For many, the idea of paper bulletins in church is archaic. Might as well get a landline and a beeper to complete the whole set. Yet the mediums we choose can shape our worship in subtle ways. Here are six reasons paper bulletins, while far from essential, are useful in corporate worship.
Greater Focus and Clarity
It’s been well-documented that reading something on a page rather than a screen encourages clarity of thought and greater comprehension.[1] When we hold a book (or bulletin) in our hands, it engages more of the senses and helps us remember what we read or sing. Screens also tend to work against attentiveness in worship.[2] Rather than richly drinking in the theology we’re singing, we’re distracted because we’re waiting for the next slide to change.
Sinclair Ferguson in his introduction to Reformation Worship writes about the effects of singing lyrics on a screen: “The young Christian sees only one verse of the hymn or song on the screen; the flow of the whole is lost; he, or she, does not know whether a psalm, a hymn, or a spiritual song is being sung.”[3]
Reading lyrics on a page helps us grasp what kind of song
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