A church in Leicester is using video games in their virtual youth group sessions during the coronavirus lockdown as a way to connect with teenagers. "We created a church and then around the church, we actually attributed Bible verses which are like floating text. You can see for example, why we do communion, you can see why we support food banks, and some of the verses that go along with hospitality, and why we do worship, we've also got verses that support that."
St John the Baptist Church said young people in their church already spend time on Minecraft and thought it would be good for them to also play the game from a Christian perspective, premierchristian.news reports.
Minecraft is videogame which is all all about building everything in the world in block form. The church created an online server, which is a multiplayer version of the game, so young people could interact with each other on the game while learning more about their faith. Also, as you walk around the building, you can see Bible verses.
Youth worker Josh Young said the youth have also started to recreate scenes relating to stories in the Bible. For example, they built a boat to represent Peter walking on water.
He added that it’s vital for churches to think outside the box and get creative when it comes to reaching young people during the lockdown. “I think it’s really important to understand where young people are and where they spend a lot of their time,” Young explained.
“We need to adapt and consider ways that we probably haven’t typically thought before, but at the same time remaining true to the principles and values and beliefs that we have.”
“It’s not about compromising what we believe, but it’s about looking for new methods.”
Young said the teens would usually meet in church on Tuesday for youth group and are now meeting on Minecraft. It was originally for the church’s 11 to 17 year-olds, but has now expanded to younger children as they’ve been asking to get involved as well.
