A net result for fishers of men

Webmaster | 28 June 2006

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Anglican Media’s first foray into cross-media evangelism was the Challenging Da Vinci.com campaign, JEREMY HALCROW reports.

CINEMA: Advert seen by 251,000 ticket-holders across 250 screens in Sydney.
MEDIA RELATIONS: More than one million people saw the ad on ABC News, Ten news and the Today program. There were over 200 press articles in local and international media, including multiple radio interviews. A highlight was TIME magazine listing the site as one of six ways ‘to break The Da Vinci Code’.
WEBSITE: More than 36,000 unique visitors so far. The branding was effective, as more than 80 per cent of people connected directly to the site. Once there, people stayed to read the material. Interestingly there has been a steady decline in interest since the film’s actual release probably because of the poor quality of the film.
PARISHES: Sixty events organised by churches were promoted via the website. Of the 7,000 attendees, it is estimated that between 25-50 per cent were enquirers. A number of churches have reported that roughly half of these have joined follow-up courses, though not necessarily as a direct result. Additionally, talks at Wollongong Greater Union and Cremorne Orpheum attracted 1,000 people. ‘Fun’ events held off-site or with an emphasis on hospitality attracted more non-Christians.

Christians everywhere used The Da Vinci Code as a prime opportunity to talk freely about Jesus. Now Sydney Anglicans are going online to answer questions it is generating.

The internet has opened up a whole world of ‘secrecy’ where people can interact without the other person knowing their identity,” says Steve Morrison, keying in a response to a quick email.

“This has negative effects, of course, but the ability to explore things in an anonymous way is good for apologetics.”

Steve, a fourth-year Moore College student, joined the Christianity.net.au venture, which was launched two months ago by Anglican Media, publishers of Southern Cross. Along with 35 other students he has begun the challenging task of integrating his personal witness with the internet by answering the spiritual inquiries of web users around the world.

At the end of March 2005 internet subscriptions in Australia numbered 5.98 million - of which 5.1 million were households. Popular chat program MSN messenger now connects approximately 465 million unique users worldwide each month.

Clifford Stole, author of Silicon Snake Oil, says he senses an ‘insatiable demand for connectivity’. “Perhaps some of these people feel hungry for a community that our real neighbourhoods don’t deliver.”

Sydney Diocese began building a new doorway for the gospel on this virtual reality nine months ago. Christian websites are nothing new; they have been around in various forms since the earliest networks. But the Diocese’s latest web venture aims to offer not just information but interactivity and community.

“We see this as part of the process of multiplying Bible-based Christian fellowships,” says Anglican Media CEO Allan Dowthwaite. “It’s not our intention to replace the local church. We want to help connect our churches with a vast new, electronic mission field.”

Christianity.net.au is being developed by a team of evangelists, educationalists, editors and culture experts from Anglican Media, Anglican Youthworks, Moore College, Youthworks College. The site was launched in conjunction with the Challengingdavinci.com campaign and currently attracts 300 unique visitors from around the world every day.

Part of the site’s attractiveness is the opportunity to pose questions and receive a personal response. Site administrators receive two to three genuine inquiries each day.

Students say internet evangelism cuts to the heart of people’s concerns.

“The questions are usually quite hard, suggesting that those people have given them some real thought,” says Alexander Purnomo. “Some are left-field questions, those which we don’t get asked regularly – not even in my church gatherings – but they are all very genuine.”

Discussions are underway to allow students at Moore and Youthworks Colleges to include participation in the site as part of their studies.

Anglican Media also plans to increase the level of participation with the creation of online Bible study groups.

what they’re asking ... at CHRISTIANITY.NET.AU

- My baby has just died, will I see her in heaven?
- I believe but my dad doesn’t. How can I help him become a Christian?
- The Koran makes more sense to me. How can you believe in three gods in one?

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