These days, the talk and work around The Church is about hybrid worship, hybrid meetings, hybrid work. A return to in-person worship and gatherings for those who are already there and for those who are still in the anticipation and planning stages is yet another opportunity for us to flex and learn and grow in these interesting and challenging times.
A hybrid is, by definition, a mixture. A hybrid worship service or meeting allows people to attend and participate and worship/collaborate/enjoy each other’s company in person or online.
Vibrant congregations are discovering that there are ties to their deeply held values of hospitality and welcome when they begin to explore and enact hybrid models. What does it mean to welcome, include and get to know people when we include people virtually and in-person? What does accessibility mean and look like in hybrid settings?
Here’s what I really and truly want to say: we harm the body of Christ when we judge new developments in worship because of our own comfort/discomfort/preferences/experiences. Comments that judge or belittle a different experience to allow folks to be part of the body of Christ diminish the whole body. “It’s not worship if we’re not all together (in-person)” is patently untrue. “We’ll be back to worship when we can be indoors again.” (What? What about all of those moments of meaning and accepting Christ and deep experiences of God that have happened at summer camp/family camp/mission trips? Tell me those are not worship…) “That group that meets on Saturday night/online/at a non-traditional time. They’re not really part of our Church.” (Why in heaven’s name are they not?)
We serve a God who reaches out to people in many and various ways. There are a LOT of details to work out when we head to hybrid. It’s the latest chapter in adaptive learning for us as people of faith. It’s a very important journey, and thankfully, we don’t have to head out on that journey alone. You have sister congregations and a presbytery that are generous in their offers of support. Reach out if you have a need or a question or two or two hundred. Reach out if you’re willing to be a guide because you’ve already headed out on the hybrid road. We need each other if we are to learn and grow and flourish in these changing and challenging times, and we really need to embrace new ways of attending to our worship and our work so that our welcome is deep and true.
Photo by Monika Grabkowska on Unsplash