The City
What is “The City”? It’s a private, social network for members and friends of Oakdale Emory Church. While many features on The City will be familiar to Facebook users, The City was created specifically for congregations—and especially small groups—to share life together (info, activities, prayer requests, needs) throughout the week. The Web address for our community site is http://oeumc.onthecity.org. However, you must first set up an account in order to log in and participate (see details below).
Why is it called The City? When developing the software to help churches facilitate conversation and connection through online community sites, the creators of The City were inspired by this Scripture verse: “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.” Matthew 5:14 (NLT). The City is a virtual “Third Place” for both our congregation and community. Staff have the ability to post announcements about upcoming activities and events on The City Plaza (think of it as our “front porch”), which is accessible to the general public.
What are the guidelines/rules for using The City? When you create an account with The City, you must agree to abide by the Terms of Use. Click here to read the entire document in PDF format. These include—but are not limited to—policies, rights and disclaimers of both The City and the Sponsoring Church (OEUMC) regarding:
· Eligibility, including parental-consent requirement for minors
· Management of access, user information and content
· Privacy, security and safety policies
· Posting appropriate, respectful content (including sensitive information such as prayer requests)
Who can set up an account? You don’t need to be a member of OEUMC to join The City. Once you are in The City, you are welcome to invite family and friends. However, we trust that all participants are genuinely interested in our church’s ministries and acting in good faith as they utilize The City to connect, grow and share with our church family. To be eligible to set up an account on The City, you must (1) be at least 13 years of age, and (2) have parental consent if you are under 18 years of age. OEUMC will implement this policy as follows: We require at least one parent/guardian of youth between the ages of 13-18 to set up their City account first or at the same time as their child, and the parent must be friends in The City with their child under age 18. This will help us maintain integrity and accountability on The City and also provide parents and teens a safe and transparent place to connect online.
How do I get into The City? Access is by e-mail invitation, which can be sent two ways: (1) We've already “populated” The City with 80+ users who are inviting others—so be on the lookout for an e-mail invite to Join OEUMC on The City, or (2) You can generate an e-mail invitation yourself at http://oeumc.onthecity.org/kiosk. Enter User Name: kiosk and Password: acts242. Enter your name and e-mail address. You will then receive an e-mail inviting you to create an account with a user name and password of your choice. You can return to The City anytime via http://oeumc.onthecity.org.
How do I set up or join a small group in The City? Everyone who creates an account automatically becomes part of the large OEUMC group. You can then do a “group search” and if a ministry/small group to which you belong has already set up a “group” on The City, you can send a request to join. If your ministry/small group would like to create a “group” on The City, contact the staff member in charge of your ministry area.
Who watches over The City? In a sense, we all are responsible for ensuring that the conduct and content on The City reflect the values of those seeking to follow Jesus Christ. If something seems inappropriate or you have questions, please contact the leader of your particular group in The City, the staff person in charge of this ministry area, or the Project Manager for OEUMC on The City, Anne Jordan, ajordan@oeumc.org.