READING, Pa. – Fifty years ago, this church became a broadcast studio. Trinity Lutheran Church in downtown Reading began sharing its worship on television back in 1976.
“We’re going to highlight everything that’s been produced here over the last 50 years,” said Matthew Mellen, Trinity’s Director of Technology and Communication.
Mellen gave us a tour of the church’s media operation all the way back to where it began: a closet.
“In 1976, this was the control room,” Mellen said. “They would have their director, their switcher, a little bit of sound control.”
Today, the church’s media ministry looks very different, but its purpose is the same.
“Trinity has always been at the forefront of technology,” said Pastor Hans Becklin. “We were the first church in Reading, way back in 1751, to have an organ, which was high-tech at the time. Fast-forwarding into the 20th Century, we were the very first church in all of Pennsylvania to have its services on the radio.”
Today, that ministry has evolved from radio and television to Instagram and TikTok.
“It shows that even though we are 275 years old, we are still a church that’s concerned with meeting people where they are today,” Becklin said. “We’re not just a bunch of old fuddy-duddies meeting in an ancient building doing ancient rituals. We get incredible engagement across TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube.”