A new viral: POV:JESUS project
The POV:JESUS project, led by nuns from the Catholic Church in Styria, Austria, is quickly gaining popularity on the internet. A video of dancing women from the project has amassed over 5 million views on TikTok.
Nov 21, 2023 | updated: 9:06 AM EST, November 22, 2023
Facing an increasing exodus of believers, clergy are exploring different avenues to connect with young people. Occasionally, unorthodox methods must be employed, as evidenced by the nuns from Styria.
The nuns spearhead the POV:JESUS project, which has a significant presence on social media. Thousands of internet users from around the globe follow their Instagram and TikTok accounts, making the videos depicting jovial nuns enormously popular.
Millions of Views and the Success of a Catholic Initiative
A case in point is a recent video published on TikTok. It features three dancing nuns from the Ursuline Order in Graz and the Order of Sisters of Mercy of the Holy Cross. The brief clip has been viewed over 5 million times, a feat undoubtedly spurred by supermodel Heidi Klum sharing the video on her social media. Significantly, the number of followers on the POV:JESUS project account is soaring.
Officials from the Austrian Catholic Church are pleased with the impact of the POV:JESUS project. They maintain that in the modern world, it is crucial to have a presence in the digital realm, particularly to engage with younger generations.
"People inhabit the digital space, and where people live, Christians also reside and carry out pastoral work. Moreover, the digital and analogue worlds cannot be segregated any longer; they are naturally intertwined," says Gabriele Eder-Cakl, the Chief of the Austrian Pastoral Institute (ÖPI).
