COVID-19 Coronavirus: Diocese of Oslo (Norway), online catecheses. “Need to be there right now”

On Easter Day, the website of the Diocese of Oslo has begun issuing a catechetical video on a daily basis. “Because of the pandemic, many people cannot attend the catecheses”, Brother Hallvard Thomas Hole OFM (pictured), theological consultant at the pastoral department of the Diocese and author of the virtual catecheses, explains. “The videos are made in a rather simple language; we needed to be there right away”. The first classes of the virtual course are already available online and are intended for people who are preparing for Confirmation. They are very short, a minute or a minute-and-a-half. “Confirmation candidates can watch the videos anytime and anywhere. Although at present they have to watch them on their own, they can discuss them with other Confirmation candidates or with their families, and read the texts that are recommended each time”, said Brother Hallvard. Also, when the crisis is over, the videos can be “a beautiful supplement to the catechesis sessions”. Brother Hallvard also sees this tool as a “resource for both the most remote and isolated Catholic communities” in Norway that “cannot be visited and reached by a priest or a catechist very often”, and for “catechists themselves” who may use the materials for their “personal development”.
Sarah Numico