My experiences at the Christain New Media Conference 2013


I can't believe it was a whole year ago since I was at the Christian New Media Conference in London. It was good to be back for my second year and in a new, much larger venue - this time I had brought a computer-mad friend!

Premier Media did another great job and the organisation of this years conference was excellent! The programme was jam-packed with some top-class speakers including the Bishop of London: Rt Rev Richard Charles, Katherine Welby, Kate Bottley, John Drane, Rachael Barach (General Manager of BibleGateway.com), Richard Littledale, Sheridan Voysey and many more!

For me, this conference continues to increase in its importance as the church rises up to meet the challenge of engaging with our world, speaking the language of our world through the ever growing and changing medium of technology. The very fact that Christians who are skilled in new media technologies get together to share and encourage each other, helping each other to do better, go further and make a bigger impact upon their virtual and real worlds is simply amazing and is increasingly vital if the church is to effectively reach the world beyond its walls.

This year's theme 'Reimagining Church' was challenging. Asking more questions than it answered, but certainly reinvigorating us to continue to click away at our keyboards to bring glory to God.

Highlights

Kate 'The Dancing Vicar' Bottley
The inspirational Kate Bottley, otherwise known as 'The Dancing Vicar' whose appearance in a YouTube wedding clip that went viral, resulting in me seeing her being interviewed on BBC Breakfast one morning, shared her moving and powerful story of what happened - as well as the outright hatred expressed to her by some corners of the 'church'. A point that will always stay with me: 'We are all invited to the wedding feast. It is not ours. We are all guests. It is our job to say 'yes' and to offer a welcome to those who have just arrived' - well worth remembering it is not about us, but all about Jesus!

Some more practical sessions I gained from was one on how to build more effective websites as well as how to blog more successfully. They were packed full of helpful tips that I hope to implement in the near future.

So thank you #cnmac13 for a fantastic conference! See you next year.

  • If you were to go to a conference about Christianity and new media (websites, blogs, social media etc.) what is one topic you would like to be covered?




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  1. Matt Mcc13 February 2014 at 17:53

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