Abstract
The church is facing an existential challenge caused by the current pandemic and by what has been called the Internet of Things. It consequently has no choice but to adapt and adjust as it addresses the needs of the present generation. This article discusses how these changes have occurred and how the church in general has repositioned itself as Church 5.0. Because of shifts away from certain traditional perspectives, the church has had to reposition itself in order to conduct its mission successfully. Although church forms change, its sacramental presence and the essence of its proclamation remain unchanged.
It is a commonplace to note that, in comparison with the first church, established in Jerusalem, contemporary churches are far more complex and have developed in terms of their form and model. 1 At least since the Reformation Era, churches worldwide have grown and multiplied, often rapidly, in each community they serve. In the beginning, the church aimed to organize new converts as Christ-followers, not specifically as Jewish or Greek followers of Jesus. Now, church members include a great many ethnicities, races, and classes. The church exists in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria, and all over the world. At the beginning, its functions included meeting both spiritual and social needs. Over time, the church developed ways of being socially responsible in the places in which it was planted. 2 The functions have developed with the church’s social responsibility in the midst of society. All these changes confirm the prediction of Hans Küng, who once stated that every era has a certain image of the church, arising from its particular historical situation and from the conceptual meaning provided by the theologians of its era. 3 Similarly, Guichun Jun states that the essence of the church as it is actually expressed in history rests on two main points: (1) the church’s essence and form cannot be separated, and (2) the essence and form of the church are not identical. 4 The church always adapts to its specific historical context.
In the twenty-first century, two critical elements are radically restructuring human lives, including our experience of church. The first is the COVID pandemic; the second, the presence of digital technology, which marks the era of the Internet of Things (IoT). The pandemic, which has not shown any slowdown and continues to infect people with new variants, has placed human lives under the shadow of death. 5 It has dramatically changed the way we live our lives. This virus is a catalyst that is reshaping human culture, including the way we express our spiritual lives.
At the beginning of the pandemic era, cases of COVID among church members increased sharply because many of them chose to continue meeting face to face. In most places, however, the church eventually had no option but to accept government restrictions on in-person gatherings for spiritual purposes. Actually, before the pandemic era, the number of congregations and small groups formed for ongoing spiritual activity had become a characteristic of the church’s growth. 6 Previous research on this factor was conducted by Roedy Silitonga, who demonstrated that the church’s attitude was proactive in dealing with the pandemic and in accepting the social restrictions. 7 The research of Irwan Widjaja et al. concluded that, in the context of the pandemic, conventional spiritual activities had to be transformed into smaller units, or house churches. 8 The study of Alexander Luhukay demonstrated clearly that strict social distancing was the only effective way of halting the spread of the virus. That is, the church, given its presence in the fabric of society, had to embrace rules for social distancing. 9
The second element that is currently restructuring human lives is the digital revolution, especially the Internet and Artificial Intelligence (AI). This revolution has integrated digital technology into all aspects of human lives. Digital sensors are everywhere. The presence of digital platforms helps humans work, for these platforms have no delay in processing capability. Physical objects can thus be converted into digital data, which can be exchanged and transmitted over the Internet and other forms of advanced communication. According to Luigi Atzori et al., radical change has occurred everywhere, for the world has entered a new area called the Internet of Things. 10 The Internet-based technology present with the digital platform has become a new form applied by the industrial sector, companies, government services, and schools to carry out teaching and learning, as well as to facilitate the business practices of the economic actors and to meet the needs of many other sectors. We live our private life in the all-digital world, starting from the presence of smartphones, online communication, surfing to search for information, enjoying entertainment, and shopping for personal needs, hobbies, and self-actualization through social media.
What about our spiritual life? The research of Anthony Le Duc concluded that there has been a change in the way humans perceive God and fellow humans. Despite restricting God in space and time, the IoT provides a new perspective on spiritual things, even though it is presented metaphorically. 11 The findings of Gnana Patrick are in line with Le Cuc’s conclusion that in the digital era, the groupings of Christian followers have changed from being physically religious communities to become virtual religious communities. 12
Research on this second element has not answered the entire critical issue, namely, how the change to the digital impacts the form and essence of the church. Previous studies have focused on the impact and form of the church change observed only from the point of view of the congregation. The essence of the church in the era of the IoT has not yet been addressed. However, all previous studies had one conclusion, namely, that the church needs to adjust itself and be flexible in its gatherings as a congregation. The existential change of the church as Christ’s body in the midst of the digital world is the issue that we consider in this article. The research problem is how the church manages to transform its traditional form and pattern into a digital pattern.
Method
The discussion in this article focuses on three points: (1) IoT, which represents a major change in human lives, is part of Society 5.0; (2) in using Internet-based media, IoT plays a key role in digitalizing the church; and (3) as a direct result of church digitalization, the meaning of koinonia has shifted. The analysis emphasizes the various steps of shifting the model of the church from traditional to contemporary. Even though the COVID pandemic plays a role in the disruption, this article considers it as a factor that only accelerates the entrance of the church in the digital era. The data examined in this research derive completely from various journal articles and books that address the topics under discussion. 13 Although the analysis and discussion are presented descriptively, they follow the pattern referred to by Marvin Gilbert, 14 namely, presentation of statements, followed by critical analysis. 15
Discussion
Internet of Things and Society 5.0
IoT is the characteristic of a new civilization called Society 5.0. This era does not stand on its own but, as Peter Burke describes it, arises out of Society 4.0, whose traits are advanced technology, information, and the Internet. Today’s history continues what happened in the past. 16 In the transition from Society 4.0 to Society 5.0, there is a close relationship of cause and effect, especially through the presence of AI. Both eras have fully entirely supported the process of digitalization.
Internet of Things is a concept referring to the movement of large amounts of data throughout the integrated Internet network, which touches all aspects of human life. Maciej Kranz has correctly stated that this era is more than talking about Internet protocol or the web, which connects something with anything. Rather, IoT is integration among people, data processes, and many other things, all involving the network that changes the analogue system into a digital system, which connects anything with anything. 17
The main characteristic of this phase is digitalization, which forms a virtual space in the real world. The application of AI is integrated into that virtual space. According to Miterianifa Miterianifa et al., the priority of Society 5.0 in the adaptable community of the future is the skill of critical thinking. 18 In other words, the IoT in the era of Society 5.0 has radically restructured the way humans think, act, and develop their expertise. There are conventional things that must be replaced with new ways in this new era. Atzori et al. asserted that to live in a digitalized world, it is enough that a gadget be connected to the Internet. 19 By clicking on a button, the whole world is opened for exploration. Humans do not need to go anywhere to be everywhere. A dimension without borders in a virtual digital space becomes the new human ecosystem. 20
Data issued in 2020 by We Are Social showed a significant increase in world Internet use. Of the 7.75 billion people in the world, 4.54 billion are active Internet users. Out of that number, 3.8 billion of the world’s citizens use social media. In 2020 Internet users averaged 6 hours and 43 minutes every day online. If we subtract the 8 hours a day that humans sleep, we see that Internet users spend more than 40 percent of their waking lives connected to the Internet. This fact shows how important the Internet is in the hierarchy of human needs. This percentage will certainly continue. 21
According to David Benyon, the Internet also changes the concept of human reality. Humans can be seen not only physically but also digitally; they can situate themselves in both the digital world and the physical world—they have a “blended presence.” 22 A person can, without making any physical movement, journey into a digital dimension beyond the limits of space and time. IoT produces a virtual space in a physical space. Humans exist in those two spaces at the same time.
Church digitalization
The church cannot escape the impact of IoT. Now, in this era of Society 5.0, virtual space has become a defining characteristic; it has brought about changes in human spirituality that have introduced new forms into the pattern of traditional religion. Through digitalization, people—anyone whatsoever, wherever, and whenever he or she wishes—can exercise his or her spiritual activity directly by using the Internet. As a result, the essence of the church and true Christianity is unchanged, no matter what forms are used to express it. In IoT the church conducts its mission by taking advantage of digital media. Stefan Gelfgren has pointed out that the use of media is nothing new for Christianity or other religions. 23 The printing press has served the goals of evangelism through the distribution of gospel tracts. Newspapers have been the means of bringing gospel messages to society. For several decades in the twentieth century, radio was the most effective tool of evangelism. 24 Nowadays, in this era of digitalization, television and all Internet media and digital technology have become the options that reach the most people with the gospel message.
Jun’s research concluded that the church of the future will be marked by its online-based virtual ministry and its use of digitalization. 25 Susanto Dwiraharjo agrees, noting that the Internet is involved not only in the overall institutional form of the church but also in the practice of specific rites and sacraments. 26 Furthermore, in the era of Society 5.0, denominational differences and divisions will disappear, with the church becoming more open-access and interdenominational. We can say that the church in contemporary society is less and less defined by specific forms, spaces, and times. It is primarily a digital church, a new “ecclesia” in a new era. Today is the future, and a majority of churches in the world are accepting the complications of defining themselves as digital.
This development has led to two major changes. First, the church in the era of IoT is no longer centralized in physical buildings. A physical presence is no longer necessary for church activities, for the church’s existence now is defined in terms of virtual presence. That is, a person who conducts a spiritual activity online can be defined as present in the church.
The second change follows from the first: digital communication has replaced direct physical communication and relationships. This change involves the form of all church procedures, rituals, and rites. In the previous model, the church’s traditional spiritual activities were practiced onsite, involving direct interaction between church ministers and congregations. In today’s church, these same activities appear on a digital screen, with the content presented the same as content appears on digital channels such as YouTube, live streaming videos, and various other digital forms. Direct interaction has become digital interaction. This second change explains the change in the meaning of Christian fellowship, which used to occur interactively—face to face and involving physical touch. Instead, it has become a digital fellowship between humans and the screen of a computer or smartphone. The direct presence has changed into the symbols of faces, cartoons, photos, or avatars. 27 In this case, all-digital applications function as a bridge connecting individuals and congregations.
Redefinition of koinonia
Koinonia means fellowship or communion. We could say that this word defines the essence of the church, because Christian fellowship or communion has the two-sided emphasis of having communion with God and communion with fellow humans. According to Dennis McCallum, koinonia represents the communion built among Christians when they gather to exchange Christian life stories through loving service. 28 We see this fellowship more or less deeply in church practice, even in the routine services every Sunday or on other days, although then the actual fellowship may be quite shallow.
In IoT and online churches, however, the understanding of koinonia needs rethinking, for the gathering and conduct of a spiritual gathering have changed in form. Now we need to speak of church communion as digital koinonia. According to Patrick, IoT leads to the establishment of the digital religious community. The main characteristic of this community is to build a virtual network and to connect digitally. 29 The communities present themselves in virtual space, register the membership online, follow the religious activities through various online forums, and build communion online through various platforms, even though they never actually meet in person or physically. According to Heidi Campbell and Alessandra Vitullo, these activities occur in the networking-based community, where “complex interaction and negotiation” take place between individuals and the community and between the new and old authority sources, and where personal identity is strengthened in the public space. 30 As a result, Christians in the digital religious community effectively integrate the offline and online systems. Similarly, this community believes in offline communion but practices it online.
In the perspective of IoT, the shift in the meaning of koinonia can be understood as a consequence of the digital-based religious community. Even though it is conducted online, the fellowship is considered as though all members involved in that digital communion were present physically. This situation can be accepted as a theological truth. Sinclair Fergusson et al. stated that defining koinonia as a physical meeting has limited the mystery of the church to the unity of Christ’s body present on earth. 31 According to them, koinonia must be understood as having a collective mind and perspective that are is not limited to a merely physical unity. Such communion is built and develops in the individuals participating in the same community and reality. The digital world is a new reality. Whoever is in that reality in that world becomes part of a koinonia.
Conclusion
In the era of IoT, the church is adapting to the change of the era. The church no longer appears in its traditional form because it has embraced media technology. It has changed by digitalizing its services and rites. The research concludes that this adaptation has occurred only in the form, not the essence, of how the church presents itself in society. Indeed, the church has experienced many adaptations since its earliest form in first-century Jerusalem, since it soon after became an organization in Antioch, and since various denominations emerged after the era of the Reformation—indeed, until the present, when it has entered the digital era. No doubt the form of the church will continue adapting throughout its future. All these changes are linear adaptive steps enabling the church to function as salt and light in every context. Whatever changes occur, however, the church remains essentially the same: the body of Christ in the world, which will continue sanctifying itself until Christ’s second coming. In other words, even though the church uses various forms of technology and various models of digital service, the new patterns in the implementation of sacramental activities, rites, and rituals, as well as in koinonia, do not alter the true essence of the church’s calling to spread the message of the gospel worldwide. 32
Footnotes
Notes
Author biography