A regional newspaper talked with several churches of varying sizes and denominations to better understand the value and power of Twitter for churches. The article states “Trendsocial networking tool helps churches reach out, stay in touch”.

The article uses Scriptural references in additions to quotes from pastors and lay leaders, a first that I’ve seen in these news reports. Here are a few key quotes from the article, which you can read here:

“It doesn’t replace a lot of things — it doesn’t replace church, community or being with people — but it is another way to keep connected. We view it as a way for a leader to communicate with a lot of followers without a lot of extraneous (effort).” – Dale Swanson, Victory Church, Executive Pastor

“The Rev. Dave Evans, 53, senior pastor of Highland Baptist Church in Moore, OK, said he realized 150 to 200 members of his congregation were members of Facebook. He said he decided to try Facebook and Twitter for the outreach opportunities. Evans said Twitter has allowed him to follow the day-to-day lives of others and lets them do the same with him. “It is a way to offer prayer, support and encouragement to each other,” he said.

The Rev. George Back, 67, longtime dean of St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral, said his church, 127 NW 7, has about 70 people connected to its Facebook page. He said each day, more people are following its tweets on Twitter, though the church only joined the latter a few weeks ago. He said social networking seems to meet a need in a society where lots of people don’t know other people in their immediate vicinity very well. ”If you think back 100 years, people were meeting in the store or the bank. Now people are driving from place to place; they’re pressing the button and going into the garage and not seeing their neighbor,” Back said. ”Today, they are encountering one another in different ways. This enables a process that has been short-circuited by modern times. In that sense, it’s not brand-new; it’s a resurgence of something that was lost and now is found — that ongoing connection.”