COVID-19 Coronavirus: Austria, streaming of Mass and diocesan ePapers. The Church’s communication at the time of the epidemic

The dioceses are giving a strong impetus to online communication in this period of epidemic. The Archdiocese of Salzburg has extended its streaming offer: the last Masses in public were celebrated last Sunday in all Austrian churches. Devotional services and liturgies are now streamed daily from Salzburg Cathedral. “The webcast starts with the Lauds at 7am, followed by Mass at 7:20. Then the Sixth Hour at noon, from Monday to Friday, where we pray for people’s concerns and fears at this time of uncertainty. People can join in from home”, said Dominik Elmer, from the pastoral care office of the archdiocese. On Sundays, three masses are streamed from the Cathedral, at 8:30, 10:00 and 11:30; they are available as webcasts or radio broadcasts. The diocesan press, too, goes digital: all local Church newspapers are now also available as ePapers. And this service - due to the coronavirus crisis - will be free of charge at least until Easter. The diocesan weeklies are available both on their common homepage “Meinekirchenzeitung.at” and on the ePaper App “Meine Kirchenzeitung”. “Church newspapers are food for the soul and a source of inspiration for over 400,000 weekly readers”, said Heinz Finster, secretary general of the Austrian Church Printing Association. The App that has just been developed is called “Meine Kirchenzeitung”.
Valentina Bombelli