The Rev. Lisa Vaughn of St. Timothy’s Church near Halifax, Nova Scotia, will be blessing mobile phones and other gadgets this weekend.
“It’s not just about please don’t let my cellphone drop calls today,” says the pastor of the Anglican parish of St. Timothy, on the road to Peggy’s Cove. “It’s about, you know, help me to be the best Christian, the best person I can be in my conversations, in my communication….”
….Ms. Vaughn hit on the idea for this weekend’s “grace for gadgets” service when reading about an ancient English tradition in which agricultural workers brought equipment to church for prayers. A modern equivalent for her bedroom community congregation, she realized, was the laptops, mobile phones and electronic readers that have become ubiquitous.
“There may be people who say this is silly, blessing a phone,” she acknowledges. “But we’re really blessing the person. It’s reminding people that God is with them in their work, in their play. And [they] need to be mindful of that. It’s not just once a week or only on Christmas.”
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