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WORSHIP IN THE CLOUD Worship Services Over the Internet

Jason Rosenberg

As I was finishing up the research for this paper, workmen were scurrying around my synagogue pulling various cables through the walls and ceilings, connecting various parts of the building. As I begin to write this, they are in the sanctuary, testing out various locations for a couple of cameras, and hooking those cameras up to some of those cables which they recently put in place. Why? It goes by various names, but it's usually called webcasting, livestreaming, or just streaming. In short, it's using the Internet to broadcast events, as they happen.

In just the last few years, the technology to allow this kind of broadcasting has become widely available and extremely affordable. Almost all new computers come with the necessary technology built in. In other cases, it would cost well under$100 to add the basic capability 0 a computer. More elaborate, higher quality setups, which would have cost tens of thousands of dollars, not $0 long ago, have now come down in price ito the point where many synagogues can think about installing them. They are installing them, usually for the purpose of live-streaming services. For the first time, many Synagogues are offering their members, or in some cases, anyone who's interested, the ability to observe services, I real time, from another location.

In 2001, the Conservative Movement' examined this issue I a comprehensive responsum. Although our approach will Necessarily be different from theirs, as will our conclusions, much of their thinking is extremely relevant © us. This paper owes a great deal to that responsum.