Client Success Story

Language-Inclusive Sermons at Mercy Hill Church, Milwaukee

Use Case
Multilingual Sermons & Services

Audience
International Local Congregation

Languages
English Spanish

Summary

In the summer of 2024, Mercy Hill Church in Milwaukee, WI, implemented KUDO AI Speech Translator to make their Sunday sermons and services accessible in any language for their congregation. Live-translated audio and subtitles are now available to the congregation every Sunday, including closed captions in English for members of the community with a hearing impairment.

The Challenge

Before using KUDO, Mercy Hill Church faced a significant challenge after moving to a more diverse area with a larger Spanish-speaking congregation. Their team came to KUDO because they needed to translate their English sermons into Spanish every Sunday. Previously, this required either volunteer interpreters or paid translators, but the team often struggled with challenges such as availability, inconsistent translation quality, and difficulty keeping up with the speaker’s pace.

KUDO helped Mercy Hill Church solve this problem by providing real-time AI translation (audio and captions) of their English sermons into Spanish. The translations are described by their team as “accurate, timely, and perfectly synchronized with the speaker”, enhancing accessibility for Mercy Hill’s diverse congregation.

Services Provided

Live AI speech translation into 45+ languages

Simple scan-to-access for attendees

Closed captioning for assistive listening

Smartphone-accessible translation

We chose KUDO because it offers accurate, real-time translations that stay perfectly in sync with the speaker, and it supports multiple languages simultaneously, meeting the diverse needs of our congregation.

Phil Martinez, Elder, Pastoral Care | Mercy Hill Church

The Solution

Today, Mercy Hill uses KUDO AI every Sunday to provide real-time audio translation of their pastor’s English sermons into Spanish for their Spanish-speaking congregants. To access the live translation, attendees can simply scan a QR code as they enter the church, then are able to select the language they would like to hear and/or read on screen.

The high quality of KUDO AI ensures that the translations are accurate and perfectly synchronized with the speaker, eliminating the issues the team previously faced with human translators. Additionally, Mercy Hill utilizes KUDO to translate sermons into multiple other languages, making their services and content accessible to a diverse audience. This flexibility allows them to better serve their congregation’s needs and foster a more inclusive worship experience.