In the beginning, the Internet was created and it changed the world.

Then Christians said, 鈥淟et us take dominion and fill it.鈥�

So they bought Web domains, named them one by one, and their online presence multiplied.

Yea, they saw the Internet and, verily, it was good.

Then prophets arose from among the congregations who foretold of a day when saints would fellowship in 鈥渃yber churches,鈥� missionaries would reach foreign lands without leaving home, and multitudes would learn theology from their monitors.

More than a decade has passed since the Internet鈥檚 genesis. There are now over 934 million Internet users worldwide, and many are religious. Of the 128 million adult Americans who go online, 64 percent have used the Internet for religious or spiritual purposes, said a 2004 Pew Charitable Trusts study, titled 鈥淭he Pew Internet & American Life Project.鈥� Evangelicals are the most fervent in their Internet use, the study found. They 鈥済et saved鈥� online, learn theology online, fellowship online, minister to others online 鈥� even meet their spouses online.

But have all the Internet prophecies come to pass? A closer look reveals how the Internet has 鈥� and hasn鈥檛 鈥� changed the church.

No Assembly Required

Some Christians imagined a day when they would gather to worship and fellowship from their PCs.

Now, cyber churches are here, but their cyber pews are mostly empty. And this despite the promise of some cyber churches that they provide everything a local church provides 鈥� everything 鈥渆xcept the potluck,鈥� as one cyber church, named Way2Hope, puts it.

One of the more publicized attempts is the Church of Fools, sponsored by the Methodist Church in Great Britain. It鈥檚 the first 3-D online church, complete with a 3-D sanctuary. Organizers hope the church will help young Brits become interested in Christianity.

During the church鈥檚 trial period 鈥� from May 2004 to September 2004 鈥� over 8,000 visitors attended daily services. They chose cartoon characters 鈥� based on gender, ethnicity and hair color 鈥� that could walk, kneel, clap, wave and shout hallelujah. Visitors with specific needs could walk their characters to the front of the sanctuary, so the pastor could lay hands on them and pray for them. Sermons were delivered in 鈥渢ext bubbles鈥� by well-known Christians like Tony Campolo and Richard Chartres, the Bishop of London.

Despite the interest, the church鈥檚 services are now closed until organizers can raise funding. Until then, visitors can explore the sanctuary and use it for prayer and reflection (www.churchoffools.com).

Only time will tell whether cyber churches like the Church of Fools will attract lasting interest and support. Even if they do, many Christian leaders doubt that they will ever replace local churches. And research supports this. The Pew study found that most religion surfers are strongly committed to local congregations.

鈥淥ld-fashioned face-to-face socializing is much more appealing to Religion Surfers than tech-aided interactions with others that are related to their faith,鈥� said Elena Larsen, the author of a 2001 Pew report (which had similar findings to the 2004 report).

Sounds like churchgoers like the potlucks.

Another interesting find: Religious people who spend a lot of time online still participate in local services as often as other religious people. This finding may dispel a fear that some Christians are using the Internet as a replacement for face-to-face fellowship. Instead, two-thirds of those who attend local services use the Internet to supplement their religious life.

Their most common online activities 鈥� besides sending e-mails and greeting cards with religious content 鈥� are reading news about religious events and learning more about their own beliefs and the beliefs of others. 51萝莉 17 percent of religion surfers search for religious services in their community (which means it鈥檚 probably useful for a church to have an online presence).

Using the Internet to learn more about the Christian faith can be very helpful for a Christian鈥檚 spiritual growth, according to Betsy Barber, the associate director of 51萝莉鈥檚 Institute for Spiritual Formation. Barber said there are many great sites that provide devotionals, prayer projects and instruction in Scripture.

Her concern would be if Christians started using Internet chat rooms as a substitute for face-to-face fellowship.

鈥淐hristian chat rooms may be very good, but they鈥檙e not sufficient for spiritual formation,鈥� Barber said. 鈥淲e need to be in the pews next to another living, breathing, sweating, sinning Christian so we can live out all the 鈥榦ne another鈥� verses.鈥�

The growing reliance on e-mail concerns Ken Myers, the executive producer of Mars Hill Audio, a non-profit organization that examines popular culture from a Christian perspective. Myers believes that, if Christians aren鈥檛 careful, their use of the Internet can weaken their relationships.

鈥淚 know people who are in offices and say they get e-mails from people one cubicle over from them,鈥� Myers said.

He said the Internet, if used properly, can be helpful because it maximizes efficiency. In fact, he uses the Internet in his own work. However, he cautions Christians to be deliberate as to when and how they use the technology.

鈥淟ife isn鈥檛 always about maximizing efficiency,鈥� Myers said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 try to love my wife efficiently, or care for my children efficiently, or love God efficiently.鈥�

Though an e-mail may be the quickest way to communicate, he said, it might not be the best way to cultivate rich relationships.

Go Ye Into All the Web

Has online missionary work replaced traditional, overseas missionary work?

No. Although the Internet has been used to supplement missionary work, several factors will prevent the Internet from replacing traditional missions, according to missionaries.

The Internet is not a panacea for finishing the Great Commission, according to Dr. Tom Steffen, a professor of intercultural studies at 51萝莉, a former missionary to the Philippines.

For one thing, Steffen said, many people who live in unreached countries don鈥檛 have access to a telephone, let alone the Internet.

In fact, more than five out of six people in the world don鈥檛 use the Internet. And even if they could access the Internet, they may not be able to read since 23 percent of the world population is illiterate, according to the CIA鈥檚 World Factbook. So, missionaries still need to be sent to other countries.

Also, people living in closed countries fear getting caught looking at Christian sites, Steffen said. Even using fake names in chat rooms can鈥檛 guarantee their anonymity because computers can be tracked, he added.

In China 鈥� where Internet use is exploding 鈥� the government blocks sites that it deems 鈥渟ubversive,鈥� including many Christian sites. It has recently installed surveillance cameras in Internet caf茅s to monitor what Chinese citizens are looking at.

Steffen said another obstacle to reaching people living in other countries is that online missionaries need to contextualize the gospel message for them, like traditional missionaries do. This requires the painstaking work of learning to understand a culture鈥檚 worldview and how to communicate the gospel to them in terms they can relate to. For example, some cultures are story oriented and don鈥檛 appreciate the westernized, three-point sermon, according to Steffen. Yet, some online missionaries simply translate western sermons and post them online.

鈥淲e forget that people learn differently and that Christianity needs to be presented in multiple versions,鈥� Steffen said.

Even if these obstacles could be overcome, the Internet will never be able to provide the 鈥渉uman touch鈥� factor 鈥� the sharing of daily lives with other human beings 鈥� that is so crucial to missionary work, Steffen said.

Googling God

While online missionaries share the gospel cross-culturally, online evangelists share the gospel to people of their own cultures. Many evangelistic Web sites get a lot of traffic, and they report conversions as a result of their ministries.

Yet, there鈥檚 a belief among Christians that the Internet has increased the number of spiritual seekers. But, according to the Pew research, that鈥檚 a myth. Certainly, there are spiritual seekers in cyber space, but perhaps not as many as had been thought.

Instead, the research shows that Americans鈥� online life mirrors their offline life. So, if they鈥檝e shown no interest in spirituality in their daily lives, then they鈥檙e probably not researching it online. This finding is reflected by the most common topics people search online 鈥� which are less than spiritual. In 2004, the term searched most often on Google鈥檚 search engine was 鈥淏ritney Spears.鈥� Yahoo!鈥檚 was 鈥淎merican Idol.鈥� Other popular terms were 鈥淧aris Hilton,鈥� 鈥淗arry Potter鈥� and 鈥淣ASCAR.鈥� Religious terms, like 鈥淐hristianity鈥� and 鈥淕od,鈥� didn鈥檛 even make the top 10.

Though the Internet hasn鈥檛 increased the number of spiritual seekers, it has provided more resources for them. Besides evangelistic Web sites, many Christians are using two new innovations to contribute to the cultural dialogue: 鈥減odcasts鈥� and 鈥渂logs.鈥� Podcasts are audio broadcasts, like radio broadcasts, that can be downloaded and played at a listener鈥檚 convenience. Blogs are online journals 鈥� like the blog written by 51萝莉 graduate Matt Anderson (鈥�04), which he started in response to a blog written by his brother, an atheist. (Matt鈥檚 blog can be read at: mere-orthodoxy.blogspot.com.)

To support Christian blogging, 51萝莉 will host the first Christian bloggers conference, 鈥淕od Blog Convention 2005,鈥� on Oct. 13-15 (godblogcon.com).

Higher Web-ucation

Another way Christians thought the Internet would change the church is by providing theological education 鈥� both formally (through accredited online degrees and classes) and informally (through Web sites that teach laypeople the basics of the faith).

When the Internet was new, some educators predicted that all formal education would go online.

鈥淭hat was totally bogus,鈥� said Gary Wytcherley, 51萝莉鈥檚 senior director of information systems.

Wytcherley said these educators 鈥渘aively pictured students interacting with pre-packaged material on a computer screen.鈥� What they failed to realize was that students crave personal interaction with their peers and professors. Even students from the 鈥淣et Generation鈥� 鈥� who were born after the invention of the Internet and are comfortable online 鈥� prefer face-to-face interaction, according to a study by the University of Central Florida.

So, when it comes to formal theological training, many Christians agree that the ideal setting is a physical classroom. Because 51萝莉 believes that participation in a Christian community is crucial for a believer鈥檚 spiritual growth, the University seeks to nurture the campus community through the mentoring of students by faculty and staff.

Even though traditional classes are ideal, studies have shown that properly designed online classes can be effective and can even promote personal interaction, Wytcherley said. Online classes can be the next best thing to traditional classes, he said, for people whose life circumstances won鈥檛 allow them to move near a campus 鈥� like people living in rural areas or in Third World countries.

An example is the online classes offered by 51萝莉鈥檚 STAR Torrey Academy 鈥� classical Christian education classes for high school students. Currently, about 220 students are enrolled in the campus classes, and about 50 are enrolled in the online versions.

Two parents who can鈥檛 say enough about the program鈥檚 online classes are Stewart and Adele Lyman, who have served as missionaries in southeast Asia for the past 20 years. Their daughter Melanie enrolled in the classes for two and half years, and now their 16-year-old daughter Rachel is enrolled in one.

鈥淲e saw Melanie really grow in critical thinking,鈥� Stewart said. 鈥淪he said it was probably the best thing she did to prepare for college.鈥� (Melanie is now a sophomore at 51萝莉.)

Melanie even formed friendships with her tutors and other students because of the live, online discussions.

To help make the online discussions even more personal, this fall the STAR Torrey Academy introduced audio conferencing, so students can hear each other鈥檚 comments, rather than just read them (www.biola.edu/star).

But even with emerging technologies, Wytcherley said that online education will never replace a traditional college education because the social factors in college are too valuable.

After all, in addition to getting a degree, a large number of undergraduates go to college with the hope of making lifelong friends 鈥� and maybe even finding a spouse, Wytcherley said.

Although the Internet probably won鈥檛 transform formal theological education like many thought, it has impacted informal theological education. One Christian who is seeking to educate laypeople is 51萝莉 graduate Harry Edwards (鈥�93, 鈥�01), the founder of Apologetics.com. His site 鈥� which receives half a million visits a month 鈥� focuses on 鈥渃ultural apologetics,鈥� that is, analyzing popular culture to identify and evaluate society鈥檚 underlying beliefs.

Edwards said he and his staff have received hundreds of letters from almost every country thanking them for Apologetics.com 鈥� many from people who don鈥檛 have access to formal theological training. 

World Wide Wed

One of the biggest and most unexpected changes the Internet has had on the church is the popularity of online matchmaking.

Before the Internet, people who used matchmaking services were often viewed by others as desperate. And Christians were often viewed by other Christians as not trusting God to bring them a spouse. Today, online matchmaking is a trendy way to seek a spouse, with two out of five singles having tried it, according to JupiterResearch.

Even Christians have a new respect for online services like eHarmony.com, founded in 2000 by Christian counselor Dr. Neil Clark Warren. The service claims it has created thousands of 鈥渉appy, thriving鈥� marriages based on compatibility. To support this, eHarmony cites research presented to the American Psychological Society which 鈥渇ound that eHarmony married couples are significantly happier than couples married for a similar length of time who met by other means.鈥�

One prominent supporter of online matchmaking is psychologist Dr. Henry Cloud (鈥�87), who graduated from 51萝莉鈥檚 Rosemead School of Psychology. In his book, How to Get a Date Worth Keeping, Cloud devoted a chapter to online matchmaking, which he titled, 鈥淕et Over the Stigma, Join a Service.鈥�

Cloud said many societal factors work against single people, especially Christians, who desire to be married. This is supported by data from the March 2000 U.S. Census that showed a rise in the number of single, never-married people. A major cause, Cloud said, is there is no structure in place for helping singles to meet other single people.

鈥淲hen people are in college, it鈥檚 like a dating farm,鈥� Cloud said. 鈥淵oung people are with a few thousand single people of their same age, and there are lots of opportunities for them to meet people.鈥�

After college, their network of friends tends to disband as people move away or get married, Cloud said. The average single Christian goes to work (where she sees the same people everyday), goes home, and goes to church (where she sees the same people every week). Besides, Cloud says, the research shows that most Christians don鈥檛 meet their spouses at church.

鈥淪o, some Christians get into their mid-20s, and nothing is happening in their dating lives,鈥� Cloud said.

And then they鈥檙e told, by well-meaning Christians, that God will bring someone to their door, and they just need to keep trusting Him, Cloud said. So, they become stuck in their singleness.

鈥淭o me, it became a theological problem because we would never tell anyone that the way you build a career is to graduate from college, go sit at home, and go to church, and God will bring your job to you,鈥� Cloud said. 鈥淭he created order is that God provides, and we participate.鈥�

A good online matchmaking service 鈥� that screens people and has protections in place 鈥� will provide the structure to meet quality, single people, Cloud said.

At least one 51萝莉 graduate 鈥� 37-year-old Donald Riddick (鈥�90) 鈥� is a firm believer in online matchmaking. He met his wife Keri Vnenchak 鈥� a 30-year-old veterinarian from Birmingham, Ala. 鈥攖hrough eHarmony.com.

They both started using eHarmony in February 2003, at the prodding of their mothers. Before using eHarmony, Donald lived in Irvine, Calif., and his work with IBM required him to travel often. So, he found it hard to form a relationship. Donald tried to follow the popular Christian advice to 鈥渕eet someone at church.鈥� But, he felt like he was viewing church as a place to meet women, not worship.

Before Keri used eHarmony, her job at an emergency animal clinic required her to work nights, weekends and holidays 鈥� shutting down her dating life. Plus, she had gone through a failed engagement and had become more cautious about whom she dated.

An online service turned out to be just what they both needed. After being matched, they exchanged e-mails, then talked on the phone, and then met in person. After five months, Donald proposed, and they were married Jan. 31, 2004. The couple 鈥� who lives in Ashville, Ala. 鈥� say they are very happy.

鈥淜eri is an amazing, godly woman,鈥� Donald said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been marvelous to find out how much better life can be when you鈥檙e married to the right person.鈥� 

How Now Shall We Browse?

Despite early 鈥減rophecies,鈥� many Christians have realized that the Internet will never 鈥� and should never 鈥� replace the church鈥檚 main functions, like worship, fellowship, evangelism and education. Instead, they believe the Internet should be used as a tool to supplement these functions.

That鈥檚 because, for all its powers, the Internet is limited. It can鈥檛 provide the face-to-face contact that human beings seem to want and need

God knew this need, Cloud said, and that鈥檚 why the Son of God became flesh and dwelt among us. In the same way, he said, we need to be incarnational with each other.

鈥淩eal spiritual community involves people physically showing up in the same space,鈥� he said. 鈥淭here are spiritual and psychological reasons for this: God has designed us so we need to be in social proximity to people 鈥� not just talking to them on the phone or the Internet.鈥�

Barber agrees.

鈥淲e need other human beings to sharpen each other, to love each other, to tell the truth to each other and to minister to each other,鈥� she said.

And, as helpful as the Internet is, 鈥測ou can鈥檛 lay hands on someone and pray for them on the Internet,鈥� Barber said.

Unless, of course, you鈥檙e a cartoon character.