Church Leaders Give Blessing to Gadgets in the Pews

Mass Appeal From an October 2011 service in Poland. DrabikPany 

via Flickr

PCMag.Com - Church pews nationwide were lit up this Easter weekend, and not just by the glow of so many churchgoers making their once-a-year appearances — iPads and smartphones were on plenty of parishioners’ laps, helping people follow along with the ceremonies. Congregants are feeling increasingly comfortable with using gadgets in church, and priests and ministers are condoning it.

In Chicagoland, many congregations encourage the use of gadgets during church, as the Chicago Tribune reports. Worshippers are using Bible apps and web searches to find greater context behind the sermons they hear, and the preachers themselves are using the technology to get their messages out. As long as people are listening, maybe Googling Romans 6:8 and not playing Angry Birds, congregation leaders are glad to encourage the use of technology in the pews — a few even offer WiFi connections. Some churchgoers have even taken to Twitter during services to share the conversation.            More