Almost two weeks ago, C. G. P. Grey uploaded their latest video to YouTube. This five minute educational video explains the path one must take if one seeks to become Pope. It has already been viewed in excess of 1.5 million times. So What? Since a new Pope is elected so infrequently, most people outside of the Catholic Church are not familiar with the process. This video provides a good basic overview. How many men have served as Pope during your lifetime? (check out this Read More …
Social Media
1,000 Posts (#0999)
In June 2009, some 44 months ago, I launched this blog. My initial goals were quite modest: Learn more about blogging and social media by deepening my own engagement Share my thoughts on timely topics with an emphasis on raising questions rather than offering answers Encourage conversation about matters of faith that matter (within and beyond the congregation I was serving) After a few months of posting on an occasional basis, I began to be more intentional about when I posted. Read More …
Social Media Shortcomings (#0998)
While I am encouraged to see more and more nonprofits entering the world of social media, I wonder what percentage of these efforts are ineffective primarily because those tasked with overseeing them lack the appropriate training and/or resources. Recently Nonprofit Tech 2.0 posted a list of eleven signs that your nonprofit needs social media training. The list includes: Your avatar is cropped, shrunk, blurry, or too small to make an impact. You are rarely retweeted on Twitter. Read More …
Remaining Relevant (#0969)
Justin Lathrop, executive search consultant at the Vanderbloemen Search Group, recently suggested five ways churches can remain relevant: Leverage the strengths of church networks Engage social media Expand online offerings, including worship services Consider the possibilities of strategic church mergers Welcome the diverse population of the community So What? Many of the items on Lathrop's list focus on structural matters: the possibility of belonging to multiple Read More …
Socioeconomic Status & Facebook Friends (#0957)
According to new research conducted by the University of Virginia and the London Business School, the size of one's social network is correlated to one's socioeconomic status. Wealthier individuals are more likely than those who are less affluent to have large but shallow Facebook connections while those who earn low incomes are more likely to have small but deep groups of Facebook friends. Low income workers who move often are an exception to this generalization as is Read More …
Religious Rockstars on Twitter (#0949)
Christina Chaey recently placed the following people on her list of religious rockstars on Twitter: Pope Benedict XVI (@Pontifex) Dalai Lama (@DalaiLama) Joel Osteen (@JoelOsteen) Joyce Meyer (@JoyceMeyer) Jesse Jackson, Sr. (@RevJJackson) Reverend Run (@RevRunWisdom) Rick Warren (@RickWarren) Rabbi Shmuley Boteach (@RabbiShmuley) So What? My immediate response to reading this list was to see how many of the religious Read More …
Review of Social Media for Educators (#0936)
Meet the Author Tanya Joosten is Interim Director of the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee Learning Technology Center (LTC) where almost 3000 instructors (faculty, academic staff, and TA's) are supported in their use of digital technologies to facilitate teaching and learning. She has over ten years experience teaching online and blended courses in communications, co-chairs the UWM Online Program Council, is the campus liaison for online and blended programming, is a mentor for the Read More …
Effective Social Media Usage (#0905)
Bruce Reyes-Chow is a consultant who previously served as founding pastor of Mission Bay Community Church. His effective use of social media while serving as moderator of the General Assembly of the 2.3 million member PCUSA helped many mainline leaders appreciate the value of social media for ministry. In an October 2012 presentation to the Miami Valley Presbytery (Dayton, OH) on social media and the church, Reyes-Chow offered five tips for effective Read More …
Winning a Re-Tweet Award (#0893)
Earlier this month I attended the 18th Annual Sloan Consortium International Conference on Online Learning. When I checked in at the registration area, I was pleased to see an advertisement for a Twitter contest. The instructions were simple: the tweet using the conference hashtag (#aln12) that received the most retweets would be win the contest. Since I planned to tweet, I kept the flier. With nearly 3,000 people attending the conference, I didn't think I would be a Read More …
Creative Pastoral Search (#0889)
A few days ago The Telegraph ran a story about a church in Essex "who have been without a vicar for 16 months have taken to YouTube to advertise for a replacement." Their creative effort is worth 3 minutes of your time. So What? Searching for a new pastor / priest / vicar / spiritual leader is a challenging undertaking for any congregation / parish. While denominational churches must follow basic denominational protocols, all congregations can include creative expressions as a part Read More …