My Ten Rules for Using PowerPoint at Mass

Our society is dominated by screens. At Mass, a PowerPoint presentation can be a useful tool for helping worshippers to participate more fully, but it can also be a big distraction if the presentation creator has the mindset of "entertaining the crowd" instead of "directing the faithful" by aligning the contents on the screen with the Liturgy. 

This post assumes you are like me: a Catholic with musical talent who has a desire to serve his local parish, but lacking in a complete formal education in both music and liturgy. You stepped forward when asked, and you've done as best as you know how. Nobody was really there to guide you - you just figured it out on your own, presenting your talents back to the Lord, and picking up what formation you could along the way. This post assumes that as a music minister, you prepare your heart and spirit for this task through a time of prayer well in advance of Mass, reviewing the readings, asking the Lord to guide you in your selection of music, and dedicating your act of service to the glory of the Father. It assumes that you want to do a good job and that you preview each presentation after you've finished it to ensure you put it together correctly, but you also cringe when people applaud you after the closing song. 

If this describes you, then perhaps you'll find some benefit in these lessons I've learned along the way. Here are the ten rules I follow when creating a slide show to be used during Mass.

1. The Mass has its own flow and rhythm. It's up to you as the PowerPoint creator to understand that flow and rhythm, and to craft your presentation to follow it instead of to lead it.
2. Don't start the projector before your presentation is running on the computer screen. People are praying and don't need to be distracted by seeing you move the mouse around, navigating to the file, or closing the antivirus warning popup.
3. The name of the day (i.e., 19th Sunday of Ordinary Time, 4th Sunday of Lent) should be put on an opening slide to be displayed before Mass begins, along with the day's Entrance Antiphon. (see update below)
4. For solemnities and feasts, a suitable public-domain photograph of classical art or iconography (i.e., Carraci's Assumption of the Virgin, Dossi's Ascension) may also be included on the opening slide along with this. Use high-resolution images without watermarks. If you can't find one, opt for no image. (see update below)
5. Once the Mass starts, there should be no images within your presentation, even if they're relevant to the readings or the parts of the Mass. Remember: the presentation should direct people's attention to what's happening in the Mass, and not to what's happening on the screen.
6. At a minimum, you should have slides with the lyrics to the songs you've selected. But I also recommend including the texts for the collective responses, as there will often be people at Mass who are infrequent attenders and don't have the latter memorized, especially during Christmas and Easter. Use a white background with simple black text for these. Proofread every slide carefully for grammar and spelling.
7. On all slides, use the largest font size possible, taking into account the size of the screen and the view of it from the farthest corner of the church.
8. Project empty black slides between songs and during those parts of the Mass when the faithful should be attentive to what's happening at the ambo, the lectern, or the altar.
9. Remember that people are praying after Mass concludes too. Make the final slide conducive to this (blank, or the text of the day's Communion Antiphon), and leave it running for a few moments. Power down the projector before you stop the presentation. Sure, that desktop background image of that squirrel holding a peanut is really cute, but this isn't the time to share it.
10. It is prudent to share your presentation with your celebrant well in advance of Mass to ensure he's aware of what you are showing to his flock - and to invite feedback from him. Most priests are simply happy to have you serve and are reluctant to criticize. If you want to improve, you'll need to make sure he understands you won't run away crying or take your talents elsewhere if he gives you some gentle guidance.
11. A bonus rule for pastors: music within the Mass has great power, and it needs to be wielded responsibly. Make a point of forming your music team volunteers so that their involvement in the flow of the Mass is liturgically appropriate and in line with the parish's culture and goals.

I could probably make a list of a hundred rules, but these are the most important ones in my opinion. Did I miss something? Do you have other suggestions? What annoys you about presentations during Mass?

UPDATE Sep 30, 2024: I've just discovered that in August of 2020 the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops had released a set of guidelines on Considerations for the Use of Technology in the Liturgy. It directs an even more minimalist approach than I've suggested, and as an obedient son of the Church I am changing my opinions (crossed out above) to align with this instruction.