The Church of England is partnering with Twitter UK to broadcast services across the world using mobile technology.
ChurchLive, was created in conjunction with Twitter UK as a way of showcasing a broad range of live church services to global audiences simply and accessibly through use of a smartphone. ChurchLive could be the first taste of Church for those unfamiliar with church services and an introduction to the best of worship, preaching and prayer. ChurchLive will also enable other people to rediscover church in a new way or for those in other countries to learn more about Church of England services.
Rev Arun Arora, Director of Communications for the Archbishops’ Council said: “This is a project designed to bring Church of England services from Malton to Miami, Middlesbrough to Milan and Manchester to Mumbai. Those who may not make it to church on a Sunday for all sorts of reasons will have the opportunity to be part of a service. The ability to join in worship shouldn’t be restricted to geographical constraint. We know that Periscope users are a global audience and we expect that there will be as many watching services broadcast via Periscope as are physically present at the services themselves.”
Earlier this year parishioners at one village church, St Radegund’s Church in Grayingham, in the Diocese of Lincoln, were joined by another 350 people around the world for their regular traditional Sunday service after becoming the first to experiment with Periscope.
Julia White from Twitter UK, said: “Periscope gives people and communities the opportunity to live broadcast everything from on-the-spot breaking news through to individual reflections. It’s great to see the Church of England taking the best of what they have to offer and using Periscope to show it live across the world.”
Tallie Proud, Digital Officer for The Archbishops’ Council of the Church of England said: “It could be someone too ill to attend, a family who want to ‘attend’ even when on holiday or someone who just wants to know what the church is like before they make the sometimes scary step of walking into the building for the first time.”
“@ChurchLive” will see a different church in the Church of England broadcast a live weekly service to global audiences via the Periscope app over the course of a year. The first service is due to take place on Sunday 11th October and features a service with Canon Andrew white, the “Vicar of Baghdad” who will be speaking at The Point, a Fresh Expressions church in West Sussex. Future services planned include St Martin in the Fields in London and Beverley Minster.