Ascension Helps Catholics Stay Spiritually Engaged During COVID-19
Ascension, the faith formation leader, recently launched multiple engaging pieces of content through a series of livestream events on YouTube and Facebook. These feature popular Catholic presenters who walk with Catholics during this challenging time and offer positive affirmations and reflections.
Catholics are now being called to spend unprecedented amounts of time at home. Public celebrations of the Mass and sacraments have been suspended in many places, and churches have been closed. People of faith are hungering for spiritual nourishment, hope, and community.
“Every week, thousands of small groups gather throughout the country in parishes, coffee shops, and homes to actively engage with the Catholic Faith. Due to the Coronavirus crisis, the need to quickly assess how we can work to meet the needs of parishes and individual Catholics in this new environment has become our top priority,” explains Matthew Pinto, president and founder of Ascension.
Ascension is currently providing live faith-enriching content to enable Catholics throughout the United States and beyond to continue engaging with their faith in the homes—in real time. As Jeff Cavins, creator of The Great Adventure Bible study program, says, “In many ways we find ourselves facing new challenges that, if approached from a disciple’s perspective, become new opportunities. As many of our friends contemplate the studies in which they have participated, they now realize they have been in training for such a time as this. It is time to do God’s will and encourage those who do not know the Lord.”
The livestream events Ascension is currently offering on its social platforms include the following:
- The Rosary at 4 PM, which has averaged more than 40,000 participants a day.
- Sunday Mass celebrated by Fr. Mike Schmitz at 10 AM, which was viewed by more than 170,000.
- Sunday Mass with the Most. Rev. Nelson Perez, Archbishop of Philadelphia, at 11 AM, which was viewed by more than 50,000.
- Other livestream events on a multitude of topics by Ascension’s presenters and authors, including Jeff Cavins and Danielle Bean.
- DEBUTING tonight—Jeff Cavins will host the Walking Toward Eternity (special addition), aneight-part practical Bible study about having hope in the midst of suffering. For more details please visit ascensionpress.com.
Ascension is also meeting the needs of the deaf community by livestreaming a Mass in American Sign Language with Father Sean Loomis, presenter of Hands of Grace: The Catholic Sacraments in American Sign Language. This weekly Mass will begin on Saturday, March 28th at 5:30 PM (EDT).
For a more detailed schedule of all of Ascension’s offerings and resources during COVID-19, please visit ascenionpress.com
Ascension is a multimedia network and the world leader in the creation and distribution of Catholic faith formation programs and digital content. Over the past 20 years, Ascension has helped nurture the faith of over 10 million people in over 8,000 parishes through more than 50 unique faith formation programs and the Ascension Presents media and YouTube platforms.
For author interviews or other media inquiries, please contact Ascension at (484) 876-1400 or newsroom@ascensionpress.com.