Mobile technology is playing an increasingly important role in religious practice in a society in which almost everyone has a phone in their pocket, purse, or attached to their belt. (Sakchai Lalit/Associated Press) If you're one of those people who bailed out of church because Sunday morning sermons conflicted with skiing or gardening, but you feel that you're missing some spirituality, listen up. Connecting with God or the people who can tell you more about Him (or Her) is just a mouse-click away.

Churches organizing pot-luck dinners via e-mail and projecting a PowerPoint presentation of the hymnal are old hat — these days whole sermons are available on websites such as YouTube.com or GodTube.com.

John Van Sloten, pastor of New Hope Christian Reformed Church in Calgary, has been broadcasting his sermons — first audio, then podcasting and finally as videos — for the past six years. "People want stuff 24-7," he says. "Our messages [sermons] are downloaded hundreds of times a month after they're preached. I did a message on [the rock band] Metallica several years ago and it still gets downloaded 500 to 600 times a year. The internet gives my messages a permanent shelf life."

For the timid, it allows for a certain comfort level.

"A lot of people who eventually join here attended online at first to get a feel for the church," Van Sloten says.

New Hope congregation member Barb Bronson, who attends church and watches online, says, "Technology makes religion so much more accessible. I always felt different before. I didn't know that people believed the way I did."

New Hope even has a "pastor of technology," which is an indication of how much churches have changed.

"We only have a couple of hundred people in our congregation, but in January we had 10,000 downloads," Van Sloten says. "For a church to have that kind of reach, that's a big congregation all of a sudden."

Long-distance communities

Rhea Crook, a former member of the New Hope congregation who has moved to Thunder Bay, Ont. from Calgary, happily uses the internet to keep in touch with her congregation friends as well as her pastor back in Alberta. "Whenever I need my John [van Sloten] fix, I just log on. I can listen on a rainy day, a sunny day, whenever. I also keep in touch with my church friends by e-mail."

Canadian winters being what they are, worshipping online is a bonus. The internet not only allows people thousands of kilometres away to attend a virtual church, but it provides an avenue for people the world over to discuss their faith.

Aaron McCarroll Gallegos, producer of the United Churches Emerging Spirit campaign and WonderCafe.ca, says the internet has allowed for open debate on issues facing the church: "We get Christians and non-Christians on the site, and it has given people the opportunity to discuss issues like same sex marriage."

Or take the controversy surrounding a newly released book With or Without God by Toronto United Church minister Gretta Vosper. She's received online feedback about her book via e-mail and a blog on her website.

"This kind of forum is great because the work we're doing touches people at a very deep level and they're often afraid to speak about it," Vosper says. "The internet allows people who would not feel comfortable participating publicly to do so privately."

As well, Vosper happily preaches to an online congregation.

"We have people who log in, watch sermons, and they're quite a distance from the church," she says. "Then we have people who come periodically. Churches need to find ways to support their spiritual journeys at times other than 11:00 on a Sunday morning. So the internet can really provide that community."

Spreading the word

Having an online presence can also reach those not necessarily looking for faith.

Brian Davis of Ventura, Calif. was researching a speech on bees one day for a group of schoolchildren when he stumbled upon a sermon about bees. He's not planning to switch religions, but says the sermon "gave me a little bit of a spiritual message. I felt peaceful after watching it."

As well, church websites enable ministers to keep in touch with their congregations about upcoming events or post photographs of church activities. Websites such as www.MyChurch.com and www.GodTube.com, as well as more mainstream sites such as Facebook.com and YouTube.com, provide opportunities for church communities to communicate with the same ease that teenage kids meet up online.

Chris Forbes, a communications consultant for ministry leaders in Edmond, Ok., has developed an e-book called Facebook for Pastors that can be downloaded: "It's the ideal way for pastors who want to reach people. It allows them to get to know their congregation better."

How far can the online world go spiritually? It appears heaven is the limit.

Forgivenet.com allows users the opportunity to send God a letter. It's just one of several websites providing the opportunity for online confessions. A study by Georgetown University in 2005 showed a significant decline in Catholics going to confession, but perhaps they have started visiting sites such as www.ivescrewedup.com or http://www.camfess.com where users are invited to "confess your soul," and www.forgivenet.com, where users can ask for forgiveness.

Even the church collection plate is becoming obsolete. Online giving, which allows congregations to donate, is now the standard. And while the lines between the virtual world and that of the spiritual one may seem blurred, it won't replace the good old-fashioned church service.

"The online world has a huge part in the church in the future," says McCarroll Gallegos, "but it's not a replacement. There's something about meeting people in person that you don't get online."

Hallelujah!

The author is a Toronto-based freelance writer.