Bo Emerson’s recent article explores how pastors are using Twitter to engage their congregations while also reaching much larger audiences. Twitter executive Claire Diaz-Ortiz found that “religious leaders were completely punching above their weight on Twitter” and “were super-engaged.” For example, Joyce Meyer has far fewer followers than Lady Gaga (26 million and 1 million respectively), yet Meyer has a greater impact.
So What?
While the article focuses on notable Christian leaders with sizable followings, it also advances two arguments that apply to all pastors:
- Christians have historically embraced and effectively leveraged new media to spread their message, and
- Twitter provides an ideal platform for engagement (and doesn’t require significant technological know how or training).
Is your congregation’s pastoral staff “super-engaged” on Twitter? If so, how did this happen? If not, how might you encourage the exploration of this possibility by the pastor(s) and/or key leadership body(ies)?