The gap between Christian values and mainstream culture seems to be growing further and further apart. Today, many biblical doctrines are considered harmful or even hateful, leading many people to actively seek to silence the voice of the Church. So what can you do if your church experiences religious censorship? 

The first step? Don’t panic. Next, take a look at seven steps you can take to protect your church from censorship. 

1. Appeal community guidelines claims

You can submit a form if your church’s content was flagged as violating social media community guidelines. Check out these examples:

• YouTube community guidelines violation appeal process
• Facebook post blocked appeal process
• Twitter account suspension appeal form
• TikTok banned appeal instructions

2. Dispute copyright claims

Copyright algorithms often interrupt church live streams due to potential copyright violations. While copyright violations are more of a legal issue than a form of censorship, it can still leave churches feeling like their content is being targeted. 

Here are some of the processes you can follow to dispute a copyright claim: 

• YouTube copyright counter notification process
• Facebook copyright appeal form
• TikTok counter notification form
• MailChimp information

3. Edit, reupload, or remove censored content

Waiting for an answer to an appeal or dispute can take days or even weeks to resolve. To speed things up, you can try one of these more time-efficient options:

Edit your content

Editing your content—such as updating some text, changing the post description, or editing out a song—may be enough to unblock your account and allow people to continue engaging with your message.

Reupload your content

Another approach is to make very small changes to your original content and reupload it as new content. 

Remove your content

When all else fails, simply removing the flagged content may be enough to keep or reinstate your account. 

4. Avoid repetitive messages & wording

Facebook will block an account for posting too often or sending multiple messages with similar wording. To avoid this from happening, you should:

• Wait several hours or more before sending similar messages
• Reword your messages before sending them
• Change any links by using a free URL shortener like Bitly or Tinyurl

5. Play the waiting game

You can always simply wait for your appeal to be resolved. Big Tech is not known for big customer service, so most disputes or appeals take days, weeks, or much longer to resolve.

6. Seek outside support

If your church believes that they have been the victims of religious censorship, here are some ways to seek outside support. 

Raise awareness

Get the public involved by creating a grassroots campaign to highlight the censorship that’s taken place. Collaborate with other ministries, local media, or national groups like The Heritage Foundation to help bring awareness to your church’s situation. 

Seek legal counsel

Obtain legal advice from a reputable local attorney, law firm, or an advocacy group that seeks to protect religious freedoms, such as Alliance Defending Freedom and Advocates for Faith & Freedom. 

7. Use a platform that respects religious liberty

In response to religious censorship, churches are looking for other solutions to help them share the gospel and disciple their congregations. 

Subsplash believes in every church’s right to religious freedom and expression. That’s why we created a unique platform with tools that allow churches to share their content without fear of religious censorship.