Since the coronavirus pandemic hit America in February 2020, almost every parish in the country has livestreamed or pre-recorded Masses. Several months into our “new normal,” the question is coming up more and more: how long should we keep these Mass recordings around on our Facebook page? The answer? Not very long. You should be archiving parish livestreams. Here are a few thoughts for your consideration:
- Daily Masses can probably be removed from your account 24 hours after the Mass was celebrated: Not many people are going to need to reference daily Masses from weeks ago, right? Time to get rid of those.
- Sunday Masses should stay up for a month or so: After all, these are the highlight of every week and should be treated as such. Also keep in mind you may have spiritual seekers checking out your parish, so a month-long archive of Sunday Masses for reference can give them a feel for your communal and liturgical life.
- Important celebrations should stay up for a year: Triduum liturgies, Christmas Mass at midnight, and so on should remain on your Facebook page for 12 months or so. These “show off” your community at its finest. Also keep in mind that catechists and religious education teachers can reference these with students and adults in RCIA to show them important moments from the liturgical year.
If things are quiet around the parish office, now is a great time to clean up those archives on your parish Facebook page, YouTube account, and so on. Set yourself a regular reminder to do this. Or, if it’s crazy around the parish, set yourself a reminder for after the new year and complete archiving parish livestreams then.
