The Hidden Power of Electronic Culture

I thought I would write a few reviews of the books that I have been reading lately. I tend to keep a few books going all at once, and this practice has the tendency of deadening the effects of the book. I rarely take the time to process one book before I go to the next. So this reviewing exercise will help me slow down a little and take at least a few minutes to process.

"The Hidden Power of Electronic Culture" by Shane Hipps is a fascinating short read for those interested in cultural issues as they relate to the church. Hipps is the pastor of Trinity Mennonite Church in California. I know what you are thinking...."how could a Mennonite write a cutting edge book about electronic culture??? Hipps, however, was trained in corporate advertising and spent his early career in jobs studying consumer culture. He later left the corporate setting and trained for ministry at Fuller Seminary.

Hipps goal is to understand the balance between cultural relevancy and faithfulness to the gospel, especially as it relates to electronic communication. Using the work of communications theorist, Marshall McLuhan as a guide, Hipps investigates the gains made by electronic media, but also the "unintended consequences" of media in the church.

One of the "myths" that Hipps hopes to dispel is the belief - in Rick Warren's words, that "the methods always change, but the message stays the same". In fact, Hipps states that "whenever methods or media change, the message automatically changes along with them". It is better to think through carefully all the effects, intended or not, that media creates - because media is not the unbiased carrier of the message like so many Christians assume. Part I of the book then seeks to demonstrate how the church has been affected, for good and ill, from media changes such as printing, the telegraph, television, etc.

Part II of the book seeks to demonstrate what the church might look like as it thinks through the questions of media culture. There are chapters on community, leadership, and worship in the electronic culture. Far from debunking all electronic media - Hipps actually seeks to find ways that the church can faithfully engage the culture, yet with its eyes open to the effects of the church's use of new media.

The last chapter on "Worship in Electronic Culture" is especially thought-provoking as Hipps points out some negative effects that media can have on congregational worship. For instance , he talks about the use of "media spectacles" designed to grap consumers attention instead of leading toward authentic worship. He also has a few interesting paragraphs on the new wave of church growth methodology - video venues.

While I do not agree with all of Hipps conclusions - it didn't take a lot of convincing me that electronic media forms are not innocent tools. Many churches, in a rush to be relevant, have been asleep to many of the unintended effects of the tools that we use. Even with some of my questions about all of Hipps statements, I believe he has done well to point out that "we must probe our media and methods with the right questions" - and not just - "does it work to attract people"? Just attracting people is not even close to the fullness in which the church is called.

Comments??? In what ways have you seen church media used well or used poorly?