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Who hasn’t noticed that the shrinking economy is having an effect on our parish ministries? Parish staff members are stretched to keep up with their programs with fewer resources than they may have had last year or earlier. Plenty of parishes are challenged even to keep everyone on their existing staff. The parish Web site can be one way to get more “bang for the buck.” I see that in two principal ways.

First, during the economic hard times, demands for parish services aren’t exactly shrinking. People traditionally turn to their faith in times of crisis: Whatever you call our economic downturn, it probably means more people will be interacting more closely with the parish. The parish Web site, or other electronic communications (the easiest might be a parish e-mail newsletter), can be a relatively inexpensive way to strengthen the bonds of communication. One trick to having a successful parish Web site, though, is to keep it fresh with content, maintained at least weekly. Hooking up to automatic services such as our own Saint of the Day, Top Catholic News or a number of other syndicated Web services (called “RSS feeds”–“real simple syndication”) can keep your site fresh.

The other way I believe parish Web sites can become part of the financial solution for the parish is through online giving. Web donations are a growing area of online activity. Yes, many in the Church (mostly older folks) recoil at an “online collection basket,” but the fact remains that some of your parishioners are making online donations to causes they support. We’ll showcase some model parish sites that offer donations in a future issue of Web Catholic.

Meanwhile, enjoy the Easter season. Help your parishioners understand that Easter doesn’t end until Pentecost with our “Easter to Pentecost” feature. And watch for our feature on Pope Benedict’s newest initiative–a year for priests, starting after we complete the Year of St. Paul. August 4 is the feast of St. John Vianney, the famous priest who is a model for the Pope’s initiative. Till then, God bless!

John Feister
Editor, AmericanCatholic.org

Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles, Calif. (Archdiocese of Los Angeles).
This is an attractive, easy-to-navigate site that does not overwhelm the visitor with too much to absorb on its home page. From there, you’ll find links to the daily Scripture podcast, the cathedral Facebook page and information on protecting children as well as upcoming events. The interactive guide to the beautiful six-year-old cathedral includes links to photos of each of the 18 interior sites highlighted. There is also information about: online shopping, the cathedral’s conference center and a grill cafe; Mass times; directions; the monthly bulletin; the altar, chapels and other art and architectural elements of the cathedral; and receiving the sacraments there. The online giving area offers the user a chance to become a Cathedral Associate, to dedicate one of the floor’s stones, to provide for the cathedral in a will or trust, to set up a memorial or make a donation. Users will also find a place to make online prayer requests. None of the pages require the user to scroll very far. Yet, you’ll find a lot of information and links attractively presented.

 

U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Secretariat on the Home Missions
The national Catholic Home Missions Appeal will take place in parishes across the country during the weekend of April 25-26, providing a unique opportunity for Americans to assist struggling local U.S. Catholic communities. The Catholic Home Missions site does a good job providing easy access, building better understanding and offering tools to help Catholic parish leaders encourage support where Catholics are few, there are no priests for parishes, the faith is little known and the Church is poorly established. The home page offers an interactive home-missions map, which includes photo galleries and a seven-minute video. For parish leaders, the site offers a full-color brochure and a press release to promote the appeal, “Quick Facts” that are useful for homilies, bulletin or pulpit announcements, and longer background articles on the Catholic home missions. The user will also find a tour of the Catholic home missions, a copy of the appeal’s annual report, information on how to apply for grants from the multi million-dollar fund and the quarterly Catholic Home Missions e-newsletter, Neighbors. As a site that can help the Catholic in the pew better understand the needs of the Church in this country, mark it “Worth-a-Click.”

 

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