Imagine a place where young and old, ordained and lay, all faiths and none can come together and debate the news of the day in a friendly, anonymous setting; where issues such as sex education, climate change and the effectiveness of Fair Trade can be discussed from different perspectives, and questions and queries on these ‘hot topics’ raised and addressed by the community.

Thanks to the ever-expanding accessibility of the internet, such a place exists and can be found at the click of a mouse at www.theinterface.org.uk

The Interface is a Methodist-run website, based at Methodist Church House in London, which explores contemporary issues and news stories from a faith based perspective. Hot topics in areas such as science, the arts, entertainment, history, politics and religion are addressed by voluntary contributors and then commented upon by hundreds of readers.

The site’s contributors are experts or have a particular interest in a variety of fields: from medical ethics to astrophysics to horseracing. When their ‘specialist subject’ becomes topical or features in the news, they submit a short article, which is edited and published on Interface. Readers can then comment on the piece with the aim of stimulating lively debate on the sometimes, quite controversial issues raised.

A recent topic, which has caused a stir among Interface users, is the debate surrounding gay adoption and church adoption agencies. A 300-word article has, to date, generated over 40 comments in response. Within the subsequent discussion, all manner of issues have been brought to the table, including: marriage, parenthood, IVF, celebrity adoption, Biblical law, the Derby Resolutions on human sexuality, Levitical law, the nature of sin, interpretation of Paul, maintaining faith alongside government legislation, art, martyrdom, truth, evangelical conservative preaching, the Screwtape Letters and triumphalism!

To complement the articles we have regularly changing reader polls, upon which any visitor to the site can vote. Without typing a word you can have your say on whether the internet is making gambling too accessible, whether Britain should apologise for its role in the slave trade or whether global warming is a man-made phenomenon or just part of the earth’s natural cycle. Visitors are immediately able to view the results of the current question and browse through an archive of previous polls and their conclusions.

Interface is not only designed for personal use, but is also a great resource for ministers, local preachers and worship leaders looking for inspiration for services with a link to contemporary culture.

Delivering a sermon relevant to the everyday lives of church members is a challenge faced by many so a place where worshippers can express their thoughts on contemporary issues is a great tool in keeping the message alive during the rest of the week.

One of the greatest advantages of Interface is its regular article turnover and consistent relevance to current events. With this in mind, the site is a great resource when looking for foundation material for evening services, subjects for Christian debate or simply starting a topical conversation within church groups or among friends.
The website is a particularly successful, innovative way to reach young adults inside and outside of the church. It is a new means of engaging the ‘computer generation’ more directly and more relevantly than many other forms of Christian dialogue. That’s not to say today’s ‘silver surfers’ aren’t welcome to the forum: users of all ages, denominations and life-experiences are encouraged to sign up and join the debate.

Logging on and signing up is a very easy process. All you need to do is go to www.theinterface.org.uk, click on ‘create new account’, enter your email address and a username of your choice and a password will be sent to you. Many users choose to post comments under their real names, whilst others use pseudonyms.

The website is closely administered and monitored from Methodist Church House. It is a friendly space where differing viewpoints from people of all faiths and none can be openly discussed and so respect of other users’ backgrounds, interests and opinions is of the utmost importance. A full list of rules is available, but so far, there hasn’t been any need to edit, censor or ban anyone from the site!

Web users can interact with the Interface forum in any number of ways. If, before registering with us you simply wish to browse through the site, just go to www.theinterface.org.uk and leaf through the articles, polls and comments.

If you then wish to comment upon an article yourself there are two options: either register as a user, which will enable you to post and view your comments straightaway, or post anonymously. Using the site without registering, however, may mean your comment takes a few days to be visible as all anonymous comments are screened before publishing.

Many users sign up to the Interface weekly email, which sends news of exciting fresh articles and polls straight to your email account. If you wish to sign up, contact details are available at the end of this article. Another option is to subscribe to a specific article, or any one, or all, of the subject branches: choose from Arts and Entertainment, Environment, Science and Medicine, Politics, Religion or Social Issues. This means that any time a new article is published under that heading, an email will be sent to the user letting them know of the changes.

Although Interface is run from Methodist Church House we rely entirely on volunteers from both inside and outside of the church to write articles and provide material for debate. If you find the website interesting and would like to contribute a small, topical piece (anywhere from 300 to 500 words) then please get in touch to discuss your ideas.  Even if you don’t have any ideas right now, but would like to be our ‘contact’ for your own specialist subject, then again, please drop me a line at the address provided at the end of this article.
The Interface website is a medium through which we are aiming to combat the misconception perpetuated by the media that Christians are unwilling to address contemporary, everyday and sometimes controversial issues.

Through regular and widespread use of this live and friendly forum, where church members and non-church members alike are encouraged to ‘pen’ their views, we at last have a limitless vehicle to debate how faith could be, or perhaps should be, affecting our social responsibilities in the 21st century.

If you would like to contact the editor of Interface, please drop me an email at pollarda@
methodistchurch.org.uk

Alternatively, give me a call between 9am and 5pm on 020 7467 5195.  An answerphone will pick up your message at all other times.

Alison Pollard is a Web Writer and Researcher at Methodist Church House