KAPA‘A— Conducting a Sunday sermon in front of a physical congregation was business as usual for pastors like Kaua‘i Christian Fellowship Pastor Rick Bundschuh in the pre-COVID-19 world, but in an era of pandemic, things are changing.
Bundschuh and his staff, equipped with some of the latest technology, now broadcasts their message in front of a green screen in a studio.
Collaborating with their full-time church videographer, they have been doing their best to make Easter Sunday memorable. With his congragation following stay-at-home orders, Bundschuh, like many other faith leaders, will be broadcasting his Easter sermon online.
“It’s different because a live audience was a whole different kind of experience, and the dynamic for the speaker creating content online is a different animal completely,” Bundschuh said. “It’s made us have to think of more compelling and faster-paced touchstones so we can connect with all ages as much as possible.”
The church has developed some auxiliary pieces that children can download on the church’s website, including puzzles, games and coloring things that are congruent with today’s theme.
Using their cell phones and Facebook, they will have a virtual scavenger hunt for kids with a list of items on the screen that allows kids to gather materials and send in a photo to the church of their Easter basket and what they find.
“This situation is causing us to be imaginative and creative,” Bundschuh said. “We are using a wide variety of songs and short messages. We have to keep everything oriented to the kids with some cool videos and stuff that is quick-paced and with as much impact as you can get through technology.”
Kaua‘i Bible Church Pastor Aaron Chidester is entering his fourth Sunday of broadcasting his sermon.
Utilizing the digital platform Zoom, the church is hosting their home group, Bible studies and prayer meetings, and conducting normal church activities.
“This is a way to maintain social distancing, interact with people face-to-face and allow the kids to go through the resurrection stories with their family,” Chidester said. “We’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback, and our message is powerful. It has stirred people to make changes, and provides hope and encouragement.”
In celebration of Easter, Kaua‘i Bible Church is creating and delivering Easter baskets for the kids that are filled with candy, and inserting trinkets that represent the story of the resurrection. The church is leaving them on the front doorsteps. The church also has interactive projects on tap for the children in their congregation for the holiday.
Senior Pastor at New Hope Kaua‘i Matt Higa in Kapa‘a found the transition to online sermon delivery difficult at first.
Utilizing visual cues during his sermon, Higa now is broadcasting out of his church home office in Kapa‘a.
“At first, it was difficult because of the lack of interaction,” Higa admitted. “We usually get feedback, or you can see facial expressions (in the audience). You look at the body language of the people to see if your message is impacting them. When there is no audience, you assume your message was OK.”
On a typical Easter Sunday, Higa’s church has an Easter egg hunt inside the Kaua‘i War Memorial Convention Hall in Lihu‘e with prizes and candy inside the eggs, and also a church concert. This year, on the church’s website, they are offering virtual video games for the children instead.
Sermons from the comfort of home
Higa and many of the island pastors have noticed a trend while delivering their sermons in the virtual world.
Their audience has expanded significantly.
“I think it’s two-fold because of the situation that we are in, people have to stay at home, and it’s made it easier to attend church services,” Higa said. “The millennials are savvy in technology and social media. Going to church in their pajamas with a cup of coffee, texting one another with their iPhone, using their laptops and chatting is right up their alley, in my opinion.”
Bundschuh’s church, who has broadcast the last couple of years digitally, also has seen this boom in popularity of attending church digitally.
“A couple of issues have driven up (digital) attendance,” Bundschuh said. “They are longing for some connection with people that they are familiar with, and other people have been curious about what we do at church. This allows them easy access to checking us out since they are on board anyhow.”
For some, the physical element of going into a church can be intimidating.
“It makes church easily accessible for people that don’t have a background in church, or aren’t familiar to the church,” Chidester said. “Walking into a church can be threatening, and it is much easier to be able to access the church from your living room.”
•••
Jason Blasco, sports reporter, can be reached at 245-0437 or jblasco@thegardenisland.com.
If you find walking into the church of your chosen faith “threatening,” then it’s time to find a new religion.