TruthBook Religious News Blog

By Nathan Black
Christian Post Reporter

Mon, Oct. 08 2007

Another massively popular Halo video game is out, which means another controversial opportunity for churches to outreach to youth.

Already passed $300 million in sales, Halo 3 is being picked up by some churches to draw youth, causing some Christians to shake their heads.

Five years after Halo 2 was released, Halo 3 gives loyal gamers answers to what happens in the end with all those angry aliens and to the game's mysterious, armor-clad protagonist.

Microsoft Corp. announced last week that Halo 3 has become a global phenomenon and the game is one of the most successful entertainment properties in history.

Given that, hundreds churches are utilizing Halo as an effective tool for outreach.

“We play Halo, take a break and have something to eat, and have a lesson,” said Austin Brown, 16, of Sweetwater Baptist Church in Lawrenceville, Ga., explaining that the pastor tried to draw parallels “between God and the devil."

Youth ministries specialist Lane Palmer of the ministry Dare 2 Share says the game speaks to the very real spiritual war going on today.

Dare 2 Share encourages youth to use Halo 3 as conversation starters to witness to their friends.

Studies have shown the negative influence of media, including video games, on young people. A recent Barna Group poll revealed that American children will have seen countless murders among the more than 30,000 acts of violence that they are exposed to through television, movies and video games.

But youth workers say churches need to be up-to-date on the latest cultural trends especially something that young people are inevitably going to participate in.

An Ellison Research study found that churchgoers and pastors are not very familiar with video and computer games. Half of lay people are not informed and more than 70 percent of clergy are disengaged from that area of culture.

"Pastors need to be informed about what’s out there in order to understand how the culture is influencing the people they are trying to reach," said Ellison Research President Ron Sellers.

But how relevant is too relevant especially when it involves killing?

Halo 3, for example, is rated “M” for mature audiences.

Still, Christian gamers online say "it's a way to fellowship."

And others call it a fishing hook.

"Teens are our fish," Gregg Barbour, youth minister of Colorado Community Church in the Englewood area of Denver, told the Times. "So we’ve become creative in baiting our hooks."

Since the Sept. 25 launch of Halo 3, more than 2.7 million people have logged on to Microsoft's online service, Xbox Live, to collectively play 40 million hours of "Halo 3" with other gamers, Microsoft reported.

In the game's first 24 hours on sale in the United States, sales hit $170 million, the company added.

Labels: Barna Group, church, clergy, Halo, Nathan Black, youth