​Experience All Saints’ weekend in 360° – Church of Sweden opens digital cemetery

To give more people access to the experience of All Saints’ weekend, the Church of Sweden is today publishing a film recorded in 360° on YouTube and Facebook. The film, which is one minute long, enables viewers to visit a cemetery during the weekend when All Saints’ Day is commemorated. Using the hashtag #taenminut (take a minute), the Church of Sweden wants to encourage people to take a break to remember someone they miss.

About half of Swedes light candles at someone’s grave during the weekend when All Saints’ Day is commemorated. But not everyone has the opportunity to visit a cemetery, and many avoid cemeteries as their grief feels too difficult to be confronted with. A survey commissioned by the Church of Sweden and conducted by research company TNS Sifo reveals that 80 percent of respondents think that it is important to remember those who have died, and a total of 38 percent would like to do more to honour their memory.

That’s why the Church of Sweden, by using the initiative #taenminut (take a minute), wants to encourage people to take a break to remember someone they miss with a film recorded in 360°.

“This year we have made it even simpler for people to remember someone. We want to help everyone who cannot visit a cemetery for various reasons to make their way there digitally with a 360° film,” says Mattias Nihlgård, head of communications development at the Church of Sweden.

The film was recorded at Längbro cemetery in Örebro. It is not the first time that the Church of Sweden has connected the physical and digital worlds using technology. In previous years during the period around All Saints’ weekend, online visitors have been able to light digital candles that simultaneously lit physical lamps in light trees located in cemeteries and next to churches in various parts of Sweden.

“All Saints’ weekend provides many opportunities for talking about the feelings we carry around inside us. Regardless of whether we visit a cemetery or a website, it is important to make space for grief. The ‘take a minute’ initiative is a reminder that no one is alone in their grief,” says Ingrid Edgardh, hospital chaplain in the Church of Sweden.

See the film on Facebook here.

See the film on YouTube here.

See the film with VR glasses/a virtual reality headset on YouTube.