Staying connected to your community is crucial during these difficult times. For many within religious communities, not being able to attend worship services has been a great blow to their sense of identity. There are many churches that have moved worship services online to protect their congregants, but many wonder how long it will be before these congregations can meet again in person.
There’s also the economic impact of the coronavirus to consider when it comes to nonprofits like churches. Traditionally a lot of the funding for these places comes from in-person donations, and eventually the wells will run dry with no offering plate being passed around. Fortunately, just as you can attend your services and other events online, you can also now donate to keep them sustained online, as well.
When the pandemic first hit it seemed as though it would be business as usual and it would eventually go away. Then stay at home orders were issued across the country and the economy began to decline. Restaurants were the hardest hit early on, and those that were unable to transition to carry out service have gone out of business, either temporarily or permanently.
Nonprofits were hit hard next, as in-person donations were curtailed thanks to the need for social distancing. Donation centers couldn’t take in donations as people cleaned their closets out of boredom, and as more people lost their jobs it became more difficult to get donations to sustain nonprofits.
Churches are experiencing many of the same issues as the larger economy right now. Because people aren’t physically in the building they aren’t able to donate as easily to keep the services going. There has been one major change, however. Online services have drawn more participants than first estimated, and some churches have even seen rises in people wanting to be baptized and join the church.
But the fact remains that if this pandemic continues on unabated – that is, without a treatment or a vaccine – it’s going to be a long time before people can meet in person again. This means what little remains in the church coffers is going to be stretched to its breaking point to keep services going digitally until congregants can again meet and donate in person.
In order to keep communities and congregations sustained for the duration of this pandemic, even giving will need to be done remotely. Learn more about how an app can help keep your congregation sustained from the infographic below.
