Comments on: Ontario priest’s YouTube spoofs draw congregants

By: Curt Gesch

Curt Gesch — Fri, 11 Jan 2019 16:41:10 +0000

Oops. I forgot to say maybe the most important thing: These short clips certainly will be a captivating way of speaking to people who are on the e-world. I wouldn’t hesitate to ask someone to see them as I ask them to attend church in person.

By: Curt Gesch

Curt Gesch — Thu, 10 Jan 2019 14:52:57 +0000

Thank you for sharing this approach. My own experience leads me in a more traditional direction: personal contact. I have found people in places from Manhattan New York (Washington Heights) to Iqaluit (Nunavut) to Smithers, B.C. are quite different from stereotypes of the aloof, the reluctant, the apathetic, and the anti-religious. I suppose post-modernism gets both the blame and the credit for this. I don’t find people put off by liturgies and ceremonies, but often confused because in some Anglican congregations the assumptions that “everyone must know what is going on” often lead to frustration with or without Power-point or other devices being used. When I accompany someone I invited to worship, I try to help with this by having resources ready and in some cases talking to the guest ahead of time about things that may be confusing.

By: Laureen Mignault

Laureen Mignault — Fri, 23 Feb 2018 23:01:12 +0000

In reply to Rev. Lee Lambert. I have never felt closer to Christ in my almost 60 years than I feel at St. Mary’s Russell with Rev. Lee as our priest. The last time I felt this close was during basic training 40 years ago. Thank you Rev Lee!

By: Rev. Lee Lambert

Rev. Lee Lambert — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 23:57:24 +0000

In reply to Tony Houghton. Agreed. Like yourself, I too have a problem with the liturgy being narrowed and flattened into entertainment. As you said in your previous post, we need truth and not gimmicks. I think it's not that our liturgical life has been tried and found wanting, but that it has been (in some quarters) abandoned and missed. The tradition is so dense and rich that it stands alone. The way some speak of it, it's a tired, sagging thing that needs to be propped up.

By: Tony Houghton

Tony Houghton — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 21:17:24 +0000

In reply to Rev. Lee Lambert. I agree with you about things like videos and presentations done at the church to open up conversation are good things but they shouldn't be done in lieu of a worship service. There are too many churches the have gone the way of "entertainment" to put bums in seats

By: Rev. Lee Lambert

Rev. Lee Lambert — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 20:14:04 +0000

Hi, Tony. We do need to be careful that the focus on Christ is not lost. And I absolutely agree that truth in preaching the Gospel is of paramount importance. That said, I have had a good number of people approach me about our community (and the work we do) specifically because of the raised profile the videos have given us. Those introductions likely would not have happened otherwise. Those conversations and our services, while friendly and warm, are very serious indeed. Don’t worry, brother: I know the master I serve. Blessings, and thanks for taking the time to comment.

By: Tony Houghton

Tony Houghton — Tue, 20 Feb 2018 18:16:17 +0000

Do you really want gimmicks to draw people. People will then come to be entertained and there is an over abundance of that in the world. How about bringing people in by preaching the truth ,this is what people really need.