The gathering of religious communities in places of worship, physical proximity, and human-to-human unity are some common tenets of modern, Western religion. Given the pandemic, which is still very much an ongoing global issue, cleanliness has been a controversial issue in religious buildings and a much-debated topic in national and global media. Changing how, when, and what to clean in religious buildings has then, of course, had an effect on religious gatherings and practices.
For the more observant people of faith, this has been, is, and will continue to be a stressful issue. If you’re directly or indirectly responsible for the cleanliness of a religious facility, then this issue is central to both your professional and spiritual world. How? As the saying goes, “cleanliness is next to Godliness,” so consider there being no distance between professional and spiritual responsibility when thinking about how to clean your religious facility. No sweat! Here’s how to improve its cleanliness:
COVID Is Your Primary Target
COVID-19 is still a major issue, and thus is still your primary target in terms of the cleanliness of your religious building. Make sure to select the appropriate, COVID-19-killing disinfecting solution. That’s not enough, though. Be sure you disinfect with the appropriate methods and frequency. Keeping your religious building disinfected will greatly reduce the risk of exposure to harmful viruses.
Attend Your Own Services
One thing you need to know about your religious building to keep it clean are all of the high traffic areas and high touchpoint surfaces. You may think you already know these things, but if you haven’t attended an event or service at your religious building, chances are good that you’ll miss some. It won’t hurt to attend a service as a visitor and take note of all high traffic areas and high touchpoint surfaces.
Provide Supplies & Sanitation Stations
An easy way to help keep your religious building clean is to provide visitors with personal hygiene supplies, like hand sanitizer, and even basic PPE.
Inspect & Service Your HVAC
Recent research has suggested that the COVID-19 virus spreads mainly through respiratory droplets. This makes the air quality and function of your religious facility’s HVAC systems very important. A clean church starts with clean air, so schedule an inspection with an HVAC professional, and have it serviced and/or cleaned if necessary. Make sure everything works optimally, filters are changed, and vent covers cleaned. Include regular preventative maintenance in your plans.
Preach It!
Back to the saying about cleanliness being next to Godliness – why not preach it? No one should tell a pastor what to say in a sermon, but it wouldn’t hurt your maintenance plan and the cleanliness of your religious facility if, organically, messages promoting good personal and social hygiene practices were passed around the community. Not only would this help maintain a cleaner environment, but the positive effects to cleanliness and health may follow your church visitors home, and that’s always good.