Pastoral Internet Regulation & Control

[Minister_WD]

I recently heard of a pastor who has an Internet safety person on their church staff. All church members are required to have filter software installed on their computers, which logs their online activity. It is mandatory that church members email reports of their online activity to the Internet safety staff member, who then reviews the reports. If he finds anything questionable, he notifies the pastor who then addresses the person in question.



I understand the reasons for having an Internet accountability partner, but is having a dedicated staff member really necessary? Would you sit under a pastor who had this type of accountability system in place? In my opinion, having an Internet accountability partner should be a decision a person should make on their own, not dictated by their pastor.

[Jermyn Davidson]

maybe this guy pastor's a small congregation making this at least feasible.

[nwlife]

It gives the pastor too much control in their lives, now there are some who in counceling it wouldn't be a bad idea to do a situation similar to this because of the particular need for counceling ...But for most normal people, no way.

[Brad Murphy]

I would be willing to do this if they would also take on this responsibility in other areas as well... if I go to the library, I expect them to read every single book in advance of each visit, and remove any questionable books from the shelves, etc. Or I guess, they could just have the librarian send over a list of books you have checked out (hmmm, reminds me of something...)

[Parkbench]

A requirement for church members such as this would have to be explained repeatedly, handed in written form to newbies, and discussed often. I can't imagine having to hear this for the first time or have to read it in the church rules/guidelines for members.

Maybe the pastor should be prayed up enough to discern which members are sinning online and call them in for questioning. If a pastor needs a hacker or internet security policing to herd his sheep then he might need to take a refresher course in pastoral care.

I've only known two pastors who beat their sheep this hard. Most pastors would never consider such a requirement.

[Kings Kid]

Too much control. My question is if everyone in the church has to be accountable to someone on there internet use.Who is the pastor accountable to for his use of the internet.

[Cindy]

I think if a pastor is doing this he has a bigger problem than worrying about the internet use of his congregation.

[revrandy]

I would be worried if the Internet Officer was named Festus...

[Cindy]

Originally Posted by revrandy

I would be worried if the Internet Officer was named Festus...

Or Bubba.

[Rico]

Y'all don't want to know what I think.