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An Expanded Vision of Church
We are witnessing an expanding vision of where church and faith formation happens. We’ve moved from a church building mindset to a multispace approach where faith formation happens at home, in online spaces, in small groups, in mentoring relationships, in independent learning, in the world. Church isn’t the building; it’s the people of God, the community of believers, the Mystical Body of Christ. And it can’t be contained by a physical space.
Theologian Dianne Thompson explains that Paul’s image of the church as the Body of Christ is virtual and physical. She writes, “Paul drew on ancient depictions of community as a body in order to image the Christian community as the body of Christ....And even though Paul traveled only rarely to be physically present with the church communities through Asia Minor, he remained present with those communities virtually through his letters.”
Thompson emphasizes the virtual nature of Paul’s ministry when she writes,
Paul himself—even as he spent a year or more being physically present with churches like Corinth before moving on—is nevertheless more often a part of all of the particular local bodies of Christ in a virtual rather than a physical way. This point highlights the inadequacy of thinking about the term virtual as meaning almost. Paul is decidedly more than almost a part of these communities; he is founder, leader, guide, and inspiration to multiple communities simultaneously….Even as he developed many close relationships through face-to-face interactions with members of the churches scattered across the Mediterranean, it is also the case that he was only able to be physically present with them on very occasional visits. That Paul’s relationships with the ancient churches are maintained primarily through the back and forth of letters has led pastor and writer Jason Byassee to propose that even in its earliest incarnations the body of Christ has always been a virtual body.
We now live in hybrid Christian communities. As Angela Williams Gorrell writes, “Hybrid Christian communities embody God’s love and ‘make the message believable’ through meaningful conversations and faithful habits that are both in person and mediated, that take place at various times, and that happen in both physical and digital spaces. I do not think it is too daunting for Christian communities to think about their community as being hybrid, given Paul’s letters and specifically his use of the metaphor of the ‘body of Christ.’ Paul’s letters are a clear example of hybrid Christian communities since his letters were extensions of his in-person ministry within particular communities and also provided mediated guidance for those communities.”
Many Christian communities are hybrid Christian communities because they are nurturing relationships, growing spiritually, and engaging in ministry in person and online. Through social media, members are cultivating connections online that are not that different from the relationships that prevailed before the internet and mobile phones.
Looking Ahead
As the internet and its accompanying digital technologies have become increasingly embedded in Americans’ everyday lives, the desire and ability to use digital media to help facilitate relationships, enhance our sense of care and value, learn and grow, and enable intimate communication and connection have only increased.
Technology is now seen as a helpmate of ministry and religious life, extending the reach and personal interaction beyond a single gathering place and religious event. Looking ahead, churches need to see online and offline strategies as complementary or two sides of the same coin.
Churches are learning to bridge and blend the social opportunities of digital media that can enhance community building, learning, discipleship, and more in order to help people connect their digital engagement with their offline church experiences. Rather than seeing the internet as a problem for religious communities, it should be seen as a gold mine of resources to enhance church relationships that could revolutionize faith-based communities worldwide.
Many researchers and Church consultants have noted that the new relationship forming between religious leaders and technology today represents a hopeful shift. Religious resilience and creativity were demonstrated throughout the pandemic by the embrace of technology. A willingness to experiment with technology shows an openness to change that could mark a shift toward potentially long-lasting changes and positive approaches to cultural and technological innovations.
John Roberto is founder of LifeLong Faith Associates, and he has spent a lifetime working in Christian faith formation teaching, writing, researching, consulting, and developing program resources.
This article is excerpted from Digital Ministry and Leadership in Today's Church, edited by John Roberto. Copyright ©2022 by Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota. Used with permission.
We Still Print Bulletins Like It's 1999
There’s a paradox at the heart of parish renewal. On one hand, we say we want young people in the pews. On the other, we build systems that assume they’re already connected.
This tension came into sharp focus during my second course at Villanova University, where we explored how information technology intersects with ministry. Topics ranged from spreadsheets and databases to data ethics, system development, website management, and organizational change. As I sat with these, one phrase kept returning: “We want the youth in church—but we still print bulletins like it’s 1999.”
Printed bulletins aren’t bad. But when we rely on them as our primary means of communication, we’re clinging to assumptions that no longer hold: that people attend weekly, read printed materials, and engage only in person. That’s simply not the lived reality of most young adults.
In July 2025, the Vatican hosted its first Jubilee for Catholic Influencers, welcoming over 1,000 digital missionaries from more than 70 countries. They weren’t gathering for fame, but for mission—affirming that the “digital continent” is real missionary ground. As Inés San Martín put it: “We’re not profiles—we’re faces.”
Yet many parish IT systems—if they exist—remain thrown together. Ministries use isolated databases, websites are static or outdated, and digital privacy is often overlooked.
The issue goes deeper than tech—it’s about mindset. We’ve built church systems around being physically present and filling out forms. But younger Catholics live in a world where presence means being online, responsive, and engaged in real time.
Catholic author Katie Prejean McGrady, drawing inspiration from Saint Carlo Acutis, reminded the Jubilee audience that authenticity—not popularity—is what makes digital evangelization effective. Others highlighted leaders like Fr. Mike Schmitz and the Hallow prayer app as digital doorways to parish life—welcoming, accessible, and relevant.
Parish renewal means rethinking how we communicate, relate, and steward our message. The question isn’t “paper or pixels,” but: What habits are we willing to change to prepare the Church for the next generation?
Because if we’re serious about reaching young people, we have to ask: Are we speaking in ways they can actually hear? Digital systems aren’t a novelty—they’re an expectation. When used wisely, they aren’t a distraction from the Gospel. They are a pathway into it.
Fr. Jonathan Blake is a priest of the Archdiocese of Ottawa-Cornwall.
This article was originally published on Facebook, August 4, 2025.
Glorious Possibilities
God is online. God is active in every place and at every point of our lives. God’s investment in creation extends to the various developments of human culture, including internet spaces like social media sites. The Holy Spirit can be our companion in online spaces, as in all other aspects of life—teaching us; reminding us; empowering us; encouraging us; revealing truth to us; bringing us grace, joy, hope, and peace; praying on our behalf; telling us what to say; setting us free; making us holy; and, thus, inviting human beings to be receptive to and share in God’s loving, reconciling ministry in our hearts and in the world (Luke 2:26, 10:21, 12:12; John 14:26; Acts 1:8, 9:31, 13:9; Rom 8, 14:17, 15:13; 2 Cor 5:14–21; 1 Pet 1:2). God is with us during our engagement with new media just as God is with us when we engage in physical spaces and activities and use other tools. Given God’s dynamic participation in people’s lives and the entire world, new media has glorious possibilities. In other words, incredible, meaningful things can happen as people use new media—because of God’s guidance, love, and active presence in our new media landscape.
Rev. Dr. Angela Williams Gorrell is an author, speaker, and consultant. She speaks and writes about finding the life worth living, joy, meaning and purpose, and the intersection of spiritual and mental health.
This article is excerpted from Always On: Practicing Faith in a New Media Landscape (Baker Academic, a division of Baker Publishing Group, 2019). Used by permission.
