Electronic Collection Plate

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Technology has changed people and their lives. The past century has seen the most significant changes to our lives than any other period in history due to advance technology. Not to be outdone the church has embraced the technological advances of the time and may I say the church will never be the same again.  Having said that it has been tested and proven time and time again that whenever an institution moves away from its core function failure is never too far behind.
The church as we know it was established to spread the Gospel of Christ and in so doing to win souls for the kingdom of God. However, in recent times the church has been moving more and more away from its mandate founding principles and by so doing the impact of the church has diminished. How else can you explain a man being shot and killed at the altar of church or criminal stealing church equipment?
It is indeed very troubling and frightening to see where Jamaica has reached in her journey from Emancipation to Independence. Another cause of concern is the move by some of our churches to use electronic collection plates. It has become common place to see members of some congregation swiping their debit and credit cards on a Sunday during church service. While one can argue the merit of having “plastic” instead of having cash in terms of safety for members this in my opinion sends the wrong signal in terms of focusing on collection of funds and the exclusivity this medium present itself.  In light of the fact that there is the perception that the church is mainly concerned with collecting offering this discriminatory practice only serves to reinforce and cement society view of the modern day church.
Nothing is wrong in principle with embracing the technology of the time in which we live; however, when the use of the technology serves more to isolate and divide the church we must be careful and not rush to embrace.
Like all of us the church needs to embark on a bit of soul searching. The time has come for the church to return to its core mandate, that of winning souls.
We should not allow ourselves to become slaves to the technology of the time in which we live. 

waykam@yahoo.com

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