Guidelines for adding Sermons

Welcome! We are glad to share together with you in spreading the Word of God! Some sow seeds, some water, but it is God who makes us all grow. We pray that God counts us as fellow laborers with Him and that He blesses the little that we offer to feed multitudes.

Here are instructions so we can be consistent across the site:

Preparation

If possible, listen to the sermon - This will help our growth as well as make it easier to add a sermon description and keywords (words that we think someone may search for)
Gather All Files - Including PowerPoints and Handouts. It is helpful to an individual watching online, and for churches and groups that are using the material in there own churches.
Rename all files consistently -
1. For Individual Sermons, all files should be SpeakerName-SermonTitle.extention
  1. e.g. FrMarkAziz-BelieveItToSeeIt.mp3
2. For Series, all files should be SpeakerName-SeriesName2-SermonTitle.extention
  1. e.g. FrPaulGirguis-BackToBasics4-Prayer.pptx (for the 4th talk in the series)

Note For St. Marks DC

When recording, please start recording right before the Speaker says "In the Name of the Father.." and stop recording as soon as they say "Glory be to God..."

Rename the file in the format above (Speaker-Series-Title) and put it on the M: drive in the proper folder (M:/Sermons/English/MEETING/YEAR/YY-MM-DD/Speaker-Series-Title).

Also put the PowerPoints, Handouts, and any additional material associated with the sermons in that folder.

Step 1: Add new Speakers, Churches, or Series

If it is a new Speaker, Church/Organization, or Series for the sermon, add them and some helpful information about them to the site first. Having a picture and a short note makes a big difference!

New Series - Add the logo for the series and a description of the series. This is used for the series pages and for Podcast feeds

New Church - Add a picture, Church Website, and the church mission statement. This is used for the churches pages and for Podcast feeds. You can include the church website

New Speaker - Add a picture, Email, and short biography. This is used for the speakers pages and for Podcast feeds

Step 2: Add your media

The site is very flexible for adding media. Naming the Sermon Files consistently across the site makes it easier for users who download items. Please stick to Our Naming Convention from the preparation section!

Start by going to https://www.orthodoxsermons.org/node/add/sermon

Sermons with Videos

For sermons with videos, the site will automatically

Generate an Image for the sermons (You can upload your own*)
Get an audio file (good for Podcasts and listening in the car)
Get the transcript if available (makes it searchable!)

If the video is already on Youtube: Just copy the youtube link** for the youtube video into the "Youtube Video" field.If the video is not on Youtube: Locate the "Main Video" field and select your video to upload it. The site will automatically post it on Youtube on the OrthodoxSermons channel.

*Images that you have previously uploaded are available for reuse by clicking on "File Attach" next to the "Main Image" field

**The Youtube link maybe rejected if it has extra parameters at the end of the link. It should be in a format similar to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOUTUBEID

Sermons with Only Audio

Upload the audio file to "Main Audio". The site will automatically get a transcript (if available). For audio only sermons, uploading an Image* in the "Main Image" of the speaker or church makes it more personal.

If you are adding a sermon that already online, you can add the file without downloading it using the "Remote URL" feature. Next to the "Main Audio" field, click "Remote URL" and paste in the link to the Audio File, then click "Transfer".

*Images that you have previously uploaded are available for reuse by clicking on "File Attach" next to the "Main Image" field

Step 3: Fill in the fields

Filling out the fields helps users find what they are looking for.

Title -

For Individual Sermons, Titles should be "Sermon Title" with all words Capitolized
1. e.g. "Believe It To See It"
For Series, all files should be "Series Name - Part # - Sermon Title"
1. e.g. "Back To Basics - Part 4 - Prayer"

Original Record Date - Put the date that the sermon was recorded. If unknown, put an estimate or todays date. Please note all dates are in the U.S. Standard format of Month / Day / Year.

Speaker - Type the a few letters in the name of the speaker to find them. If the speaker is not there, go back to Step 1 to Add a Speaker. Please avoid adding duplicate speakers.

Church/Organization Name - Type the a few letters in the name of the church or organization to find it. If the church is not there, go back to Step 1 to Add a Church. Please avoid adding duplicate churches.

Series - Type the a few letters in the Series Name to find it. If the Series is not there, you can save the sermon, go back to Add a Church, then edit the sermon to add the series. This way you don't lose any progress.

Topic - This field is being revamped. For now, choose the top level items (e.g. "Sunday Sermon", "Love, Marriage, & Family Life", "Christian Living & Spiritual Growth".

Keywords - Any words that you think someone would search for. Keywords can be emotions, phrases, theological terms, virtues, etc.

Scripture Reference - Tell our users what Passages in the bible are used in this sermon.

Coptic Calendar - This is helpful for all sermons based on the standard Coptic Sunday Readings specified in the Katamaros. Coptic Reader or this link can be helpful in determining which weekend and month it is.

Attachments - PowerPoints and Handouts are extremely helpful to an individual watching online, and for churches and groups that are using the material in there own churches.

Transcription - If you have a transcript of the sermon, feel free to add it. We get an automated translation using Google Speech-To-Text, which are usually generated within 30 minutes of saving the sermon. You can come back and refine the transcription.