Quick quiz question to begin the day:

Which is greater – the number of people who have visited this blog this year, or the number of people who are present in the Scottish Episcopal Church on a typical (ie the week before Advent when the figures are counted) Sunday?

It is an unfair question in a number of ways because it compares one day with a whole year and doesn’t measure engagement or committment. However it is a question that ought to make us sit up and take notice all the same. The answer is of course that this blog has had considerably more visitors this year than turn up at Episcopal churches on any normal Sunday.

I pose this teaser as a way into saying something about Christmas attendance at St Mary’s. There’s no getting away from the fact that we’ve had a busy Christmas. Numbers were significantly up at all services, the new service we put on for children on Christmas Eve was a runaway success and collections were double (yes, you heard me) what they were last year.

Now, there are some reasons for this. Last year we had a lot of snow, so that makes comparison difficult. (Though Christmas Eve was horribly wild this year too). Then there is the fact that we’ve a new member of staff this year and increasing numbers was the very reason we took him on.

However, one thing niggled away at me through Christmas. How did those coming to St Mary’s know about the services? After all, we changed the timetable quite radically this year – the Carol Service was on a Thursday evening instead of the Sunday before Christmas. How did the people know when to come? The new service for children and accompanying adults was a success and drew in people whom we’d never clapped eyes on. Who were they and why did they come?

There seems to me to be two forces at work. Word of mouth is one. (And one which I don’t underestimate). The influence of the internet is the other. (And most people I know considerably underestimate that).

The truth is, we don’t do much publicity these days that is not on line. We used to advertise in the Herald, but that form of communication was left by the wayside long since.

I was particularly struck this year by people whom I’d not met before saying that they came because they couldn’t find a church to go to near them. These were people from posh South Side (stop sniggering those of you in the West End, I’m being serious), Kelvinside and Anniesland. Particular comment was made about the fact that churches in other parts of the city did not appear to have Christmas services and that there was nothing for children.

I was so surprised about this that I started checking out what other Episcopal churches were up to.

It seems to me that we have a problem. According to the websites of quite a lot of our churches, there was nothing on at Christmas at all. Moreover, the Diocesan Website seemed to give out a message that the diocese was closed.

One of my new year’s resolutions is to help congregations engage online in easier ways. It seems to me that the mission of the church depends on it.

However, I am a lone voice whom no-one takes any notice of. (Well, except the tens of thousands of visitors this site gets).

There is almost no mention of online engagement in either the Provincial or the Diocesan mission planning processes. Nor in most of the mission literature I read.

If that continues to represent the reality in congregations, and they simply don’t engage with the way the world communicates then I draw a rather obvious and bleak conclusion.

And you all know what it is.