Churches told to 'get with the programmes' by downloading latest apps

Having become the Pokémon Go-to hub in the latest online craze, the Church of England has decided it's gotta catch 'em all when it comes to other forms of social media as well.

Vicars throughout the country have been encouraged to get with the programmes as CofE head office urges them to sign up for the latest gifs, time lapse and photo apps.

Examples of churches already using social media include Lichfield Cathedral's #beforeaction Battle of the Somme commemoration, where people are being invited to record and upload videos of themselves reading a war poem. 

In a move described as the "The Gif of God: the Church of England issues eight social media commandments" by the Telegraph, the Church wants clergy to sign up for the latest apps such as Prisma for creative photo filters, Gif Me! for animated images, Phonto-Text for an easy way to add text to pictures and Lapse It for a simple way to make time short lapse videos. 

The Church of England's digital media officer Tallie Proud also recommends the group conversation tool Slack and resources to manage online reading lists such as Feedly.

Proud writes: "Underneath the logo on the Church of England website is the tagline 'a Christian presence in every community'. And while this is seen through many churches up and down the country on a daily basis - we often neglect one community. The online community."

Before going any further, there are a few myths we need to bust:

Social media is not just for young people, she says.

"One of the fastest growing groups on social media is the over 50's and those aged 65-74 are almost twice as likely to use a smartphone now compared to 2012."

People turn to social media to find jobs, share major life events and follow news, she adds.

"In the same way that people are turning to social media for news, your church's social media activity has become the new church noticeboard or magazine. For some, social media is the first place they will look to find out what kind of church you are. It's the perfect place to let your church's personality shine through and make people want to be a part of it."

She says it is not a question of if a church should be on social media, but a church is going to make a difference through social media and when.

Examples of churches using some of the ideas include St Paul's Letchworth which did a time lapse video of a recent fun day:

Moseley Benefice in Birmingham has been experimenting with Prism: