The starting point of church “tech” is your sound system.  No matter what size your church is, it is essential to get the most out of your system to emphasize clarity of spoken word and proper reinforcing of music and song. Whether you’re trying to get the most out of your old sound system or you’re looking at upgrading, join us as we discuss terminology, planning and preparation, basic components, setup, control, and challenges/troubleshooting.

John Bedell has been involved in church tech for decades leading up to the creation of "Niagara Online Worship", a mobile live-streaming project for Niagara Region United Churches in 2012, and creation of the Facebook help forum "Canadian Churches That Live-Stream" during the pandemic. Currently, John is the tech lead at St. John's Stevensville United Church, where Niagara Online Worship is based.

In a mere decade or so, using projection and slides in worship and other gatherings has become the norm for many communities of faith. But with so much flashy software out there, how do we know if our slide design is as effective as possible? Join us for a conversation about how to make your projection as clear and inclusive as possible – whether your worship is in-person or hybrid.

SONJA VAN DE HOEF-FRASER, MMus is a Candidate for Ordination in the UCC, entering her final year of studies at Atlantic School of Theology. Prior to answering the call to ordination, Sonja worked for 20 years as a choral conductor in sacred and secular settings. In her role as a part-time instructor at the Don Wright Faculty of Music, Western University she gained experience using visual technology to aid instruction in choral conducting. Sonja resides in Mitchell, ON with her husband, Rev. Marc Fraser (PCC) and their two sons. Sonja is passionate about continuing to learn and share best practices for using technology in worship.  

The digital world provides many new opportunities to engage with our neighbours “out there”. But how and why we do that are important things to keep in mind as we faithfully engage tech for ministry. Beyond just advertising events, how do we create disciples and live out our faith in the digital space? How do we welcome people who may never set foot in our buildings to our communities of faith? Authors of the book, Following: Embodied Discipleship in a Digital Age, Jason Byassee and Andria Irwin will lead us in a conversation on how to think through these issues theologically, and share their thoughts on the future of tech and ministry.