The Phonebook is Obsolete
This week we received a phone book at our home. It went almost directly from the front door to recycling. I have not used a phone book for over a year and am not sure if I will use one again. I have found the internet to be faster and more helpful. My children (maybe one day, not right now) may never know about the difference between the white pages and the yellow pages.
This reminded me of the card catalog at the library. I remember learning how to use the card catalog in elementary school - this is a practice that is already far gone. In both of these cases the need remains - people still need to find phone numbers and business names. People still need to be able to find text that they desire - written or electronic.
I think that this is like our faith. There is still a need for the sharing of good news of Jesus Christ. We are still called to move toward perfect love of God and neighbor. But what that looks like today may be different than it looked 50, 25, 5 and even 2 years ago.
What current practices of congregations do you think are obsolete?
What practices have you seen that continue to produce fruit?
What new practices of faith have you discovered?