I would say that I am a spiritual and religious person, but sometimes it is easy to forget to pray or make it to mass. I watch The Sunday Mass as needed instead of going to traditional mass at church. That is convenient, but sometimes I feel it takes away the tradition and practice that goes into one’s spiritual life. My husband has an app for the Holy Bible and a book of prayers. I think that is resourceful, but I can’t picture myself opening those apps up in church.

I think our society is definitely heading into a digital life in general (social media, smart phones, etc). So it would be wise for religious entities to get with the times. This is something that Elizabeth Drescher, PhD writes about in Five Social Media Trends that are Reshaping Religion. Drescher is a professor at Santa Clara University who specializes on religious and spiritual studies. Her most recent work include Tweet If You <3 Jesus: Practicing Church in the Digital Reformation (2011) and upcoming Click 2 Save: The Digital Ministry Bible (2012). From her commentaries on ReligionDispatches.org, published work, and professional experience, she comes with a credible history about how religion and technology intersect.

The article I read is quite simple even though it looks long. She writes it in conversational voice so it is easy to follow. I don’t think there were many critical things one could say about religion and technology, but she still brings up good points. Social Prayer, Ministers-On-The-Go, O Holy App, Curate as Curator, and A Few New Commandments make up the trends she describes. The most interesting I thought were Social Prayer and O Holy App.

When I read the ideas regarding Social Prayer and O Holy App, I could definitely see where Drescher’s commentary has manifested in people around me. As I mentioned in the beginning of this post, my husband has an app for the Holy Bible. It is useful when one is out and about, but I cannot fathom sitting in a church, mosque, or temple and using the app. I feel like it is a little disruptive. It looks odd, but I guess it will eventually become a norm since technology’s progression is going to lead us there.

Lastly, Social Prayer highlighted for me that people are greeting sharing their faith on Facebook and Twitter by making pages, trending topics, and posts. Several of my friends post about when they are at a church service and have heard an uplifting message. Some even quote Bible verses or testify that God is good because something positive happened. Being spiritual, it puts a tingle in my heart to know people are bold enough to put something somewhat controversial (in public I thought you aren’t supposed to speak about religion and politics).

So in general, the times are changing. Religious entities, beliefs, and people (like priests) are utilizing social media to evangelize. I feel it’s progressive, but doesn’t it depersonalize the religious experience? Or is it now okay to say that it updates the experience because it is a social norm to have a smart phone and be technologically advanced?