Posted on 09/10/2012 12:00:03 PM PDT by Alex Murphy
TRENTON — The New Year’s Day service at St. Mark’s Catholic church used to draw a dozen people. Now it is the most popular service of the year, drawing hundreds of young people. The reason: Father Bolgren has started blessing the iPods.
“It’s a way of getting their hearts and minds,” he says. “Kids take it very seriously.”
On the first day of this year, several hundred teenagers stand in line to have Bolgren bless their iPods with a prayer and a daub of oil. All morning, Nanos, video iPods, Minis and more parade before him.
“I really liked the black Nano,” he says later in the rectory, resting between services. Asked if the service is simply a gimmick, he says no. “Priests bless cars and pets, so this is not far afield,” he says.
Several churches nationwide are using iPod-related rituals to get kids’ attention. One church in Montclair, Calif., hosts regular playlist burnings, where kids set fire to a list of songs they promise to delete from their iPods.
“It gets quite emotional,” says youth pastor Ronny DeLane who founded the “God on the ‘Pod” services at Evangelical Free church. “The kids lay their iPods on the altar and dedicate them to God. Then they set fire to a CD or list of songs in a metal bowl and promise to delete them from iTunes when they get home. There’s a lot of crying.”
DeLane started the ritual because he was disturbed to discover that some of his best Christian kids had raunchy rap songs alongside worship music on their iPods. He follows up with random ‘Pod Checks, and reports offensive music to parents.
“It’s been surprisingly effective,” he says. “The kids are a lot more spiritually minded. Sign-ups for the next short-term missions trip are way above last year.”
Back at St. Mark’s, Bolgren says he intends to hold another blessing service in January specifically for new video iPods, which many of his parishioners received for Christmas.
“You can’t have Jesus in your heart and Desperate Housewives on your iPod,’” he says.
....Several churches nationwide are using iPod-related rituals to get kids’ attention. One church in Montclair, Calif., hosts regular playlist burnings, where kids set fire to a list of songs they promise to delete from their iPods. “It gets quite emotional,” says youth pastor Ronny DeLane who founded the “God on the ‘Pod” services at Evangelical Free church. “The kids lay their iPods on the altar and dedicate them to God. Then they set fire to a CD or list of songs in a metal bowl and promise to delete them from iTunes when they get home. There’s a lot of crying.”
Good stuff.
Who will be the patron saint of the iPod? Arnulf of Soissons might work.
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