Scottish Church Holds Virtual Easter Service

Churches in Scotland to use social media, including Facebook and YouTube for Easter Services

22:31 11 April 2020

Churches in Scotland will not allow the coronavirus pandemic to stop them from celebrating the Easter Sunday with their congregations. Many ministers and priests have taken to social media, including Facebook and YouTube, to allow Easter Sunday sermons to go ahead as close to normal as possible while also adhering to social distancing protocols currently in place. 

 

In some areas, live streaming and recording of sermons from pulpits have reached wider audiences. Examples are the churches in St Andrews that united to lead Easter worship through YouTube to replace the usual Easter Sunday gathering at St Mary's on the Rock. Arrangements have been made to beam images, reflections, prayers and readings from eight locations, starting at St Mary's Quad at 5pm. 

 

Kinghorn Parish Church will also live stream with Burntisland Parish Church and Erskine Church on YouTube, Zoom and Facebook in the morning. Meanwhile, Rev Jim Reid, who usually holds Easter Sunday service on the nearby beach, will vlog from the sand instead. He said that online services and posts had been attracting hundred of viewer since the lockdown started. 

 

"They have been reaching out beyond church folk into the community and that's been really encouraging", he said. 

 

A Church of Scotland spokesperson said: "We are living in challenging times and while church buildings are currently closed, the Church is most definitely open." 

 

"Ministers and elders across the country are enhancing their congregation's online presence to share the love of God in a variety of new ways - using social media platforms to provide daily spiritual nourishment with virtual services, reflections, vestry hour discussion time and Bible study groups", he said.