The sitemap-verses.xml file was contaminated with WeasyPrint import
warnings, causing "Document is empty" errors in Google Search Console.
Fixes:
- Suppress stdout/stderr during imports to prevent warnings in output
- Add error handling to sitemap-verses endpoint
- Regenerate clean sitemap-verses.xml (6.3MB, 31,102 verses)
The file now starts with proper XML declaration instead of error messages.
🤖 Generated with [Claude Code](https://claude.com/claude-code)
Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>
Previously, verse URLs (31,102 pages) were excluded from the sitemap
to improve generation speed. This left SEO value on the table - Google
prioritizes URLs in sitemaps for crawling, and verse pages are 3-4
clicks deep, making discovery slow.
Solution: Static sitemap + sitemap index
-----------------------------------------
- Created generate_verse_sitemap.py to generate verse sitemap once
- Generated sitemap-verses.xml (6 MB, 31,102 verse URLs)
- Converted /sitemap.xml to a sitemap index
- Split into sitemap-main.xml (dynamic) and sitemap-verses.xml (static)
Benefits:
---------
- Zero runtime cost for verse sitemap (served as static file)
- Full SEO coverage of all 31k verse pages
- Google gets complete URL list immediately
- Main sitemap stays fast (no verse URL generation)
- CDN can cache verse sitemap indefinitely
Why this works:
---------------
Verse URLs are completely static - Genesis 1:1 will always be at the
same URL. The Bible hasn't changed in 2000+ years, so these URLs
never change. Generate once, commit to repo, infinite caching.
This trades "optimize build speed" for "optimize discoverability."
Build speed is a one-time cost; search rankings compound over time.
🤖 Generated with [Claude Code](https://claude.com/claude-code)
Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>
kennethreitz