Religion Today: The Role of Multimedia in the Modern Church Experience

Church is the new black. And because it’s new and trendy, it’s coupled with technology. EVERYONE is using the internet to communicate — from spiritual and religious leaders to schools to daters to telecommuters. To not be on the internet is to drive a horse and buggy instead of a car.

The most important function of any church is to provide leadership and the way to provide that leadership is to communicate. Technology and the internet go hand in hand with god — as well as everything else today. And while nay-sayers may think the internet is the end of god, the opposite is true. The internet and multimedia outlets have made god and church more popular than ever.

It’s no surprise — faith has become fashionable, and religion has become irreverent when sported as fashion. From Madonna simulating crucifixion as entertainment to crosses becoming democratized as trendy for fashionistas of every face, to Kabballah red strings making the pages of People Magazine - faith is in fashion.

There is more than one reason that faith is in fashion. Here they are:

1. Terrorism has increased concerns with security, and many people turn to faith and religion for guidance and soothing. In the past the peace sign that people flashed as two fingers became fashionable as a result of wars that were being waged. Faith in fashion is an expression of a need for answers in the wake of terrorism.

2. There are no more taboos. Or, very few, anyway. Sex is out of the closet in every aspect. Politics is out of the closet in every aspect, and now, religion is mainstreamed.

3. Intermarriage and inter-religious couplings make religions and faiths that were once segregated, democratized. Christmas is celebrated by many people who were not raised as Christians and faiths are now practiced by people who were not raised to practice these particular faiths. This makes the practice of these religions relatively new, and fashion is all about what is new.

Church is hipper than ever, and belonging to a church is now as popular as being a regular at a particular nightclub used to be - but for different reasons. People seek churches for respite, but also for social intercourse. This should make attracting new members easier, but the reality is that people who seek religion and spiritual guidance are more open in their search and consider religions and sects that are not necessarily traditional or what they were raised with.