The truth…there is a “new town square” and our Churches better have a visible—and I would argue—leadership position in it. Historically, town squares have been where people congregate to interact with one another…to celebrate, to seek accurate and important information affecting their community. It is where people seek assistance, look for opportunity and ultimately seek truth. The town square is where people were called to action to address emergencies, save lives, save souls… Often the town square revolved around the Church building or Synagogue. Today however, many places of faith are about to miss out on the most significant change occurring in the town square, and it resides at the finger tips of most everyone they serve.

The “New Town Square” is mobile. It is as convenient and close as everyone’s hand. And Just like the more traditional town square, the New Mobile Town Square has vendors, shops and various commercial interests popping up and surrounding it… creating an economy of commerce, philanthropy, and influence. Mobile devices, due to their ease of use, increasing band width and smart phone capabilities are already being utilized by commercial and social interests.

So what presence does the church, ministry, synagogue…in general institutions of faith have in the “New Town Square”? For most, the answer is nothing or a minimal presence at best. Unfortunately, if the Church does not act quickly and with clear intention there will be huge missed opportunities to further its support, both monetarily and ultimately the loyalty of those they serve.

The Numbers

The world population is estimated at 6.8 Billion. The majority of the world population now owns a mobile phone. In developing nations, often the first communication device a person will possess is a cell phone…not a computer or land line. Consider the truth and opportunity these numbers represent in the context of needing to influence and serve local and global communities via mobile:

In the U.S. alone there are:
• 257 million data capable mobile devices in consumer hands
• 5 billion text messages are sent each day
• 1.5 billion text messages were sent in 2009
• 91% have a cell phone in the USA

Globally:
• 67% of entire world population is estimated to have a mobile device
• 2.4 billion people are actively using text messaging—representing 74% of all mobile phone users.
• Global text messaging projected to exceed 2 trillion in 2010

If churches, synagogues, ministries, faith based organizations (of all sizes) don’t begin to pay attention to, and quickly embrace, this rapid change, the space available and opportunity to “earn” a place in the New Town Square will fade. You see in a relatively short period the mobile device will become crowded thus disrupting the ease of having your message heard and acted on. Faith organizations need to begin now to earn the right to build their mobile lists.

One of the greatest commands of Christendom is to spread the gospel throughout the world. Most Churches and ministries desire to serve people in need– locally and on a global level. Utilizing SMS and PSMS mobile tools (Text Messaging) can greatly enhance the scope and ease of communicating, financially supporting, empowering, and in general serving those a ministry or Church desires to help. But how?

As a person who has helped raise funds for more than 30 years, I am very bullish on integrating mobile into our standard tried and true fundraising tools. Remember when online giving lifted its head in the late 1990’s. Or earlier yet, remember when there were discussions about what role (if any) email would play in traditional partner/donor identification, cultivation, engagement and solicitation? Those two tools alone have had a huge positive impact on ministry and faith based enterprises. What Church, ministry, or institution of faith doesn’t have a web site, use email, or is already utilizing or considering online giving and or other social media (facebook, posting sermons on you tube, etc).

So how does the Church, Synagogue or any institution of faith begin utilizing mobile?

Start with the basics. Just like building your email list…start building your mobile list. Get the mobile numbers of those attending, serving, supporting and benefiting your place of worship. There are easy opt-in requirements established by the mobile industry designed to prevent spam while ensuring the quality and right to communicate via mass text messages. So build your text broadcasting lists to share a weekly encouraging word, devotional, announce an upcoming study or share a verse/short prayer. Use broadcast texting to alert parents that the youth group’s arrival is delayed an hour due to traffic so meet at the Church parking lot 30 minutes later. In emergencies have the ability to communicate brief important messages to your entire list including pushing them to a specific URL for more detailed information.

Another wonderful mobile tool is the ability to interact with a live audience… in your place of worship, online, via TV or radio. Ask for opinions about important issues, needs, or general topics. Questions for the minister, Rabi or staff engages those being served in a meaningful way that leads to trust and familiarity associating your ministry with mobile technology that is easy to use and can also influence giving.

One of my clients uses the tried and true method of passing the offering plate each week which entails the opportunity to provide cash, check or fill out a form and add credit card info to fulfill a tithe. But as of late, this ministry is also providing a mobile call to action after the traditional and is seeing a 15% to 30% incremental increase in total funds received at worship. Not bad in this economy.

Lastly, one ministry I am aware of sends text devotionals or words of encouragement to thousands each day as a way to stay close to those they serve. The response has had ahuge impact on attendance, on those signing up to serve and on giving.

The New Town Square and its mobile capability can help ministries spread their good word and work across their town…across the globe. Remember the numbers cited above…. Don’t miss out…insert yourself into the mobile town square.

Rabbi Adam Chalom, Dean of the North America of the International Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism, on behalf of the Chicago Tribune, wrote an interesting perspective on how religion relates to sports, and vice versa.

“As LeBron James speculation and World Cup mania (at least, in most other countries) reach a fever pitch, some begin to wonder: have sports become a religion? And for those more anthropologically inclined, the reverse question is also interesting: is religion a sport? Maybe it’s not an accident that LeBron’s nickname is “King James” (like the Bible), given the “messianic” fervor surrounding his possible arrival, which could bring the Chicago Bulls back to the “Promised Land.”

Click here to read the rest of the story

Technology is constantly shifting and growing and, as this article states, these advances have always “instigated rapid and profound changes in religious practice.”

While several religious groups have embraced such past and present changes in technology, Stuart Fox, author of the MSNBC article, says that “some religious leaders worry that the inherently isolating and attention-diverting nature of smart phones has created a generation of worshippers unable to fully engage.”

Dudley Rose, the associate dean for ministry studies at Harvard University’s Divinity School, was interviewed in the article and his thoughts seemed to be torn on the subject. “The future is very bright, but we have yet to get our mind around a world were some [people get] their whole religious experience through a device,” he said. “The challenge then, is how to make wise use of the technology, while at the same time be wary of its potential to be destructive to community and a sense of submission to one’s faith.”

James Clement van Pelt, program coordinator of Yale University’s initiative in religion, science and technology, end the article with a unique prospective. “The bottom line is if you look at technology and say ‘how does this change people going to church?’, you miss the point, because religion is a much deeper thing,” he said. “Technology changes how people relate to each other, and that’s what religion is concerned with.”

Brad Lamm, speaker and author of How To Change Someone You Love, wrote this article focusing on the question: Can you pray away gay?

Lamm talks of his own personal situation as a gay man with a family who still remains divided on the subject, saying it “caused a commotion and distress when I came out in my late teens.” He goes on to say that his parents, who believed they could cast out demons of homosexuality, promptly sent him to a “pray away the gay” therapist.

After mentioning a survey released by Gallup that states roughly 50% of Americans now accept gay relationships and 48% believe gay Americans should have the right to marry, Lamm ends his article with a sort of commission to those who remain divided. “Pray on it,” he says, “and come up with your own answer that’s loving and kind, no matter where it falls.”

Yvonne Moore, according to a recent interview with CNN’s Soledad O’Brien, sued her ex-church, Covenant Baptist, for a portion of her estimated $250,000 dollars in tithes spanning 37 years. The church she attended opened its doors to gay couples as part of its mission to establish an “inclusive body of believers,” the article states, years before the nation’s capital legalized same-sex marriage in March.

Moore, who left the church because of her disagreement with their missiology and because their leadership performed commitment ceremonies for gay couples, told the reporter that “the bible speaks against that,” and that “you cannot take that in the church.”

However, after her former pastor asked her to consider and compare her past as an African American to that of her friend (who is gay), Moore dropped her lawsuit but is still on the fence about comparing the two situations and has not returned to the church.

Moore has received much criticism for her actions. THAT’S GAY, a program on Current TV, has labeled her the “world’s worst church lady.”