Book Review: Sealed, by Katie Langston

"When Grandma spoke of God and Jesus, it all seemed much simpler. She didn't have a basement stocked with supplies; hers was a Jesus of whom you could talk, rejoice, preach, and prophesy... If I loved Jesus, I loved him in the way I loved my mother's family: from a distance, out of duty. I didn't dare admit it... but what was there to love in a Christ who would destroy the world?"

-Katie Langston, "Sealed"

Katie Langston's memoir "Sealed: An Unexpected Journey into the Heart of Grace" (Thornbush Press, April 2021) is a story of the dynamism of faith. Describing Langston's upbringing in a conservative Mormon family, the memoir recounts what it was like to grapple with doubts and uncertainty in a culture that tolerated neither.

"Sealed" is not the only story I have recently read of a conservative Mormon family. Like so many others, I recently read Tara Westover's explosive memoir "Educated."

But if the power of Westover's memoir came from shocking events and profoundly unique characters, the power of Langston's memoir emanates from its relatability. Langston's is a story of what it is like to navigate family conflict, of what it is like to wrestle with the tensions between the simplicities of childhood faith and the complexity of lived experience.

"Sealed" is available wherever books are sold on April 6th, 2021

So many spiritual stories end with deconstruction and fragmentation. It seems like much of what has been written about the Mormon tradition depicts an abandonment of the faith.

But "Sealed" is unique in that it ends with a reconstructed spiritual identity that affirms what remains useful, even enlightening, from one's past. It is a book that invites us not to critique, but to connect, a book that reminds us that the life of faith is not about categorical breaks with one's past, but about continuously hearing God's irresistible and ceaseless call. Affirming the simultaneous gifts of tradition and of transformation, Langston's memoir is a thought-provoking read for those who want to understand the complex, evolving, and perpetually moving journey that is the life of faith. It is an important contribution to understanding America's dynamic spiritual landscape.

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@ryanpanzer is the author of "Grace and Gigabytes"

Book Review: From Social Media to Social Ministry, by Nona Jones

If you manage a church social media account, chances are, you run the account like a digital bulletin board.

And if that's the approach you take, posting information, linking to events, and using the platform to inform, you're missing the point of social media. So argues Nona Jones in her book, "From Social Media to Social Ministry" (Zondervan, 2020. $18.99).

Jones, who serves as the Head of Global Faith-Based Partnerships at Facebook, argues convincingly that faith leaders are not using social media to it's fullest potential. We're using social media for advertising, but not for equipping, for marketing, but not for ministry.

By relying on one-way communication, tracking the wrong metrics, and delegating account management to unqualified staff, churches are losing out on the opportunity to create disciples in digital spaces.

"While a social media plan primarily focuses on sharing content to get likes, comments, and shares, a social ministry strategy focuses on building relationships and facilitating connections between and among people so that discipleship can happen."

-Nona Jones, "From Social Media to Social Ministry"

For Jones, social media generally and Facebook, in particular, offer a potential remedy to a decline in church attendance and membership. A commitment to ministry on social media would certainly be better for the church than other widespread "relevance-boosting" practices, including removing crosses and Bibles from church buildings and improving production quality!

To that end, Jones encourages to think about social media not as a bulletin board, but as a campus. She argues that a faith community's Facebook page ought to function as a ministry start-up, with a campus pastor, a team of equipped and compensated staff, new content published daily, and a commitment to multi-directional conversation. Jones is correct in her assertion that social ministry depends less on polish and more on leadership, less on quality and more on intentionality.

Available now wherever books are sold

The book is an important contribution in helping churches to think of the web not as a place to post an invitation to attend worship, but as a mission field, where church leaders establish relationships and form disciples for lives of faithful service.

Jones' well-reasoned argument is limited in part by her assertion that Facebook is "the only true social media platform." Arguing that Facebook is the only platform to support multi-directional conversation as opposed to mere content consumption, Jones' model dismisses the importance and relevance of Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, and others. While it's true that Facebook is far and away the most utilized social media platform, it's influence is waning amongst younger generations, necessitating consideration if not engagement with emerging digital channels. At a practical level, I would have appreciated hearing Jones' suggestions for low-tech, low-staff churches who may not have the resources to navigate an increasingly fractured (if not fractious!) social media landscape.

The book also decides to veer away from the thornier issues surrounding Facebook and other social media platforms. As a handbook to social media usage in the church, the book would have benefitted from a discussion on the numerous ethical and privacy concerns surrounding social media giants, including the commodification of user data and the easy dissemination of conspiracy theories.

Still, "From Social Media to Social Ministry" offers an important lesson for church leaders of all denominational backgrounds and theological commitments. If the church is to be relevant (or, resonant) in this digital age, it must learn how to build relationships and engage in thoughtful conversations within these spaces. This will require a long process of learning and iteration. Jones' book is a helpful first step towards the church's digital future.

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@ryanpanzer is the author of "Grace and Gigabytes," a book about being the church in a tech-shaped culture.

Book Review: Becoming a Hybrid Church

Think back to February 2020. Your experience of church was decidedly analog. Aside from some media-savy evangelical and "ex-vangelical" movements, most religious organizations had yet to see the value in digital connection. Estimates vary, but it's assumed that more than half of all churches didn't have a website. Most weren't on social media. Many didn't have internet in their buildings.

Throughout COVID-19, we've learned what it means to worship, learn, pray, and practice our faith online. Our most pressing question is no longer how to "do" church online. While there are still incremental improvements to be made, most churches have risen to meet this season of digital distribution. Rather, all church leaders must now engage the question that lies just on the horizon, of what it means to be a "hybrid" church. Now is the time for church leaders to determine what it means to be a ministry that blends the online with the offline, the virtual with the face-to-face.

In response to this pressing question, authors Dave Daubert and Richard E.T. Jorgensen produced an accessible and compelling guide, "Becoming a Hybrid Church"($11.99 USD, available from Day 8 Strategies). Taking a collaborative approach, the book includes recommendations for hybrid worship, stewardship, spiritual practice, and other aspects of Christian ministry, alongside discussion starters and prompts for further discernment.

Daubert and Jorgensen's work is compelling in that it casts the church's digital vocation not as an "add-on" or "extra." For the authors, digital ministry is essential to Christian practice in a tech-shaped culture, one that church leaders ignore "at their own peril."

Accordingly, their ideas go well beyond superficial suggestions to add a dial-in to a meeting or position a web camera at the back of the sanctuary. Instead, their ideas are grounded in the conviction that there ought to be parity between the online and offline experience of church, that digital and face-to-face expressions of Christian community should afford equal levels of connection to God and to one another. This moment demands considerable thoughtfulness and intentionality, with collaborative processes inclusive of both lay and ordained leadership.

"Becoming a Hybrid Church" is at the leading edge of a new movement within the Christian tradition. Savvy church leaders would do well to actually use the conversation guides that conclude each chapter, just as they would do well to put many of the tactics explored within this book into practice. But as a church, we need more than the implementation of these ideas.

We need church leaders to share their experience in moving towards hybrid ministry. As you begin to discern what it means to be a hybrid church, as you begin to launch practices that will build the bridge between online and offline forms of Christian connection, you ought to consider sharing your stories. Document your findings. What works? What flops? What facilitates authentic connection, what facilitates meaningful faith practice? As I read this important work, my hope is that more church leaders will use it as a jumping-off point for sharing their own ideas. With the hope of widespread vaccinations in the coming months, the "new normal" of hybrid church is just around the corner. This moment needs our experiences and stories, shared publicly for the benefit of the broader church. Daubert and Jorgensen have teed up the conversation starters. It's up to all of us to engage the conversation.

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@ryanpanzer is the author of "Grace and Gigabytes: Being Church in a Tech-Shaped Culture."