What Does “Hybrid Church” Even Mean?
As churches plan for regathering in-person while also maintaining an online community that continues to be actively engaged in worship, the question of "how?" begins to be in all our minds. We do know that our "why" begins with God and community. Can online participants be projected into the worship space so that in-person worshippers can see their online fellow worshippers and be in community? Could a pianist play a song or vocalist sing a song from their own home but have an audio line-in to the worship space so that in-person worshippers can see and hear their worship leader virtually? What about synchronous (online, in-person) and asynchronous (on your own time)? How do we communicate inclusivity rather than exclusivity when we now have a church building space and a virtual space where we hope participation is equal and equally valued? What does the future of the church look like? Are we physical buildings with an online presence, or do we have an online church with physical buildings? Every church is different, and there is no "one size fits all" solution to moving forward in this new post-COVID world, but we can learn from one another and think creatively together.