Greetings from the Anglican Cathedral in Second Life

I am really excited about having the opportunity to participate in this symposium. I've been following it today from the US (since 4am local time!). The video stream has been wonderful, and I love the Twitter interface that enhances the interactive nature of things.

I'm Cady Enoch (SL name), chair of the Anglican Cathedral in Second Life Leadership Team. I'm the person that Mark Brown referred to in his talk this morning. The person he has never "met." Which seems an odd thing to say, since we have been working together so closely for the past two years. I feel that I know him as well or better than many people that I interact with face to face. The same is true for many others that I have come to know at the SL Cathedral. In one of the morning breakout sessions, the question was asked, "why [do] people seek community online rather than those around them?" I assure you this is not an either/or proposition. My online life allows me to broaden the range of people that I have the opportunity to meet. I have had the opportunity to meet people from a wide range of geographical, cultural, and yes, political backgrounds different from my own, and has enhanced my understanding of them. I can think of no better way for Christians to build bridges with one another than to take the opportunity to form relationships in community with them.

I encourage the symposium participants (and anyone else with an interest) to attend the Second Life service this evening, and to visit our blog at http://slangcath.wordpress.com to learn about us. We would love to meet you!

Cady