Coronavirus: Leicester church uses Minecraft to teach Bible to teens
17 May 2020
During the lockdown the church turned to Minecraft to teach its children about Christianity.
Leicester's St John the Baptist Church has been recreated on a server to ensure that the youth group has a place to take Bible lessons.
Josh Young, the organizer said that it was an opportunity to meet younger people "whereever they are" and interact with them in a space that is familiar.
They can also use virtual reality to create their own lessons.
Mr Young, for example made an underwater whale to educate them about Jonah's story. He also challenged the teenagers to build boats in order to learn more about Jesus who calmed a storm.
The 27-year old youth worker added, "Having a community of young people is really important and that's what I wanted to continue during the lockdown."
Minecraft servers
"They aren't able to meet up with friends and some are struggling right now. On Minecraft they can chat, meet and play games without physically being present. It's a tool for engagement and building community.
"Young people are online" and the Bible teaches us how to connect with people wherever they are in their community.
"Jesus challenged the boundaries of what was considered normal worship, and he'd be content that the church is moving forward."
Around 20 children aged between 11 and 17, spend two and a half hours on the server every Wednesday.
In that time they're free to explore the world or work on their own interests, but for 30 minutes they're teleported to a communal area to complete a Bible-themed task.
Mr Young stated that they had ensured that the adults were able to prevent bad language, control those who joined and had parental permission for their children to join.
Rosie, 15 years old, is one of the teens who regularly attend. She said, "I love it because it lets me talk to my friends while playing, it's as enjoyable as meeting up for our regular youth club."
"I thought it was great that Josh teleported everyone to one spot. We also had a competition to build a boat from Matthew Chapter 8, when Jesus stopped the storm. My team was the winner because we made lightning storm clouds."
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