Just Press "Play"

By Julie Riddle

There was a time when a church's multimedia ministry was strictly limited to the hum of a reel-to-reel projector, a narrator and a microphone. Times have changed.

In the past 10 years, the visual tools available to pastors who want to spice up their sermons have exploded, from PowerPoint presentations to music videos to video walls. Plus, more church staff members have at least some knowledge of how to use such technology than ever before.

But the use of multimedia goes beyond the Sunday service. Many brides and grooms now pause at the altar while a slick, heavily produced video highlights their lives for wedding guests. At funerals, too, lives are memorialized in moving pictures set to music. Fortunately, regardless of budget or how much technical expertise is lacking, anyone can integrate video concepts like these and many others into their programs.

Why it's such a big deal

In this digital age, visual learning is key to getting your message across. To foster it, some pastors use film clips from popular movies. Others take advantage of prepackaged material from Christian bookstores or other suppliers. And the most adventurous church leaders create their own videos, complete with text and graphics.

The use of multimedia elements, including text-graphics-animation-sound-and-video combinations, is especially important if your goal is to interest a younger audience. Teenagers and Gen-Xers have grown accustomed to visual learning, whether through television or a video screen at home or at school.

It doesn't have to be solely for their benefit, however. Anyone looking for a new or fresh worship experience (especially those who haven't attended church before) will appreciate something less traditional.

Dive in, the water's warm

At some churches, using video or other multimedia applications can be a startling experience at first. If members express apprehension beyond this, pastors are encouraged to consider creating a separate multimedia service, as many churches across the country are doing.

At Federated Church in Hyannis, Mass., for example, in addition to its more traditional services, the "One Particular Harbour" program features popular music from artists including Jimmy Buffet and Creed, as well as clips from movies such as "Jesus Christ Superstar" and "Backdraft." A three-person crew creates all productions from start to finish.

At this service (intended for people who have never visited or are leery of traditional church fare), visitors are encouraged not to stay seated. Senior minister James Scovil calls it a "new way of liturgy that stands on its own."

Meanwhile, at Quest Church in Culver City, Calif., video clips from "The Matrix" and "Men in Black" are projected onto a 10-foot screen, followed by short dramas and skits. To finance this video dream, Quest Church leaders invested $15,000 in audio, video and multimedia equipment. The goal, according to Pastor Richard Oberle, was to make the church and the Bible more relevant to society.

Give pre-produced videos a whirl

In some cases, church staff does not need technical expertise or necessary equipment to make video happen. Pre-recorded videos are an increasingly popular option, but because of the many legal issues facing churches that use pre-recorded videos or movies in a public setting, many pastors are turning to specialty "Christian" videos.

Highway Video, based in California, produces what it calls "culturally relevant" videos for use in church services. The company's three- to five-minute vignettes range from comedies to "man-on-the-street" interviews to interpretive and music videos.

Despite video's popularity, Sales and Marketing Director Javad Shadzi emphasizes that it might not be for everyone. "It's more important to determine [your purpose] and what it would accomplish," he says. "Pastors need to take a reality check before jumping into videos or other technology. It seems like churches sometimes copy each other when they're looking for the new, 'hot' thing they need to integrate and do."

Perhaps for this reason, pastors not using visual tools--particularly video--are becoming more and more rare, he says.

"Video is particularly powerful because it adds a whole visual element," Shadzi continues. "People are becoming more visual, and they're communicating more visually, whether it's from TV or the Internet. That's just how culture is progressing. The days of people sitting around and listening to someone talk or reading long books are shifting to a more visual reality."

Make peace with copyright issues

When illustrating lessons, many pastors and Sunday school teachers have come to rely on the local video or music stores, or both. Unfortunately, however, these church leaders may unintentionally be breaking copyright laws.

According to the Music Publishers' Association (MPA), copyright holders must grant permission to any user before he or she makes a transparency, slide or an electronic file featuring copyrighted work. Whether it is a graphic for projection, a photocopy of a copyrighted song for a solo accompanist, an audio recording of worship services, a video for a worship service or special music presentations (youth, children's and holiday presentations, for example), permission is a must. Luckily, a blanket license from Christian Copyright Licensing Inc., or CCLI--in conjunction with the MPA--grants the use of many copyrighted songs.

And for pre-recorded video materials, the Motion Picture Licensing Corporation, or MPLC, is a copyright authority. The MPLC, an independent copyright licensing service exclusively authorized by major Hollywood motion picture studios and independent producers, grants umbrella licenses to nonprofits, businesses and government groups. Materials may be used for public performances or home videocassettes and videodiscs. In 2000, the MPLC also launched a cooperative venture with CCLI to create www.cvli.org, a Web site where churches can obtain licenses to use video in a variety of formats and settings without fear of breaking the law.

Don't Go It Alone

As technology evolves, many organizations have cropped up to help churches find their multimedia groove, including:

ChurchMultiMedia.com (Grass Valley, Calif.) ChurchMultiMedia.com bills itself as a centralized location for churches to "come and get" the information they need to design, install and support their own multimedia systems. Consultants then work with church leaders to determine what needs have to be met inside what size budget.

Church Ideas (Franklin, Tenn.) This company provides another valuable resource, offering pastors creative worship ideas, planning tools and resources, along with sketches, music, videos and books. Log on to www.churchideas.com to learn more.