways evangelism is enabled or hindered by digital media in three aspects: (I) materiality; (II) authority; and (III) communications. Mindful of the debates about materiality online, especially those related to the Eucharist, the paper investigates the different responses of Christian congregations on this matter. Drawing studies from digital theologians, this paper also discusses in what ways the authority of the Church shifts due to equal participation from all parties—whether from pastoral leaders and lay persons. Building on this aspect, the paper also takes into consideration different forms of communications among Christians, both within and outside churches, that may shape the dynamics of evangelism. Finally, this paper employs the theology of Stanley Hauerwas, an American Methodist whose theology has been hugely shaped by Catholic ecclesiology, to argue for the importance of Christian witness online and reflect on the concepts of Church and world in the digital sphere.