MARS HILL MULTI-SITE
Mars Hill Church in Seattle has joined those doing the multi-site video thing. At one of the sites the pastor/preacher/teacher is not present but he shows up via the wonder of big screen television.

Again, my concern about the video approach is that:

1) It disconnects the Word from the sacraments. That is, the preacher is no longer also the server of sacraments. There is an unhealthy disconnect in that.

2) Ultimately, the more we force things onto a virtual venue the more we eventually undercut the notion of the gospel as relational in nature -- that is, the incarnation. John 1 says that "the Word became flesh." The embodiment of the message is the beginning of really connecting with it -- real communicator -- really present -- really representing the message -- in the flesh. If it was good enough for Jesus -- it should be good enough for us. :-)

3) The more we rely on the big screen, the more of a "production" worship becomes. It moves from being the community of Christ at worship to being a crowd of Christians thinking and acting like an audience.

4) It reinforces the personality-driven mentality. The church becomes an entity centered around the personality of a single particular communicator.

I'm not saying we should never use video feeds from another site. And I certainly understand why Mars Hill is doing it. They've run out of space! Still, a steady diet of disconnected and disembodied preaching is dangerous.

ADDENDUM: LifeChurch.tv is launching their Fort Worth, Texas video site this Sunday, February 12th.