I attended Sunday's worship on Zoom. I was sitting in the parking spaces closest to the Brunswick library where I could get on their wifi and I watched many folks walk into the UU church across the street. Why wasn't I joining their worship, I asked myself. Might be interesting, after all.
But my goal was to know what attending Portland's zoom worship felt like. I am newly on Ministry and Council and wanted to know how Zoom felt from the other side of the screen.
1. It is a pleasure to see the worshipping body as a fly on the wall. I have never seen the worship room from this vantage point, and the sight of all the Friends gathered and sitting in silence was heart-warming. I believe in the power of visuals and this image of the gathered body emphasized for me the importance of our collective spiritual practice. I didn't feel as though I were a part of that body, but it was affirming to see it anyway.
The other heart-warming visual was at the rise of meeting when everyone shook hands. Watching folks turn to their neighbors and greet one another after the stillness of worship was beautiful.
2. I can't imagine that the zoom experience would be very satisfying if I didn't know the people in the room. One reason these visuals and the sounds of Meeting were enjoyable was that I recognized people and anticipated having a good deal of in-person fellowship with them very soon. To have Zoom as an option does feel important but it by no means diminishes the centrality of in-person worship.
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