Flash Mob Evangelism

A friend sent me this video of 'flash mob' that recently happened at Newburyport, MA. A large group of mostly women danced to Lady Gaga's "Born This Way".

At the end of the very enthusiastic performance, many of the folks who were dancing took off their zippered hoodies to reveal T-shirts advertizing a local dance company.

It looked like great fun. And, it got a little advertizing for a local community dance troop.

Granted, Newburyport is a wonderful, funky, seaport kinda town, but if a 'flash mob' can happen there it can happen anywhere.

Which got me to thinking.

According to Wiki, a 'flash mob' is . . .

. . . a group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, perform an unusual and sometimes seemingly pointless act for a brief time, then disperse, often for the purposes of entertainment and/or satire.Flash mobs are organized via telecommunications, social media, or viral emails. The term, coined in 2003, is generally not applied to events and performances organized for the purposes of politics (such as protests), commercial advertisement, publicity stunts that involve public relation firms, or paid professionals.

I suspect that YouTube is a big part of what has made these sorts of things very popular.

So, here's my thought: What if a church group organized a 'flash mob'?

No, really. Think of it.

One possible version would be to have several choirs combine to create a 'flash mob' at a local shopping mall. They could perform a wonderful cantata or, perhaps, a spirited version of Amazing Grace. Lots of harmony. Rich, full sounds.

I love this 'flash mob' of the Alleluia Chorus at a Food Court.

Or, it could just be people dancing to recorded music. I love this flash mob from "The Sound of Music" at Central Station Antwerp (Belgium)

Another version would be to have a youth group - or combined youth groups - dance to, say, the Monkees "I'm A Believer". Or, REM's "Losing My Religion". Or, Kanye West's, "Jesus Walks".

The practices could be great fun - especially in the summer - and give these kids a fun way to do evangelism. Sort of like "Glee" for Church Youth Groups.

Here's the evangelism part: At the end of the 'flash mob', everyone takes off their hoodies to display their T-shirts that say on the front, "St. Swithins Episcopal Church" (or, whatever) and on the back, "The Episcopal Church Welcomes You."

I think it could be great fun, and it just might wake up a few souls to say to each other, "Hey, let's go check out St. Swithin's one day."

Or, maybe, just maybe, the next time the sky falls, they'll remember that St. Swithins was out there, in the community, surprising people with joy and creativity.

Of course, once you get them into church, you'll have to have something to keep them there, but that's a topic for another discussion on another day.

It seems a better idea to me than most curricula I've read for most "Vacation Bible Schools" which seemed designed for the pre-K group. This one could be inter-generational and lots of fun.

A 'flash mob' for Jesus.

I think He'd like it, don't you?