Through the years, lots of you have shared your book club ideas and experiences on the CLN. You will find these ideas on the CLN by searching “book clubs.” Let’s embrace our current church environments. I recently “attended” the live Baptist Association of Christian Educators annual Zoom conference. Soon, you will find links to some of the sessions on the CLN.
One of the sessions was facilitated by Savannah Kimberlin, a Barna consultant. Her focus was on young adults. One of her points dealt with the reality that “hybrid” will continue for a longtime. That means churches will be doing both in-person and digital. They found that 63 percent are interested in digital formats for spiritual formation and discipleship.
Let’s consider our book club opportunities as spiritual formation and discipleship for our church families and communities. What are you doing now with offering book clubs online?
Replies
I started offering a weekly Book Chat sponsored by the church library via Zoom on Tuesday evenings in May 2020, and in September we cut back to meeting monthly on second Tuesdays. Unlike traditional book clubs where everyone reads the same book and meets to discuss it, in this Book Chat we take turns telling about an inspiring book that we have read. Each session lasts about 45 minutes, and typically three books are presented. Attendance ranges from 3 to 10 persons. I send out a reminder with the Zoom link two days before the meeting and again the morning of the meeting. After the meeting I send out a list of the books that were discussed so those unable to attend can know what others are reading and recommending.
Edie Asbury
I have continued all three of my book clubs throughout the pandemic by utilizing Zoom. It seemed a challenge at first but I soon found it to have its advantages. One of them being I didn't have to go anywhere. (They previously met in three different church libraries) We have pretty much continued with the same partiipation although a couple of people have been uncomfortable with using Zoom. Another advantage, however, is that people who are traveling (or homebound) can join in the discussion. We're starting to go back to face-to-face meetings, but we're still offering the chance for travelers to join by have a laptop open during the discussion. Blessings, Dee Hoff