Press Releases

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Toronto: While it may not be a traditional pulpit, for The United Church of Canada, it is a communication platform like no other.

This week, the church is launching its own YouTube channel, featuring a playlist of more than 20 videos with more to be added in the weeks ahead.

“Many people think the church is just a collection of buildings with steeples, but by using YouTube, we can show how active the church is, whether in a downtown mission like First United in Vancouver or through overseas partners working on water issues in Kenya,” says Catherine Rodd, the church’s Multi-Media Producer. “Our audience is the world and we want to add our faces and voices to the tapestry of people working for just change, wherever they are.”

The United Church’s YouTube playlist includes videos of some of the United Church’s hundreds of community projects, both in Canada and overseas, as well as video messages from the church’s current spiritual leader, Moderator David Giuliano.

Rodd explains that while this YouTube venture is a first for the church as a national body, many local congregations and youth groups have been posting videos independently for some time. She hopes to integrate the best of those videos into the channel in the coming months.

“For 20 years the United Church had a weekly television show on VisionTV. When it ended, we needed a new window. YouTube offers us that,” says Rodd.

“YouTube also gives us a chance to showcase videos produced by our overseas partners that people wouldn’t normally get a chance to see,” adds Rodd. “We are very excited about the possibilities to show local, regional, and international stories that make people think about the world from new and different points of view.”

The United Church of Canada’s YouTube channel can be found at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada.

For further information please contact:

• Mary-Frances Denis
  Communications Officer
  The United Church of Canada
  Tel: 416-231-7680 ext. 2016
  Toll-free: 1-800-268-3781 ext. 2016
  E-mail: Mary-Frances Denis