cassettes
Most churches I know are somehow stuck. If your in a church that claims to be a “new testament church” as in a REAL one, or a “First Century Church”, or “An Acts 2 church”, and you think your brand is the only one that claims that you would be wrong. There are lots of groups that rally around those cries or similar ones. It seems that a lot of these…ok most of these churches are really a 1980 church, or a 1970 or 1950 or maybe even a 1850 church. The way they DO “church” dates back to their hay day, or the hay day of those they used to admire most. Maybe it dates back to their most dynamic and charasmatic leader. But they don’t really do church at all like AD 40.
I am not even sure that is good thing to want/desire/ strive to be.
I think we are called to be the church of Today.
The church in the new testament was if anything…messed up. Maybe it was messed up in a good way. Some churches could benifit from a good dose of someone sleeping with their father’s wife. It would be the first time, in a long time ,they had to deal with anything.
It seems that most churches are in the music business and are handing out cassette tapes.
We haven’t had a vehicle with a tape player in some time. Years. I still have a stereo that has one…it also has this thing called a turntable for playing records. My kids have a cassette player…but only because they have a lot of old hand-me-down cassettes they like to listen to. If it were not for those hand-me-down’s they wouldn’t even know what a cassette was.
In case you have forgotten, cassettes are these plastic cases with two flimsy spools that hold a even flimsier magnetic ribbon.
Churches are telling people they have got some good music for them. “Here have a cassette!” The only people that take one are people that grew up in that culture or in a similar one and know how to access the music. Or maybe the occasional person who doesn’t realize what they are being given, or is too nice to say no. Everyone else thinks, “what would I do with that?”
Some churches even give out 8-tracks or albums or these…
somebody might take one of these just because it is so neat.
There is a generation that will always be lost if not reached with the good music. But, this one in particular marks a change in thinking that unless we change to their technology (way of listening) they will not have a clue what we are saying.
So, if you sitting here thinking, yeah we need to be handing out CD’s…..then you are making my point. Nobody listens to CD’s if they do actually buy a physical one, then they immediately put it on their ipod.
So are you saying we are obsolete by the time we jump on a band wagon?
Yeah, I am hearing you…
I am saying that the way many communicate may still work for some people but it is headed toward being obsolete.
The problem between the old and young is that they define “meaningful worship” in very different ways and both can get very easily upset over not getting it their way.
You will not be surprised at all to hear that I don’t have an ipod.
The church has to decide that it’s in the music business and not in the CD, MP3, 8-track, or record business. Only when that decision is made will real change for the better happen.
Matt, I think that is right in most places, but not all. My experience is that if the leadership and culture of a church desire to be a church of today they put loving people above traditions.
Terri, of course you don’t have an ipod, where would you connect it to your horse and buggy?
Phil, I think that is exactly right. The delivery method often becomes an idol.
TCS,
When do I ever get it all right anyway?
Matt, you don’t have to arround here! We will take you just like you are friend.
this is a great post! being the multimedia deacon i find it hard to move forward at times. i have been at a congregation that when i mentioned that we needed to invest in a cd burner for the sermons. they said, “but i don’t have a cd player.” my response was, “my car does not have a cassette player.”
i mentioned if we are trying to reach the next generation we need to get them what they are used to today. this was a great post, thomas!
TCS,
Thank you for the prayers it means so much to me and my family.
About your post and new blog location I love it!
I remember jamming out to the black album by METALLICA and all of sudden….in my car ate it all up. NOT METALLICA!!!!! The black albums of all things: Sad But True…The tape was history until when I got home and my dad said, “let’s install things thing they call a CD player. The CD my dad bought for me. The nice godly man he is was of course METALLICA’S “THE BLACK ALBUM”!!!!
Thanks dad you rock!
Kenny, although I was going for analogy, you really do need to move to podcast an CD’s.
Preacherman Kinney, dude, maybe that Matallica has something to do with the headaches.
Seriously, I hope that it turns out your allergic to milk or something.
that is too funny. i was driving from work to church and i was thinking of this post, and what i said. believe me, i was serious about my comments about the media and medium that we use, but i do so get the analogy. it so fits.
if we are stuck on the old medium, how will we pass on the media to the next generation?
p.s. give me some hints on where to start the podcast version of handouts.
no seriously … stop laughing … where should i start so we can podcast to our next generation?
well you can google how to podcast. Or JD can give you some methods that he uses. I think he just uses a digital handheld recorder and uploads to his computer then posts it to podomatic. But you can capture directly to the computer. Our church does our podcast (to my knowledge which is not in that loop) by a direct capture. Our system is all digital so the signal is already a digital signal. We then edit to a start and stop point to edit out the songs. itunes has info on how to set up your podcast on their site.
Not laughing at all. Is that what your asking or are you asking about the anaolgy?
I think we often get caught up in the medium when what is behind the medium is what is missing. Was that the point?
I can just as easily become obsessed with new technology as old and in the process miss what is most important.
that’s what i was getting at, thomas. i know a little about podomatic, and i was wondering if you had some other ideas.
this really was a good post. i got it. i liked it.
Very good post and comments. Unfortunately I know of some 8 track churches and that makes me really, really sad for them.
Terri, if it makes you feel any better I have had an MP3 player for almost a year now and still don’t know how to use it.
I still play CD’s. I have to keep banging on my dashboard to get them to work, too. Very frustrating!
P.S. Where did you lift that Jule Miller strip? I bet I have an idea…
Put me at the head of the line when you start giving out free IPods. Darin made the point I was going to make. It does not matter what medium we use (and we should not be closed minded to any of them) rather it is the message that we live. Lets all be light and love.
Maybe we should think more in terms of being called to be Christ to the world…instead of being called to be a church. The community might develop more naturally if we had the heart and passion of our Savior.
Darin, Yeah, the medium is not the music. But medium does matter.
Kenny, thanks man.
Amy, keep on banging! funny, that’s not a Jule Miller film strip. For those of you wondering..no I didn’t steal one and if your not from a old Church of Christ background they are these (looking for a kind adjective) outdated film strips (think “ding” turn to next frame) evangelistic things. That is actually an Edison Phonograph ‘record’. I can’t believe you would think I would “lift” one of those. LOL.
David, thanks for the comment. And I’m all for us being light and love. I do think the medium matters. to give someone a tape (not literally, but in your method of telling) when they can’t undertand it (can’t listen to it) then your good music is not reaching their ears.
Paul, you are right we are never called to be the church. We are called and that just makes us part of the church. Good point.