This post is a continuation of a post I wrote last year where I discussed my research on innovation within the church, and the disruptive potential of the Internet.  In this post I hope to expand on those ideas.

In the previous post I addressed the use of Clayton Christensen’s theory of disruptive verses sustainable innovation.  What I have learned this year is that the impact of the internet on the Church is one of extreme complexity, intersecting the organizational church and the members on multiple levels.  While Dr. Christensen’s theories are useful, the powerful application of his theory comes from historical analysis of business innovation.  The compositions of religious organizations are similar to corporations, but also encompass unique levels of nuance and complexity.

In addition to Clayton Christensen’s theories I have integrated a theory from a Communications professor, Heidi Campbell.  Her theory helps predict how religious communities will respond to new media, through a careful historical analysis of how the community has reacted to previous innovations.  While history cannot predict the future, it can provide a more accurate understanding of the varying processes within each religious community.  It can show the evolution of policy and practices that have shaped and been shaped by previous innovations. Creating an individualized framework for discussing the processes of negotiating periods of disruption, through the use of primary and secondary sources, from inside the community, and pressure placed on the organization from the outside.

When I first began to use the narrative approach I though it would be quite straightforward, famous last words, but I have been surprised at the depth of information available. The narrative approach forced me to move beyond deterministic and simplistic conceptualization of the impact of the internet and new media will have on the church.

Many theories and methodologies that attempt to conceptualize the impact of the internet on society, but specifically the discussions concerning the impact of technology and religion are very deterministic and often fall into two camps either utopian or apocalyptic, the middle ground is often unrepresented in the literature itself, while it clearly exists in reality. Very few religious communities reject all technology outright. For example, many Amish communities have cell phones, but they did so through the careful negotiation within their group.

In the process of reading for a narrative perspective and stopping to find data that highlights the complex processes within the LDS Church’s reaction to innovations I have come to appreciate and value the following 4 things.

1- It is vital to have empathy

I often view change very positively, and I am happy to always try something new, but this research has helped me see the other said of the process. I have come to see that many people experience pain, fear, and a loss of safety as they feel their world shift forward without any personal consent.

2- How much we loose when we dumb down our narratives-

I firmly believe that if we took the time to teach how change happens, how we have shifted and progressed in the past we could positively address the fear associated with change. The issue now is that we have all but lost those narratives, for so long the stories have been correlated and sanitized that moving back to a more complex version carries a risk. Members of the church are not trained historians and the community/leaders need to teach these basic life skills that have been lost over the last few decades.

3- Bottom up innovation-

 Correlation has made bottom up innovation almost impossible.  But ‘Almost’ is the key word in that phrase.  Once upon a time there was bottom up innovation in the church, and a lot of it.  I firmly believe that the internet is a tool that is powerful enough to shift the tide.  The structure of lay leadership provides an opportunity for seeping up (this is my new phrase). Think of the internet like a paper towel.  The close knit fibers of the towel wick the water up, even against the pull of gravity.  The internet does something similar it connects people making a web of connections and the platform for bottom up innovation.

 4- The future is not predetermined- EVER-

 I am that really annoying person in my ward who has to make a comment every time technology is brought up and say something to the effect of  “well we really don’t know yet how technology will play out, but…”  Within the analysis of this project I have seen how human choice is powerful and paramount. Too often I think I forget that I do believe in agency, and too often I feel that I give that up to those who ‘know’.  But my research has led my to believe in the potential of human unpredictability. While I made my guess about the potential of the internet in the church no one knows for sure, and if I could predict the future I would play the stock market and not religious organizational theory J

One of my favorite quotes goes something like this- “we must study history, not because we are doomed to repeat it, but because we are destined to create it”

Jessica Finnigan

Jessica is a Master's Student at King's College London, where she studies religion in the contemporary world. She recently completed an advanced Diploma in Religious Studies at the University of Cambridge. She earned a Bachelors from BYU in Marriage, Family, and Human Development. She is married to her best friend, and they have 4 daughters.

All posts by Jessica Finnigan