Around this time last year, we were all
caught up in the
drama unfolding between the NFL and Fall Creek Baptist Church, but this time, it doesn't seem as if any place of worship is being smitten for showing the big game on a big screen. Rather, a pastor down in Texas is utilizing HD (and IP) technology to beam himself (and his sermons) to satellite churches around the area in real-time. Apparently, the signal from an HD camera and two other cams zoomed in on his face are zipped around to other auditoriums and churches in the area, which prevents individuals that live further away from having to make a lengthy drive, yet still gives them the ability to interact with other congregation members. Unfortunately, we've no idea if the pastor in question is being seen simultaneously in 720p, 1080i or 1080p, but regardless, let's hope he's wearing some form of
HD makeup for everyone's sake, eh?
[Image courtesy of
KIR]
posted Jan 30th 2008 11:41PM
The churches are bigger than malls here in TX.
And they make more money :)
@ Big Sam
As a follower of Christ, I wish that were true. There are a few mega churches that have an incredible amount of money to spend, but consider how much each of them spends on needless products vs. how much they tithe (donate to the church). It's no contest.
These mega churches keep getting bigger and bigger, and they scare the shit out of me.
Bill, you're not the only one, and I'm a southern Baptist.
Bill, you're not the only one, and I'm a southern Baptist.
That is awesome! Nothing like seeing The Word of God in High Def FTW!!!!
Gotta see if my dad tries this in his church! lol
Jesus Camp?
This isn't new. This actually has been happening in several churches around the country for a while. The ideal is that the pastor is projected at the pulpit "life size". Other parts of the service, like music and announcements, are "live" at each location but the sermon is delivered "closed circuit" from across town. In larger metropolitan areas it's convenient for the parishioners who don't want to drive clear across town. They say that after a few minutes you forget that he's not really there because it looks convincing enough. Sort of like after 5 minutes of watching a movie the viewing resolution becomes less important.
It's not for me but it's also not scary either. Typically these churches are not the cultish/controlling type, but cater to the more casual attender.
The ability for religious channels to bilk true believers never ceases to amaze me.
You can't blame them.... if a church continues to grow, what are they supposed to do??? Close their doors? There is a Methodist church in South Korea that boasts 100,000 members - it is not just a Texas thing :). But the HD thing... pretty snappy. How much money does it cost to broadcast something like this in HD? Anybody know?
Churches overseas look nothing like ours. They put out big numbers, but that's tons of small community churches making up one larger congregation. It would almost being like saying all x million people in the Southern Baptist Church are in one church.
PS. I'm also not talking 'satellite churches,' of which I'm not a fan of personally.
WARNING, RANT AHEAD: If you're church is big, go plant a new church in a new location. Your face doesn't need to be in another church of people who will never meet you. If they want to listen to a great speaker, they can go home and listen to him on TV, if they want to be part of the body of Christ, they need to be in a church with it's own pastor, not a digital talking head.
To many churches are built around the pastor and not Christ. It's a shame!
Our church is pretty big too, and we have a 100-foot screen used as the entire back wall behind the stage as well as 4 side screens all in HD.
Panorama pic of my church
http://img218.imageshack.us/my.php?image=gccab1.jpg
Jesus... Literally.
why is it scary? I'm confused. Oh right..the media says it is, never mind.