Mobile+Devices+and+Ministry+-+Is+My+Parish+Ready?

Assignment #1 Mobile Devices and Ministry - Is My Parish Ready?

Expected time to complete assignment: 10 minutes

Is my parish ready to embrace and use these tools in learning environments or ministry? Why or Why not?

Please respond with the following information - name, parish, city, state and your response.

Name: Susan St. Lucy Parish, Anytown, MO
 * EXAMPLE: **

Response: As a parish we are just beginning to realize that this mobile technology is more available to us. We have a youth minister that really understands and uses technology with our youth ministry group. Our RCIA coordinator knows about Poll Everywhere, and is using this service which allows a respondent to use a cell phone in polls. But overall, we are still trying to figure out what to do. A majority of our ministers and catechists are hesitant to use technology in their teaching or ministry. - Name: Sr. Sheila St. Albert's Newman Parish, Las Cruces, NM

Response: On the one hand, my parish is not ready for media equipment that takes up a lot of room, since it currently is severely limited for both worship and classroom space. A five-year fund-raising campaign has been launched to build a larger church and facilities, but this will take years to materialize.

On the other hand,, I think the youth ministry and faith formation ministries could certainly use mobile phones as ministry tools. There might be some children who could not afford smart phones, but the better off retired community in the parish would perhaps be willing to donate money for this cause. As the first video shows, only 19% of people do not yet use smart phones. As the number of users increases, the cost will go down, as it has for other tools of technology.

Last year my parish began to assign Sunday ministry schedules online, instead of by "sign up" on lists in the foyer.. Some of the older parishioners objected because they do not yet use E mail, but most have learned that this is a time saving and efficient means to get people to engage in the different parish ministries. So, in summary, the parish is gradually becoming used to more technology, especially the younger religious ed. teachers, those doing youth ministry, and the children and teenagers.

Diocese of Beaumont, Texas
====Response: From the diocesan point of view, I know of a few parish PCL's who are using mobile technology with their students. I think they are using it primarily as a contact tool with parental consent. There is still an unresolved issue of official diocesan policy due to the safe environment guidelines which I would say trumps ministry use at this point. Privacy and security are legitimate concerns, however the irony to me is ongoing and broad individual use by diocesan employees already exist while official institutional implementation applicable to ministry remains suspect and unresolved.==== ====In addition to the struggling policy issue, there is still the typical technological intimidation that occurs. Discussions do occur from time to time among PCL's and in all fairness it seems some simply need ideas on how to use mobile devices with their students for ministry.====

Name: Madeleine Vessel Immaculate Heart of Mary Cathedral Parish, Las Cruces, NM

Response: I am not sure whether my parish is ready to embrace technology in learning environments. On the one hand, last year, when I co-facilitated a 30-week JustFaith course for adults, the available technology included only aged televisions and DVD players which were not always reliable. On the other hand, the parish does have a website which has been around for about three years, though I don't know how often parishioners access it.

Our parish struggles to pay its monthly bills, so cost, not a reluctance to use technology, is the largest deterrent to adding technology to classrooms.

Using mobile phones might be acceptable and worth trying because implementation is at the students' expense, not the parish's. Also, as the videos point out, almost everyone has and regularly uses a cell phone, including children. Many have smart phones. Key to the acceptance of using mobile phones as a teaching tool would probably be a good argument in the form of a well-designed plan for instruction that incorporates mobile phones.

Name: Lorraine S. DeLuca Diocese of Beaumont, TX

When looking at the PCLs and parishes in our diocese it think it varies from parish to parish concerning the embrace of technology for ministry purposes. It seems that those who have younger children (junior and high school age) are more comfortable with using phones to connect with their students and other technology as well. Some parishes have web pages but they are basically informational. Some of the PCLs do not even use a computer because their secretaries can do so. Several years ago we tries a "Virtual Round-table" chat room and no one used it. Likewise when we offered a session on how to create PowerPoints, so did not know their way around Word and that made it very difficult. That is why Paul and I are taking this class, so that hopefully we can move more of our PCLs into befreiending technology in their ministry.

Joanna Haston Diocese of Las Cruces Pastoral Center, Las Cruces NM I am using the Pastoral Center as my "parish" as I float around parishes. Is the Pastoral Center ready to embrace these kinds of tools? Yes and no! We just got a new phone system that gives us "cell-phone like" capabilites on our desks, but they are not smart phones. You should hear the noise from folk around the building as they have to adjust and relearn. I love them, and I think that others will, too, when they get used to them. The contrast is that many of these same people have personal smart phones and can be seen using them all the time! So, why are they not ready to embrace them - because they are something new and the learning curve is high. Why are they ready? Because those that have recognized the capabilites are excited to use them!

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