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Effects of Current Media Usage Trends on Bible Study
Posted on Thursday, December 21, 2006 at 2:09 PM by Jason Barker
In two earlier posts I commented on current trends in media usage, and some of the effects these trends are having on online publications. In this post I'd like to briefly examine some of the ways in which our online Bible studies address these trends.
In the post on comprehension issues, I discussed two effects that media usage trends are having on online publications: online publications are incorporating shorter articles with simple sentences, and they are increasingly relying upon audio and video in place of text.
Regarding the second publication trend - audio/video - one of the areas in which I hope to develop the Bible studies I create is in incorporating audio and video. While I have spent most of my career working in Christian education and publishing, I have a background in television production, and therefore greatly appreciate the advantages that audio and video can give as one of a variety of educational tools. There is one primary obstacle preventing us from incorporating quality audio/video: a lack of funds for equipment. Quality audio/video - and, as an educational tool, only high quality audio/video is effective - is very expensive to produce, and the Department of Youth Ministry does not have the resources to afford such production. If you would like to help us with this work, click here to make a donation.
Another way audio and video could be created is through submissions from Orthodox youth groups. If youth groups create videos enacting scenes from biblical books, or demonstrating situations in which youth can live out their Orthodox faith, these videos could be incorporated into our studies. These videos have three benefits:
- First, they would not stretch the resources of the Youth Department to create. Not only would the Youth Department not be forced to finance the production of these videos, but also because these videos would be user-submitted, there would not be the expectation that the production standards would meet those of professional productions.
- Second, they would allow Orthodox youth greater participation in both their parishes and in the creation of these Bible studies (plus, seeing videos of Orthodox youth in these studies would inspire other Orthodox youth groups to engage in similar activities, which would benefit everyone).
- Third, seeing Orthodox youth in action may inspire uninvolved youth to become involved in Orthodox activities.
If your youth group would like to produce videos for use in the upcoming study of the Gospel according to St. Luke, or a later study, please send me email at the link at the bottom of the left sidebar.
Returning to the main point of this post, notice how I said audio and video would be used in our Bible studies: as one of a variety of educational tools. At no time would audio or video become the exclusive educational tool used in these studies. The reason for this brings us back to the first publishing trend addressed earlier: increasingly short and simple articles.
The Bible studies I create for the Youth Department always incorporate a simple overview (e.g., "Fast Facts" in Mark and Romans, "Fast Track" in Acts, and "Quick Trip" in the upcoming study of Luke) that allows users to gain a basic understanding of the biblical chapter being studied. This is useful for study in groups, quick reviews during personal Bible study, as well as serving as a needed tool for individuals who simply would not engage in a lengthy, detailed study of the biblical chapter. A basic audio and/or video segment providing an overview of the chapter would serve a similar function.
A key difference between our Bible studies and many other youth Bible studies is that these overviews are simply one element of our Bible studies (and, notably, not the primary element). Many youth Bible studies are limited to very simple overviews of the text consisting of only a few paragraphs, much of which tends to focus on popular culture and then ends with a simple moral message or a reminder that Jesus loves you. Even worse, one video-based youth Bible study I examined while researching my MA thesis consisted almost entirely - to use one unit as an example - of youth skateboarding to a screeching rock soundtrack. At the end of the video, the youth gave their spiritual message: "We do this, cuz, like, you can be a Christian and still be cool" (that isn't an exact quote, but is very close; as you can see, the source video is not worth finding and re-watching). Such "studies" are in fact not Bible studies at all, and thus not only fail to transmit any substantial biblical knowledge and understanding, but also fail to lead to any significant transformation of the Christians involved.
In contrast, the focus of our Orthodox Christian Bible Studies is on longer commentaries, articles about the background of the text, and articles about life application and Orthodox faith and practice. The Bible is a substantial collection of texts: it is long, it can be difficult, but it is also vital and transformative. It is the written word of God to His people. The biblical text not only cannot be understood with a cursory reading or video-viewing, and thus the Christian cannot be transformed through such an approach, but such an approach is an affront to the God Who gave us the Bible, and His people who through the centuries faithfully wrote, translated, taught, and learned these vital books.
Concessions must be made to the learning levels and styles of youth who are not currently adept at extensive reading, and we make these concessions by providing the "Fast" overviews. We must not, however, leave Bible study at this rudimentary level. We must fully delve into the Bible with our commentaries and other articles, both for those Christian youth who are currently able and willing to immerse themselves in the Bible, and to provide resources for youth who will do so in the future. While it is conceivable that in the future there will be a more effective medium than text to engage in such extensive and transformative study, at this time text (supplemented, when possible, with other media) remains the primary vehicle for communication, and thus extended articles remain the best way for us to communicate the transformative truth of the Bible to youth.
Therefore, even if only a handful of youth are currently willing to engage in extensive Bible study - and even if in the future still fewer have developed the literacy skills necessary for textual study - you and I have an obligation to these youth to provide them with the best Bible studies of which we are capable.
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