Technology and Ministry During a Time of Pandemic: An Annotated Bibliography

Abstract

While the COVID-19 pandemic caused local churches and parachurch organizations to embrace new methods of digital discipleship, writing and reflection on the role of technology in ministry is not new. The following books and research reports represent recent thinking about the role of technology in disciple-making with some publications preceding the pandemic and others reflecting specifically on lessons learned through the pandemic. Davis, W. F. (2021). Rebooting.church: Digitally transform your church with ‘bits & bytes of salt & light’ to help spiritually transform a 21st-cetnrury digital world. (n.p.). In this self-published book, Davis casts a vision for the local church to fulfill the Great Commission by adding a digital church presence. In the first half of the book, he labors to defend the need for, and urgency of, engaging a digital generation in ways that are relevant to them. In the second half of the book, he leverages his technology expertise in software development and marketing to introduce practical ways in which the church can utilize technology for security, data-management, and outreach purposes. He explores the ways in which “virtual church architectures” can be built to serve one-on-one, one-to-many, many-to-many, many-to-one, and interactive purposes. He even discusses principles for gamification as they might apply to the church. In the final chapters, Davis provides a framework for building a digital church strategy.