What if you are too poor for pop culture? Are you too poor for church culture, too?

Forty-four percent of American adults don't own a smartphone, and 13% don't use the internet. Even for those who have access to the internet, or who have the means to pay for monthly smartphone access, not everyone has the time or inclination to engage in pop culture consumption.*

As much as the internet & social media have changed the face of culture, it has not had the same impact on everyone. As we continue to think about integrating technology into church practice it’d be good to be mindful of who we are excluding. Whether they are excluded from tech-savvy culture by choice or by necessity, a church that privileges technophiles privileges only one segment of the population. 1 Corinthians 1:12-13 bears witness to Christianity’s very human tendency to form exclusionary cliques. It’d be helpful to embrace technology in a way that does not exclude others.

What do you think? What are some best practices that authentically engage new media but don’t put up another barrier between segments of the population?

(*This post was inspired in part by a recent article about being too poor for pop culture. The language is blue, but if that is something you can look past then it is an eye-opening read)