Austria: Church services during Holy Week and Easter at a glance

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Around 16,000 church services take place throughout Austria during Holy Week and Easter. Special websites and apps provide an overview of all the festivities.

The period between Palm Sunday and Easter Tuesday forms the highlight of the church year, along with Holy Week and Easter. A correspondingly dense religious life also characterises this time of year in the approximately 3,000 parishes throughout Austria.

Holy Week and Easter services: Websites provide an overview
To fulfil the need for quick information about the nearest and closest church services, the Catholic Church offers an overview of the church services on www.ostergottesdienste.at and the “Glauben.Leben” app (www.glaubenleben.at). Around 16,000 church services are listed in the Austria-wide church service calendar for Holy Week and Easter.

The website www.gottesdienst.at provides a corresponding overview for those unable to celebrate church services in person but who want to join the celebrations online. Prayer requests can also be formulated there, a collection can be made online, and basic models for celebrating church services at home can be accessed. “With these different offers, we want to enable as many people as possible to attend church services and express their faith in this way,” explains Paul Wuthe, Head of the Media Department of the Bishops’ Conference, responsible for the various media channels.

Free app with church services and Easter focus
The free “Glauben.Leben” app makes it possible to search for specific church services or to display the nearest church services. The app also offers its own Holy Week and Easter focus with information, tips, and the day’s gospel and readings. You can also use the “Pray” function to formulate prayer requests or pray for the prayer requests of other app users. In the app and on the web version of the app, at www.ostergottesdienste.at, you can also search specifically for church services such as Easter Vigil celebrations, Good Friday liturgies, or popular food blessings.

The project www.gottesdienst.at, which was launched just over a year ago, has also proven its worth. This website displays the most important church service broadcasts for the coming week on ORF, Servus TV, regional radio stations, and streaming offers. Each of the major church services has its own sub-page with information about the parish as well as the choice of hymns and sermons. Prayer requests and intercessions can also be formulated and sent to the parishes. The website currently offers a preview of the church service broadcasts from Palm Sunday to Easter Monday.