海角大神

Believers with cell phones 鈥� have I got an app for you: The Book-of--put-to Fruit-Ninja-like graphics. No? How 鈥榖out the 聽鈥� shake your phone, and see what verse appears. Or, no, wait here鈥檚 a , leading you through the books of the New Testament. Gaming apps are perhaps the newest and fastest growing segment of the religious app market 鈥� melding the technology of gaming with the religious imagery of tradition to make faith, well, fun. And if slicing animals ninja-style seems hardly holy, some have faith that such apps serve to introduce children to their religions鈥� icons and culture.聽

Gaming is but the newest addition to a marketplace of religion apps so large and fluid that experts can鈥檛 even estimate how many are out there. Storytelling apps are also popular, especially with children, with varying degrees of interaction involved, according to Rachel Wagner, associate professor of religion at Ithaca College, and author of 鈥淕odwired: Religion, Ritual and Virtual Reality.

Social media apps published by specific congregations are emerging as religion app leaders as well, she explained. They feature denomination-specific content and often include streaming video of sermons, member comments, scriptures, worship, prayer materials and podcasts specifically packaged for a congregation鈥檚 membership. In an atmosphere of anonymous app sponsorship and dubious content, these church-specific apps offer congregants some familiarity and quality control: I know this conforms to my faith tradition. I trust this. 聽

Many apps want to invite you into a ritual or faith practice via phone, the most notorious being the聽, which ostensibly allows Roman Catholics to receive the sacrament of confession via cellphone. The notion of participating in religious rituals alone, electronically, raises questions among believers of what, indeed constitutes legitimate worship, said Professor Wagner. Less controversial are the many and varied 鈥減rayer鈥� apps, with !聽being a favorite of hers. You type in a prayer and hit 鈥渟end,鈥� a prayer mindset activator akin to the more familiar prayer posture of kneeling or folding the hands, she said. 聽

Sacred text apps are perennial favorites, and e-familiarity brings comfort. You can search your Torah, email your BhagavadGita, get commentary on that Gospel. Searching the apps stores using terms as specific as possible increases the likelihood you鈥檒l unearth something designed not by an 18 year-old in his basement, says the professor, but by a someone who knows your own faith. Just because an app has 5 stars doesn鈥檛 mean it is meaningful. 鈥淪ome religious experience isn鈥檛 popular at all,鈥� she said.

Praying done, you can trim up your mobile prayer space with , or screens showing Buddha, the Star of David, prayer beads, and such, and can hear anything from church bells to 海角大神 pop and beyond on your ringer.

If all this leaves you wanting to clear your head,聽meditation apps like the 聽come up big, as do others inspired by Eastern traditions. Some sites help you focus by locking out your email, phone, and other functions while you meditate. 聽makes you hold the device with both hands, thumbs not moving, in order to keep your distractible self from surfing. Om鈥�amen.