#CofECamp

OK. I’m going to ask you to humour me for a moment. Because I’m really not sure what I’m talking about, yet.

I work for Worcester Cathedral, and part of my remit is to promote the Cathedral through social media. Which started me thinking – what should a Cathedral say on Twitter? What can we do (and not do) on Facebook? Is there a point in us using Pinterest, or Google Plus communities? Are there social media channels that I don’t even know about yet, which could be perfect for us? Are we ready to join the cacophony of voices on social media on equal terms, or do we need to pause and think for a moment about what churches want from their presence in this strange and sometimes harsh world?

I know that there are lots of people out there who are wrestling with the same issues. Maybe they’re ploughing a heroic lone furrow in their Chapter or Diocesan office. Maybe they’re facing suspicion, or even active opposition, because they’re advocating something as emphemeral and seemingly frivolous as Twitter. Maybe they’re struggling to find a good justification for the importance of social media in the daily life of their church (or Church).

So, shamelessly borrowing an idea from local government, I thought – maybe we should have a barcamp? Somewhere we could come together, share, discuss, innovate, cogitate and internally digest? Where people could talk about anything and everything they wanted, in the company of other people who are thinking about the same sorts of things?

I freely admit – I haven’t a clue whether this is going to strike a chord with anyone but me. But if you think this is a good idea, or an awful idea, please post below and tell me why. Then I can start to think about stuff like where we’d have it, how many people to invite, what sort of cakes we should have.

So – am I mad? Or have I hit on something? Click “leave a comment” at the top of this post and let me know.