On simplicity

A nice reminder that perhaps you don’t need to pad your product or service with every feature imaginable.

This is how I think church services should be approached too. Get rid of the clutter and noise (like announcements) and just do the essentials.

From stuffthathappens.

Comments

Tim says:

But if we lose the announcements we'd miss out on heaps of good stuff- e.g. we saw person x+y consummate their marriage on Saturday :) hours of comedic gold. Back in PNG the village announcements happened at church so they'd put them last so that people would stay for the sermon.

Leah says:

Community and fellowship is an essential of church, and it could be argued that announcements are helpful for community and fellowship.

Nathan says:

Can't we trust people to read the notices?

Kutz says:

Sure, but isn't there something far more personal about being spoken to and about personally?

Why don't you just print out the sermon and get people to sit there and read it? :P

Now, as for notices done badly and chosen poorly, don't get me started or this will be a long set of comments. (Actually, that's a lie. It'll be a very short, single comment with a few expletives.)

I think 'notices' is an average label. I far prefer 'family news'. (as long as people get that it's the family of God you mean) And I'd prefer it to centre around gospel news as much as possible. As little 'admin' as you can.

Kutz says:

lol.

I found it amusing that in a post about getting rid of annoying admin I got this message after commenting: Your comment must be approved by the site admins before it will appear publicly.

Leah says:

Nope.

Andrew says:

I agree. Church family announcements are a form of worship.

st_eutychus says:

I've been slack on my replying to comments…

"Church family announcements are a form of worship."

Not as defined by the Presbyterian Church (or the Westminster Confession of Faith, or the Bible)…

Andrew says:

1 Cor 14:26 – Do church notices build up the body of Christ? They should.
John 13:34-35 – Are church notices a form of loving eachother? They should be, which is a testimony to the love of Christ.
Romans 12:1-8 – Are the notices a form of serving one another? They should be, which is a form of spiritual worship.

So I don't think the question is actually "are notices a form of worship" but "is the way we do notices building up the body of Christ".

Andrew says:

btw.. I think we need a Prooftexting Themesong like on Saturday night TV for a new segment!

Tim says:

after the meeting last night- NO- we can't even trust people read the powerpoint we are reading out loud

Kutz says:

I was dirty that no-one commented on my dad's comment on his facebook status on simplicity. I thought it was hilarious!

Nathan says:

Your dad’s comment? Funny, my dad had a status about simplicity too…

Thanks brother Pete.

I did chuckle out loud at the Occam’s Razor reference.

Kutz says:

Uh, yeah.

Have YOU ever seen my dad and your dad in the same room at the same time?

*cue X-Files music*