AREA CHURCHES EMBRACE THE WEB

Churches increasingly are reaching out on the Web to potential members and their own congregations.

A number of local churches have Web sites. Their ministers view it as a communications tool, but they say the "virtual church" won't replace brick-and-mortar churches.

Lynwood Baptist Church in Cape Girardeau is redesigning its Web site.

"We are starting all over," said George Brewer, minister of education for the church. "The old one is kind of outdated."

With 1,300 to 1,400 members, the church is one of the largest in Cape Girardeau.

Brewer said churches can better communicate their message through computer technology.

"As technology advances, the church can use it to enhance what it is trying to do," he said. "It does not have to be a threat to the church at all."

More and more people are spending time surfing the Internet, so it makes sense for churches to be there too, Brewer said.

Across the country, churches and religious groups are using the computer in a variety of way.

Laurence Lannaccone, a Santa Clara (Calif.) University economics professor who specializes in religion, told The Associated Press that within a few years many churches will use computers as a preaching and communications tool, by using Power Point, posting Web sites, broadcasting live sermons on the Internet or taking prayer requests on line.

Brewer said he knows of Bible studies that are done over the Web.

"I think the possibilities are limitless," he said, but the Web won't replace the need for brick-and-mortar churches. "It can never replace that personal touch, that personal one-on-one, face-to-face contact."

Christians still need to attend Sunday service and other church activities, he said.

Brewer believes Jesus would welcome the Web as a means to reach out to people.

But the unregulated Web also can be dangerous, he said, adding: "There are things that can be found on the Web accidentally that would do nothing productive for a child or young adult."

Brewer said churches can help their members and the community at large by offering classes on Internet safety and ways families can protect themselves from pornography on the Web.

Cape Bible Chapel in Cape Girardeau has had a Web site for about three years.

Steve Johnson, pastor of ministries and administration at the church, set up the Web site.

"I wanted it to be kind of an electronic introduction to the church for people who weren't familiar with us and we wanted to have useful information for people in our church as well," he said.

The Web site, said Johnson, has helped draw new members to the church. One couple told Johnson that they settled on Cape Bible Chapel after reading the church's doctrine on the Web.

The Web site also offers a way for college students and the chapel's missionaries to "get a glimpse of home."

The Cape Bible Chapel has a separate Web site for its youth that can be reached from a link on the chapel's site. Johnson said a member of the church maintains the youth site.

The church offers tapes of its Sunday sermons. People can see a listing of the tapes on the Web site and order the tapes via e-mail.

Johnson, who has an undergraduate degree in engineering from Georgia Tech, views electronic mail as a more powerful tool for churches than Web sites.

"We started a church e-mail list," said Johnson. Cape Bible Chapel also has an e-mail prayer chain.

Johnson said those on the prayer chain typically get at least one prayer request a day, and sometimes four or five.

"If the Web site went down for a few months that would be fine, but e-mail going down would be a problem," he said.

Johnson said a virtual church can get the word out, but it doesn't replace the value of people worshiping together.

"It is not a Lone Ranger thing," said Johnson. "We need one another."

The Rev. Anselm Williams set up a number of Methodist Church Web sites prior to becoming pastor of Grace United Methodist Church in Cape Girardeau. Grace Church also has a Web site. It was set up before Williams became pastor.

Williams said Web sites can keep members better informed and serve as a window for prospective members. Williams said it can be "an electronic brochure" for the church.

A Web site can communicate "the personality of the congregation," he said.

Individual churches aren't alone in using Web sites.

"Every major denomination has its own Web sites," Williams said.

Religious publishing houses have their own Web sites that allow people to order materials over the Internet, but Williams said Web sites can do more harm than good for a church if they are not kept up to date.

Like Johnson, Williams views e-mail as a convenient tool of communication in today's world.

Williams previously was pastor of a Methodist church in University City, Mo. At that church, a number of committees used e-mail to share minutes of meetings with their members and for "collaborative decision-making."

Still, electronic communication by e-mail or on Web sites has its limits, Williams said.

There's no substitute for face-to-face communication. He said, "A church experience is a two-way street. It is what you receive and also what you share with others.

"The virtual church is pretty much a one-way street," he said.