HOUSTON -- The United Methodist Church (UMC) is encouraging its churches, clergy and members to make the Internet its parish. UMC's Texas Annual Conference has launched UMCMail, a national Internet Service Provider that offers filtered Internet access to those associated with the denomination.
Subscribers will receive three e-mail accounts, personal Web space and content-filtering technology, according to the United Methodist News Service (UMNS). The service costs $13.95 a month plus a one-time $10 set-up fee. Subscriptions are available online.
"With UMCMail, we are stating ‘the Internet is our parish,'" said David W. McKay, who helped develop the service. McKay is the conference's communications director.
"Our goal is to empower annual conferences to communicate effectively the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the digital age," McKay said.
Revenue from UMCMail will be shared with annual conferences that agree to use the money for Web-based ministries, conference technological needs, or technology grants to churches and ministries, according to the UMNS.
