One of the aspects of our lives that have been most affected, apart from work and school, is how we come together with our faith communities. One of the ways to fight the spread of the coronavirus is by practicing social distancing and so worship services of all faiths are now highly discouraged and even prohibited. People have had to find ways to communicate and still come together online. Google is sharing some things you can do, with its products of course.
April actually is the month where three of the biggest religions have something to celebrate or observe: Easter, Passover, and Ramadan. People are trying to find various ways to do everything online, from scheduling to announcements to actual faith services. Google offers a lot of tools that people can use for all the different aspects. But the most important thing they want to highlight is to find the correct and accurate information on the different local health and safety guidelines that you need to observe and that is through their COVID-19 news hub.
Churches and communities that have business profiles on Google will also need to update their pages to let people know their new hours of operation or if they’re temporarily closing during this time. You can also use the profile and the Google Maps page to make announcements like shifts to digital gatherings. You can use Google Hangouts for those online gatherings, Google Calendar to schedule your digital events, and Google Docs to share and collaborate on notes or community questions.
YouTube is, of course, Google’s main product to help faith organizations with their online services. A lot of congregations and communities are already there, like the Vatican News channel for Holy Week services, Park Avenue Synagogue for Seders and festival services, and a Passover-themed fundraising variety show called SaturdayNightSeder. Even Andrea Boccelli will be broadcasting live exclusively on YouTube on April 12 from the historic Duomo Cathedral in Milan.
Faith communities that are in need of support can also use Google for Nonprofits. It can help you do fundraising and reach more donors online. The next few weeks will be a challenging as we face a new kind of normal to help keep the COVID-19 infections at bay.
