Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, January 1, 1995 TAG: 9501130010
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: HOLIDAY
SOURCE: KEN BAKER NEWPORT NEWS DAILY PRESS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
But when two of Taylor's premature grandchildren died at birth in July, Boquist recited a daily prayer, asking God to save the surviving 1-pound triplet, Anna.
``It was touch-and-go for quite a few weeks,'' says Boquist, of Hampton, who is minister of music at Bethel Baptist Church in Yorktown.
Boquist, and several hundred other Baptists who also had never met Taylor, a minister who lives in Louisiana, united in prayer - via computer, that is.
The long-distance prayer gathering was made possible through a computer network linked to the information superhighway.
From the Christian Interactive Network to on-line Torah study to discussion groups for those of Baha'i, agnostic and even atheist persuasion, spiritual dialogue conducted through the tapping of keyboard keys has created a veritable ``cyberfaith.'' The on-line service that enabled Boquist to pray for baby Anna, whom he reports is healthy and has left the hospital, was the SBCNet (Southern Baptist Convention Network).
Taylor requested prayers through a daily ``Anna Update'' on the 2,000-member SBCNet.
Spiritual encouragement poured in, says Boquist.
``That little girl had people all over the country - maybe the world - praying for her who wouldn't have even known about her if it weren't for SBCNet,'' says Boquist. ``It was amazing to see, on the net, how people supported him.''
SBCNet is among the bevy of religious on-line services that have sprouted in recent years.
Congregants of this interdenominational, intercontinental and potentially - intergalactic - house of worship include thousands of computer-literate members of the Hampton Roads religious community.
Area Christians equipped with a computer and modem (a data-transmitting device connected to a telephone line) have embraced the medium, forming virtual churches, Bible study groups, prayer chapels and fellowship groups.
Teresa Jones, 20, of Newport News, started a Christian-oriented bulletin board system (Bbs) in February that operates out of her home.
``I found that most boards were adult-oriented and even pornographic,'' says Jones, whose on-line handle has been ``Maverick'' since she began navigating the Internet eight years ago. ``I'm a Christian and I didn't want that.''
Jones, along with her husband Tony (a.k.a. ``Zealot''), named their Bbs New Hope.
The free service, in which subscribers can access 180 different message areas, has 232 users. Most users are Christian and live in Hampton Roads, she says.
There are many worldwide Jewish computer networks.
Hebrew University in Jerusalem offers the Global Jewish Networking Information System. And the State University of New York dedicates a portion of its Internet access to Jewish topics.
Perhaps the most aggressive Jewish group to embrace cyberspace is the Lubavitch sect, a Hasidic group already well known for its use of satellite television.
Its computer net, Chabad-Lubavitch in Cyberspace, offers Judaism courses, Hasidic stories, religious lessons, and even digitized photographs of its ``rebbe'' or chief rabbi, Menachem Schneerson, who died in June.
Upon entering the Christian Bbs Full Armour of God, the greeting, ``God's Bbs is being loaded,'' flashes across users' computer screens.
More than 500 users belong to Full Armour of God. The service was founded five years ago by Walter Hayden, a member of London Bridge Baptist Church in Virginia Beach.
Users can access 80 message bases, in which they ``talk'' to other users through the system's chat mode.
The message areas include religious-related topics such as home schooling, cults and Bible discussions, as well as general-interest forums such as current events and teen-ager issues.
``It's the type of bulletin board that your 5-year-old can call and you don't have to worry what they will see,'' says Hayden.
Although Full Armour of God's purpose is to promote Christian fellowship, Hayden says about 20 percent of the system's users hold alternative religious beliefs to Christianity.
``My board is open to anyone,'' says Hayden. ``My only restriction is no profanity.'' But the Bbs's unrestricted-access policy has invited some ``troublemakers,'' Hayden says. ``Occasionally, I get people logging on using an inappropriate name,'' he says. ``One guy used the name `Satan.'''
Popular computer information services such as America Online, Compuserve and Prodigy contain religious forums.
Compuserve's Christian Interactive Network (CIN) offers users ``real-time'' discussion groups, Christian writers forums, Bible study groups and a twice-weekly prayer chapel.
When television evangelism gained popularity in the 1970s, many religious observers predicted it would, for many, replace traditional forms of worship.
Although television never initiated such a liturgical revolution, on-line services may have a greater impact on the rituals of American Christianity, says John Minter Jr., of Hampton.
``I don't think TV is worship because it's passive,'' says Minter, who subscribes to the $6 a month CIN. ``But I do think on-line communication could be worship because it's interactive - there are two or more present. That's virtually a worship service.''
by CNB