ihad. Al-Qaeda. Tora Bora. Taliban. Ground Zero. Asymmetric threats. Homeland security. High alert.

There's no doubt that much has changed since September 11-even our vocabulary. From personal attitudes to national priorities, all have been deeply affected by that fateful day.

But as scores of journalists have analyzed the more visible changes, I'm also moved by a not-so-obvious shift in the human fabric. The cataclysmic attacks that rocked the world have also spurred an unprecedented surge in cybertraffic as millions of Internet surfers pursued religious issues and concerns.¹

A Pew Research Center report shows that after September 11 many internet surfers "sent and received prayer requests, sought information on Islam, and made donations.²

Officials at Christianity Today magazine said their web site traffic increased 23 percent and their audience increased 38 percent. The Adventist Review web site (archives.adventistreview.org), traffic increased nearly 50 percent.

The Pew study shows that before the terrorist attacks, 28 million Americans, or 25 percent of Internet surfers, used the net to seek spiritual information (up from 21 percent in 2000). And about 3 million seek spiritual materials every day (up from 2 million the previous year).³

According to the report, the number of surfers seeking religious information exceeds those trading stock, gambling, or using dating services online.⁴

These religion surfers displayed a strong commitment to their faith and valued religious activities. Many of those surveyed viewed the online activities not as a substitute for worship but as a complement to their spiritual life.⁵

The upsurge in Internet usage for religious purposes, particularly after September 11, comes on the heels of a rapidly growing Internet audience in general. According to a report released February 5 by the United States Commerce Department, 143 million Americans (54 percent of all Americans) used the Internet in September 2001. The report also notes that more than 2 million persons per month go online for the first time.⁶

Implications for the Church
With a rapidly growing number of people accessing religious information online, it's time for the Adventist Church to become more intentional about the use of the Internet. It is true that many church entities are using the 'net. Thousands of local churches, health and educational institutions, and administrative offices have an online presence.

But while the amount of online resources is impressive, there are still many gaps that should be filled. For example, at the General Conference some departments offer a wide array of materials, while others offer little or nothing online. Some ministries have developed sophisticated online shopping malls, while other agencies offer materials free. Some departments continuously update their material, while other departments' offerings are stagnant.

I realize that budget and staffing constraints certainly play a major role in what ministries can provide. However, church leaders should be looking at ways to provide, where feasible, all of its essential core materials online. And in cases in which costs must be passed on, it would be great to access the material immediately, through download, instead of waiting for a snail-mail delivery.

Such an initiative requires hard work. It will take an enormous amount of cooperation between departments and administrative units and an enormous amount of education to orient church members. However, as Internet access continues growing in the years ahead, such a long-term strategy will prove essential for ministry in the twenty-first century.

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¹ Elena Larson, CyberFaith: How Americans Pursue Religion Online, a report from the Pew Internet and American Life Project, p. 2.
² Ibid., p. 14.
³ Ibid., p 2.
⁴ Ibid.
⁵ Ibid., p. 3.
⁶ A Nation Online: How Americans Are Expanding Their Use of the Internet, a report from the U.S. Department of Congress National Telecommunication and Information Administration.

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Carlos Medley is the news and online editor of the Adventist Review.