UMNS Photo by Kathleen Barry
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Visitor Janet Gollery McKeithen uses her iPad to record images of the 2012 United Methodist General Conference in Tampa, Fla. McKeithen is from Santa Monica, CA.
Technology can both help and limit the creation of a global United Methodist Church, judging from recent stories in church media.
In Malawi, United Methodist Communications and the Church of the Resurrection (Leawood, KS) sponsored a workshop on ways to use cell phones to facilitate communication for ministry purposes. These tech solutions include the use of mass text messages to communicate (Frontline SMS), cell phones as a way to track medical data (Medic Mobile), and technologies to create more stable or widely available power supplies for cell phones and other devices (Inveneo and solar chargers).
The second story comes from Liberia, where the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry (GBHEM), General Board of Discipleship (GBOD), United Methodist Publishing House (UMPH), and Gbarnga School of Theology are partnering together to distribute e-readers to theology school students. These e-readers will come with a variety of texts necessary for pastoral training. Despite limited electricity or internet access at Gbarnga, the project provides a better and cheaper method of making these training materials available than shipping traditional books.
Part of what makes these projects a success is that they rely on relatively cheap, widely available forms of technology. The rate of cell phone usage in the developing world is actually greater than that in the developed world. Even though e-readers are more expensive, at about $70/piece, they are still considerable below the price of a computer.
Another factor in making these projects a success is that the software or content necessary to use the devices is relatively cheap. Frontline SMS and Medic Mobile are both free. UMPH was able to make e-reader content available at substantially lower prices than normally available.
Finally, neither of these projects requires significant infrastructure to support it. Cell phones run on an existing private infrastructure. The e-readers can be used without continuous internet access or electrical supply. Using these devices doesn't depend upon maintaining a fragile or expensive system.
However, technology as a tool for ministry in Africa and around the world has limitations, too.
This reflection was inspired by discovering that UM Communications offers on online course in "United Methodism 101." The course includes four modules and costs $10. In itself, that's great. It's a good thing for people to have more opportunities to learn about our denomination, and this resource may be especially useful for new members in small churches without the ability to do an extensive new member training.
Nevertheless, seeing this course and thinking about its potential uses made me reflect on the way the Internet is often talked about in American circles: as this revolutionary technology that totally reshapes or even erases geography. Yet while the internet does significantly reshape geography and people in disparate locations can interact, it does not erase geography.
Geography still matters, even in the internet age, largely because geography is connected to access to the internet, as this series of visualizations nicely shows. Africa is connected to the internet, but not nearly as connected as North America or Europe. Thus, while online courses on United Methodism are a great resource for Americans and maybe Europeans, they're likely to be of limited use in promoting knowledge of the UMC in Africa.
Two other reasons why the internet is limited in its use to bring together United Methodists across the globe are language and cost. This online course and much of the rest of the internet are in English. While many United Methodists Africans, Asians, and Europeans do speak English, many do not. English can only reach a limited audience. Moreover, while $10 US is not that much for an American to spend on learning about Methodism, that price is much more expensive in a country with a significantly lower average annual income.
I'm not saying that this online course is bad, nor am I saying that the Internet is of no use in helping forge a global United Methodism. I am saying, however, that as amazing as technology is, it is still limited in what it can do - limited in function, distribution, price, and access. United Methodists should use technology to build global connectionalism, but they should also be aware of its limitations.
Dr. David W. Scott moderates the blog UM & Global, a site devoted to fostering conversation about the global nature of The United Methodist Church. This column was prepared from two of his recent blog posts.