The following is a report of the group discussion that occurred last Saturday, revolving around the general topic of “Being Christian In Second Life.” These discussions happen every Saturday at 11 a.m. SLT, at the benches in front of the Parish House. All are welcome to attend! Arundel Dragonash, who co-moderates these discussions (along with Joyous Schism) prepared the following summary.
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Our group was smaller this week, and the discussion centered around the above - more personal - question than in previous weeks. The answers to the question covered a wide range!

Community was one of the first things mentioned. Broadly, the concept of community was said to include meeting people and making friends with similar interests and viewpoints and a place to gather for spiritual renewal as well as for more “serious” conversation than is routinely found in other areas of SL. Many of us enjoy the wider world aspect of those friendships, and enjoy such friendships beyond our geographical province, which (to me at least) makes this a truly Anglican congregation. Another aspect of the virtual-ness of the place can allow the isolated to participate in a Christian community; Arkin has already discovered the home-bound in our little community, and the Outback of Australia was mentioned, where distance is vast and becoming more of a problem as the cost of petrol keeps rising.

The discussion then turned to how we as individuals express our Christianity in SL. Many described close similarities between RL expression and SL expression, but some expressed a greater individual freedom within SL, with fewer social constraints on their expression of deeply felt Christianity. There was also mention of the chance for RL pastors to participate in services as part of the congregation, a welcome change.

Consensus was reached that all of us consider our Anglican community in SL to be a very important part of our lives! Though not mentioed in discussion, I know that all our prayers are with Arkin (Mark Brown) as he presents (and represents) us to the greater Anglican Communion this month.

NOTE: For a wonderful commentary on the place-ness of SL and other virtual worlds, I suggest the new book Coming of Age in Second Life by Tom Boellstorff, an associate professor of anthropology at the University of California Irvine.

My latest sermon preached as part of the Pentecost celebration in the Anglican Cathedral of Second Life.

The Holy Spirit has a huge role to play in our lives as Christians.. are you taking full advantage of the power of the Holy Spirit? Press the play button to hear this encouraging message. Also available as a podcast, click here for the detail.
(timing: 9 mins)
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On 3rd of May MikeCamel Albert was the guest preacher at the Evening Prayer service. To hear his message click on the play button below. Please be aware that it is very quite… you will need to turn your volume up.

7.40 length.
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Thanks to the generous donation by Hildeguard Psaltery, we now have a labyrinth on (the southwest corner of) Epiphany Island! Hildeguard made a copy of the labyrinth she previously constructed and placed on Support for Healing Island.

Thanks also to Elly Crispien, who assisted me in getting this labyrinth settled into its new home. Elly also donated the lovely meditation chapel that now graces the south shore of the island. So, a big round of applause for both of these very talented ladies!

Plans are moving forward for the rest of the land redevelopment, as my schedule allows. I have started construction on a new meditation garden, in the southeast corner, and will continue on with the landscaping. Thanks to all for your prayers and support for me, and the rest of the leadership team, as we work to enhance this lovely environment for the work of this ministry and the glory of God!

Cady

I have come across the most interesting new application that converts social network sites into a virtual setting! Check out the details by CLICKING HERE.

Revd Mark

Greetings!

There is much to report on this week, so apologies for a long post! I will share with you both a synopsis of the fascinating discussions being carried on in the “Being Christian in SL” discussion group, and a report from the Epiphany Leadership Team meeting that was held this past weekend.

“Being Christian in SL”

The “Being Christian in SL” discussion group continues to go strong, with many folks stopping by on Saturday afternoons (it starts at 11am SLT, and tends to go on for some time after that!). A wide range of topics are discussed related to this theme.

This past Saturday, there was an interesting conversation related to how we express our Christian identity in SL, and whether it differs from how we do so in RL. Most of those present shared that they bring their real personalities with them into the virtual world, and that religion plays a similar role in their lives in both worlds. One member shared a lovely story of how she stopped in one afternoon, and encountered an opportunity to pray with two of her SL friends at the cathedral, and how she was touched by that.

When asked how they bring their Christianity to those they encounter in SL, some stated that they tend to stick to “Christian” areas of SL. That raised the interesting question of the value of staying within your own community, and perhaps the danger of leading an insular existence and missing opportunities to witness to others (either by word or deed) the effect that their relationship to Jesus has on their lives.

The topic of sin was also brought up. Sin in SL is often equated with sexual sin, but the other temptations of SL were discussed, mainly that of neglecting RL responsibilities, which some shared as a real issue for them at times. Also addressed was the desire for an organized way for us to come together and pray for the needs of those within the community.

If any of these topics resonate with you, I invite you to share your thoughts in the comments section below, and/or to join the group on Saturdays to continue these wonderful discussions!

Leadership Team update

The Epiphany Leadership Team met this past Saturday, to review current issues and to make plans for the future. Interestingly enough, many of the topics on the agenda were also matters that came up in the discussion group.

Epiphany Code of Conduct

The Leadership Team has been considering the need to establish a code of conduct for visitors to Epiphany. The hope is that by spelling out what our expectations are regarding behavior here, it will help prevent misunderstandings and needless conflict on either side. Also, we have been approached by a member of another Christian group in SL, who inquired about using our worship facilities for their group, until they were able to put up a church building of their own. In order to respond to both of these issues, the Team has put together the following Code of Conduct regarding the use of our facilities:

“All are welcome, regardless of creed or affiliation, to use any of our facilities for private prayer and meditation. However, formal services of any nature MUST be approved by the Leadership Team. Requests for use of these facilities will be reviewed, and approved using criteria that we have established (available upon request). [Briefly stated, these criteria have to do with determining that these are legitimate religious groups, and with scheduling concerns.]

Any requests for use of our facilities for ceremonies of a sacramental nature (such as weddings, baptisms and Eucharistic celebrations) will NOT be considered at this time.

Activity taking place within our worship spaces must be respectful of the sanctity that we accord these spaces. Anyone who violates this directive will be given a warning to desist in such behavior. Any further activity may result in being banned from this region.”

Volunteer Coordinator

The need for a volunteer coordinator was raised, to coordinate the organization, scheduling and training of community members who wish to serve in this capacity. Hildeguard Psaltery agreed to take on this role. She will consult with Mark on how to establish training guidelines and protocols, and will communicate with the community when these are in place.

Community Bulletin Board

The idea has been put forward by the community to have a group bulletin board, that group members can use to communicate with one another. This could be used to promote events, to share needs that group members may have, to help orient newcomers to SL, as well as other things that we haven’t thought of yet! I have agreed to set up this board, and I will accept and review submissions for postings.

Anglican Clergy in SL

Hilde suggested that it would be helpful to establish a sub-group within Anglicans in SL for real-life clergy members. This group would consist of those SL clergy who wish to participate, and can substantiate to the Leadership Team that they hold RL clerical credentials. This will help differentiate those RL clergy members from visitors who may be role-playing as clergy, as well as give those members of the community the opportunity to meet and discuss how they can offer their unique gifts in service to our wider community.

Prayer Groups

During the discussion group conversation, the desire was expressed that a method be developed for members of our community to share their prayer requests with others. This may take the form of a prayer list and/or organized prayer groups. I proposed to the Leadership Group that this may be a task that could be charged to Hilde, who would work with me, and with the proposed clergy group, to explore how we could best implement this concept.

So as you can see, we have much in store for the community! As always, we invite your input and suggestions. And thanks to all for giving me the opportunity to share in this fabulous ministry adventure!

Cady

This past Sunday we had a special guest preacher, the Revd Aaron Orear (Aaron Ohrberg) Aaron is a priest in the Diocese of Niagara, Anglican Church of Canada. He graduated from Trinity College, Toronto, last May, was ordained to the diaconate last Pentecost and priested on Second Advent, so he still has that New Priest Smell. He was also married this past October, making 2007 the most eventful year of his life…hopefully for a very long time. To listen to his message click on the play button below..
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In May I am heading off to the UK for a meeting hosted by the Bishop of Guildford that will discuss in some detail the Anglican ministry in SL. I have written a background paper for the meeting, ‘Christian Mission to a Virtual World’ that can be downloaded by visiting my blog by CLICKING HERE.

Revd Mark Brown

]]> http://slangcath.wordpress.com/2008/04/16/christian-mission-to-a-virtual-world-paper/feed/ bsnzceo http://slangcath.wordpress.com/2008/04/14/being-christian-in-sl/ http://slangcath.wordpress.com/2008/04/14/being-christian-in-sl/#comments Mon, 14 Apr 2008 00:26:08 +0000 Cady Enoch http://slangcath.wordpress.com/?p=201

The first gathering of the “Being Christian in SL” discussion group took place this past Saturday, and interest is very strong! Over the course of what turned out to be a two-hour discussion, approximately 20 people, both cathedral regulars and newcomers, came and went, and contributed to a very rich discussion of the topic at hand.

The participants came from the US, Canada, the UK and elsewhere in Europe. When asked what has impressed them most about the cathedral, the overwhelming response was the sense of community they found with us. Many commented that most of the other spiritual areas that they had encountered in SL seem to be empty most of the time, but there are often community members around the cathedral, sharing fellowship even when there is no specific event scheduled.

When asked what the appeal of the cathedral is, the opportunity to meet Christians from around the world was cited as an important component. Many also mentioned the fact that it has been a blessing to many who due to their circumstances do not have access to a real-life church community, or who, for whatever reason, don’t feel welcome or accepted by the communities they do have access to. It was also noted that this experience of church can be perceived as a “safe” alternative for those who have an interest in becoming involved in a Christian community, but don’t yet feel comfortable stepping foot in a real world church.

The matter of what form our SL liturgies should take was also discussed. There was a definite opinion that the essential form of Anglican liturgy should be preserved, both because it’s inherent beauty, and “because, why else bother to call this an Anglican church?” However, many participants noted that they had some difficulty with the current service format (such as trouble with the cut-and-paste format and being distracted by trying to keep up with everything on the screen). There was also a desire for more lay involvement in the services. As this way of doing church evolves, it will be very interesting to see what forms of worship come out of it. I expect (and hope!) that some creative ideas will come out of future discussions.

This brought up the matter of the volunteer opportunities that Arkin has extended to the community, as a response to the results of the recent survey he conducted on our experiences at the cathedral. It was agreed that the most pressing need is for community members to serve as greeters to visitors and newcomers, both at regular service times and all through the day. Many people were interested in doing this, but didn’t feel that they would be able to make definite time committments. The idea was put forward that community members might be encouraged to be intentional about checking in at the cathedral whenever they are in-world, to welcome visitors, and offer support to other community members who are there.

Outreach efforts were also addressed. Some ideas included making efforts to help publicize cathedral events to the greater SL community, interacting with other Christian communities in SL, and helping those that visit us become familiar and comfortable with our liturgy.

The conversation ended with a discussion on how sacraments might work in SL. There is great interest in exploring ideas about this, mixed with caution that we not rush into this area too quickly. The hope was expressed that no action on this be undertaken without the full involvement and support of the SL Anglican community.

As you can see, a lot of ground was covered here! I encourage everyone to attend these discussions, even if you can only participate for a short while. This is a wonderful opportunity for us to get to know each other, and for everyone to have a voice in the future direction of our community. These gatherings will continue to be held each Saturday at 11 a.m. SLT, and take place at the benches in front of the Parish House. I also encourage and welcome your comments and ideas on this blog. Please let us know how we can work to serve you, and grow this wonderful Christian community in Second Life!