Parish Guide

Broadcast — How It Works

One rich, beautifully formatted message — with attachments — sent to all your parishioners, a specific group, or one person, and delivered to each in their own language.
A simple, step-by-step guide for parish staff · Powered by Nave

At a glance

Broadcast is the parish's voice to its people. Write a warm, formatted note — headings, bold, lists, links, even a flyer attached — and Nave delivers it as a polished email to exactly the audience you choose. Two things make it effortless: every recipient gets the message in their own language (translated for you, ready to review), and you review and test before anyone sees it. It also lands in each member's in-app notification bell.

1 · Write it (rich text)→ 2 · Choose who→ 3 · Review the translations→ 4 · Test it on yourself→ 5 · Send now or schedule
Where to find it: Admin → Communications → Broadcast. Available to the pastor and staff with the Manage messages permission. Every broadcast you've sent is kept in an archive with its delivery count.

Who you can reach

Pick one target per broadcast — from everyone down to a single person.

🌎 Everyone

All your parishioners. The Sunday-wide announcement.

🤲 A ministry

Just the members of one ministry. "Lectors, this week's schedule changed."

👥 A role / leadership group

Pastor, staff, council, committee, ministry leaders… "Council, agenda for Tuesday."

🗣️ A language group

Everyone who reads in a given language. A note specifically for the Spanish community.

🏠 A household / census filter

New members, birthdays this month, registered families, or those with a mailing address. "Welcome!" to everyone who joined recently.

👤 One person (1-1)

A single parishioner. A personal pastoral note.

Opt-outs are respected automatically. Anyone who has muted parish messages won't be emailed — you never have to scrub a list. The in-app bell still reaches everyone, so important news isn't missed. Emergencies are different: for urgent safety/closure notices use Emergency Alerts, which can't be muted.

Sending a broadcast, step by step

From a blank page to "sent" in a few minutes — with a safety net at every step.

Step 1 · Write your message

Who: Pastor or staff (Manage messages).   Goal: A warm, formatted note.

  1. Open Admin → Communications → Broadcast and tap Compose a new broadcast.
  2. Give it a subject, then write the message using the formatting bar — bold, italics, headings, quotes, bullet and numbered lists, and links.
  3. Subject, message, and audience are required (marked with a *). Save a draft any time and come back to it.

Result: A polished message that looks like your parish — not a plain-text blast.

Step 2 · Choose who gets it

Who: Pastor or staff.   Goal: Reach exactly the right people.

  1. Under Audience, pick a target — everyone, a ministry, a role, a language, a household/census filter, or one person.
  2. The send panel shows a live recipient count so you know how many people it will reach before you send.

Result: The message goes to the segment you intended — and only them.

Step 3 · Attach a file (optional)

Who: Pastor or staff.   Goal: Include a flyer, form, or schedule.

  1. In the Attachments box, choose a file and tap Add file (it's its own button — you'll see "✓ Attachment added").
  2. Attachments become tidy download links inside the email — best for deliverability and any device. Max 5 MB per file.

Result: The bulletin insert or registration form rides along, without bloating the email.

Step 4 · Review the translations

Who: Pastor or staff.   Goal: Make sure every language reads well.

  1. Save the draft. Within a few seconds, Nave fills in the Spanish and Tagalog versions automatically.
  2. Read them in the Translations section. Happy with the machine translation? Do nothing. Want to refine a phrase? Edit it and save — your wording is kept and won't be overwritten.

Result: Each member reads the message in their language — without you running it through a translator.

Step 5 · Test it on yourself

Who: Pastor or staff.   Goal: See exactly what parishioners will get.

  1. Tap Send a test to myself. Nave saves your work and emails you the real, rendered message in your language.
  2. Check the formatting, the attachment links, and the tone in your own inbox before anyone else sees it.

Result: No surprises — what you see in the test is what the parish receives.

Step 6 · Send now — or schedule it

Who: Pastor or staff.   Goal: Deliver it, on your timing.

  1. Send now delivers within a few minutes — one private email per person, each in their language, plus a bell notification.
  2. Or set a date and time and tap Schedule — Nave sends it for you at exactly that moment (shown in your parish's time zone).

Result: The broadcast goes out reliably — whether that's right now or 7 a.m. on Saturday.

Step 7 · See what you've sent

Who: Pastor or staff.   Goal: Keep a record.

  1. The Broadcast page lists every message — drafts, scheduled, and sent — with the audience and, for sent ones, how many it reached.

Result: A clear history of parish communication, at a glance.

For parishioners — what you receive

You don't have to do anything to receive a broadcast — but you're always in control of how.

What it looks like

Who: Any member.   Goal: Hear from your parish, your way.

  1. A broadcast arrives as a warm, formatted email from your parish — in your preferred language (English, Español, or Tagalog), with any attachments as download links.
  2. It also appears in your 🔔 notification bell on the parish site when you're signed in.
  3. Set your language and your message preferences in My Account → Communications, or with the one-tap Manage your notifications link at the bottom of any parish email. Mute parish messages and you'll still get the bell — and emergency alerts always reach you.

Result: Parish news in the language you read, on the channel you chose.

Quick reference

Who can send a broadcast?The pastor and staff with the Manage messages permission, from Admin → Communications → Broadcast.
Will everyone get it in their own language?Yes. Each member receives it in their preferred language; anyone who hasn't chosen one gets English. Spanish and Tagalog are translated for you and you can edit them before sending.
Do I have to translate it myself?No. Save the draft and the translations fill in automatically within seconds. Edit any of them only if you want to refine the wording.
Can I attach a flyer or form?Yes — it appears as a download link in the email. Max 5 MB per file; add more than one if needed.
What if someone opted out of messages?They're skipped automatically — you never email someone who muted parish messages. The in-app bell still reaches them.
Can I preview before sending?Yes — always. Use Send a test to myself to get the real rendered email (it also saves your work), then send for real.
Can I schedule it for later?Yes — set a date and time and tap Schedule. It sends at that moment in your parish's time zone.
Is this the same as an emergency alert?No. Use Emergency Alerts for urgent safety/closure notices — those can't be muted. Broadcast is for everyday parish news and notes.
The big idea: a healthy parish is a connected one. Broadcast lets one person write one warm message and reach every parishioner — the right people, in the language they read, looking the way your parish should — with a test and a review before a single email goes out.

Broadcast — How It Works · A guide for parish staff · Powered by Nave