Over the past year or so I have been increasingly intrigued with TED, a non-profit organization that since 1983 has held conferences featuring some of the world's most eminent speakers. Today a number of spin-off conferences take place around the world on TED's foci: technology, entertainment, and design. TED has become so renowned that thousands of people pay six thousand dollars to attend these events to hear a marathon of 18-minute talks that are also posted for free viewing on the Internet, and whose speakers are not paid. So influential is TED that it has been called "the new Harvard".
TED is not a Christian organization. While there are many incredible presentations, there are some that certainly do not jive with a Christian worldview. Nevertheless, the success of TED has many lessons for us in the church.
TED's viral popularity indicates the shifting paradigm of how significant ideas are presented and discussed today. The implications for both events and education are profound. As we in the Church of God struggle to find meaningful ways to hold events such as the North American Convention and campmeetings, there are many transferable principles that we can adopt that could enable us to communicate more meaningfully within today's culture. Borrowing from our culture shouldn't be too big of a stretch for us since even our own movement readily adapted forms from the 19th century for the sake of the Gospel.
TED may be a good place to begin exploring new possibilities.
TED is not a Christian organization. While there are many incredible presentations, there are some that certainly do not jive with a Christian worldview. Nevertheless, the success of TED has many lessons for us in the church.
TED's viral popularity indicates the shifting paradigm of how significant ideas are presented and discussed today. The implications for both events and education are profound. As we in the Church of God struggle to find meaningful ways to hold events such as the North American Convention and campmeetings, there are many transferable principles that we can adopt that could enable us to communicate more meaningfully within today's culture. Borrowing from our culture shouldn't be too big of a stretch for us since even our own movement readily adapted forms from the 19th century for the sake of the Gospel.
TED may be a good place to begin exploring new possibilities.
3 comments:
I love TED talks! I watch them on my phone now! Look up Malcolm Gladwell on spaghetti sauce!
I agree - I think the evening NAC messages should be limited to 18 minutes ( TED Style) and have more messages each night. There could be worship - message - worship message, etc. Limiting the time forces the speaker to be more concise. If you watch some of the TED presentations you find that you do not loose the passion or power in the message at all. But it is very different from a 45 minute sermon.
Charlie Howell
I've never heard of TED talks, but I like Charlie Howell's suggestion that NAC messages be limited to 18 minutes. I like it, but I'm sorry to tell you brother, it will never happen. :)
Post a Comment