The Priority of the Church's Ministry During a Pandemic
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Evangelikal: Jurnal Teologi Injili dan Pembinaan Warga Jemaat ISSN 2548-7868 (print), 2548-7558 (online) Availabel at https://journal.sttsimpson.ac.id/index.php/EJTI/ DOI: https://doi.org/10.46445/ejti.v5i2.336 The Priority of the Church’s Ministry during a Pandemic Ardi Sastrohartoyo1*, Rubin Adi Abraham2, Jantje Haans3, Tjahyadi Chandra4 1Indonesian Mission Institute (IMI) Australia 2, 3, 4Sekolah Tinggi Teologi Kharisma Bandung, Indonesia Email: 1*[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] ABSTRACT: The global COVID-19 pandemic has caused churches to change their worship patterns from meeting at church buildings to virtual worship at home to prevent transmission of the virus and comply with the health protocols set by the local governments. This study aims to determine the priority of the pastoral ministry during the COVID-19 pandemic and explore new strategies to be adopted analyze and examine the functions of the church, especially with regards to how the church responds previously during the pandemic and determines the priority of the church's ministry to continue to do the Great Commission and the Great Commandment amid the COVID-19 pandemic. This study uses the descriptive qualitative method by researching relevant literature using Biblical perspective. Based on this study, we recommend that churches to embrace digital online technology for digital evangelism to effectively reach, connect and engage with many people who are more connecting to social media platforms. Online church is an effective tool for evangelism and missiology to extend the reach and enable the spread of the Gospel worldwide in the digital era. Key Words: Worship, Pastoral Ministry, COVID-19 Pandemic, Online Church, Digital Era ABSTRAK: Pandemi global COVID-19 telah menyebabkan gereja-gereja untuk mengubah pola ibadahnya dari yang dilakukan di gedung gereja kepada pola ibadah virtual di rumah, sebagai upaya untuk mencegah transmisi virus dan mengikuti protokol-protokol kesehatan yang telah ditetapkan oleh pemerintah setempat. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisa dan menggali apa yang menjadi fungsi dari gereja, khususnya berkaitan dengan pertanyaan apa yang menjadi sikap gereja sebelumnya ketika diperhadapkan dengan pandemi dan untuk mengetahui akan apa yang menjadi prioritas pelayanan gereja untuk tetap dapat melakukan apa yang menjadi Perintah Utama dan Amanat Agung di masa COVID-19 pandemi. Metode yang digunakan bersifat kualitatif deskriptif melalui penelitian terhadap berbagai literatur yang relevan dengan menggunakan perspektif Alkitab. Berdasarkan penelitian ini, kami merekomendasikan gereja- gereja untuk memanfaatkan teknologi digital untuk dapat menjangkau, terhubung dan terlibat secara efektif dengan banyak orang yang sekarang menggunakan platform media sosial. Gereja online adalah alat yang efektif untuk melakukan pekabaran Injil dan misiologi untuk memperluas jangkauan penyebaran Injil ke seluruh dunia di era digital. Kata Kunci: Ibadah, Pelayanan Gereja, Pandemi COVID-19, Gereja Online, Era Digital Article History: Submitted: 30 Oktober 2020 Revised: 5 Juli 2021 Published: 27 Juli 2021 INTRODUCTION people and caused deaths of over 2.89 million Coronavirus disease (also called Covid-19) is worldwide (World Health Organization, 2021). an infectious disease caused by coronavirus 2 (SARS- As part of the efforts to break the chain of CoV-2) virus strain that was first reported in transmission of the virus, governments throughout December 2019 in Wuhan city, Hubei province, the world, including Indonesia and Australia have China (Wu et al., 2020). It spread to every part of the closed their borders and imposed heavy-handed world within months of its outbreak. As of April lockdown measures by suspending schools and 2021, the virus has infected more than 132 million transport, and forcing the immediate closure of many 164 Volume 5, Nomor 2, Juli 2021 businesses, major public events and religious Statement of the Problem: The Biggest Challenge gatherings at places of worship (Boyd, 2020; for Churches at this Time Hadiwardoyo, 2020; Hall, 2020; Nasution et al., This study explores how pastors perform 2020). Undoubtedly, this pandemic has impacted their pastoral ministry to their church members during religion in various ways including the cancellation of the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown. The purpose of In-person worship services of various faiths, along this paper is to evaluate and gain important new with pilgrimages, ceremonies, and festivals. These insights on the priority of the pastoral ministry during have been replaced with worship at home using the Covid-19 pandemic. supportive Livestream technology (Boyd, 2020; This study explores the effects of the Covid- Conley, 2020). This was and sometimes is not strictly 19 pandemic lockdown of churches, especially followed by some Christian leaders as they believe Indonesian churches in Australia. Covid-19 must not that following the government's lockdown rules is hinder worldwide church to continue preaching the considered a lack of faith (Asa, 2020). This has led to gospel and fulfilling the Great Commission of Christ a rapid spread of the Coronavirus in many places, (Matthew 28) without accidentally spreading the including Georgetown Christ Church in Washington disease in church gatherings. DC, USA (LifeSite, 2020) and Shincheonji Church of This paper is different from the other studies Jesus in South Korea (H. J. Kim et al., 2020). conducted previously: Simanjuntak (2020) and Gatherings at the latter church caused the spread and Tambunan (2020) have researched the relevance of infection of the general population in South Korea (S. worship together in church buildings after the Kim et al., 2020). pandemic ends. Siahaan (2017) has also conducted a Churches worldwide must look for the best study focusing on digitalization issues with online ways to continue church services without facilitating church services, and the importance of actualizing the person-to-person transmission of the disease and gift of the ministry in the digital era. This was then operating within the government guidelines. Most of later developed by Hartono (2018), who emphasized the churches, both in Indonesia and abroad by April the Great Commission of Christ based on Matthew 2020 were not able to hold worship meetings in 28:18 to provide answers to the challenges emerging church buildings. They had to shift their religious in this age of globalization and the advancement of activities from church buildings to live streaming information technology. In contrast to the emphasis technology via radios, televisions, and several online of this previous research, this paper focuses on what platforms available such as Zoom, YouTube or social the priority of church ministries should be during the media. Most of the churches in Melbourne had to global Covid-19 pandemic including in Indonesia and implement their Online services by 15 April 2020 to Australia. New strategies are needed to be adopted by continue their worship at home; this includes church leaders so that social distancing is not Australia for Christ Church Indonesia, which accompanied by spiritual distancing that makes converts into 100% Online for the first time since its members of the congregation further away from God. establishment 14 years ago (Sundjaja 2020). A pastor may be uncomfortable in leading the online worship METHOD and preaching without seeing the congregation in the The descriptive qualitative method (Rahmadi, church buildings (Tirtha, 2020). Members of the 2011) was used in this study by researching relevant congregations may also feel that they miss seeing the literature using Biblical perspective. The problem of presence of other members. Covid-19 was not discussed in a medical framework, except for the existence of a social problem caused by the spread of this deadly virus, since most of the A. Sastrohartoyo et al., The Priority of the Church’s Ministry during a Pandemic 165 people who live in Indonesia and Australia have a Many churches are resistant to change and basic understanding of Covid-19 as an epidemic of a adopt new technologies such as the electronic Bible viral disease that is infectious and has caused deaths in the year 2000 in which was initially rejected by of millions of people worldwide. church members at that time, but now almost all Literature research methodology was used in church members have an electronic Bible on their this study, which aims to gain an indepth under- smartphones (Hutchings, 2015). The General standing of the field of research in question by Treasurer of the Indonesian Bethel Church said that collecting data from books, magazines, articles, even in the development of sophisticated technological dictionaries, word studies, and electronic media. In advancement, digital technology simply cannot order to achieve good results in this research, the replace all of the direct physical relationships of the documentation method was used by collecting valid church fellowships and the holy sacraments that are data related to this journal's research. The main source carried out at church (i.e. such as the blessings of was taken from the Bible because the Bible is a marriage, baptism and praise and worship) simply collection of tested truths. The use of various related because our relationship with God cannot be tools such as notes, books, newspapers, magazines, digitalized (Saragih, 2016). The issue of technological and the Internet is necessary for