The Vatican has launched an eRosary bracelet and app as part of an initiative to attract tech savvy youth into the Catholic Church.
The Vatican introduced the eRosary, which can be worn as a bracelet and can be activated via making the sign of the cross, to attract young people and educate them about the rosary. Priced at $109, the gadget is synced to the Click to Pray eRosary app, designed to help Catholic users pray and contemplate the gospel.
Users can also use the app to track progress and access visual and audio information on the rosary. The device, developed by Taiwan-based tech company GadgTek Inc, is composed of 10 black agate and hematite beads, and a metal cross that detects movement.
Unlike the traditional rosary, whose beads are counted as prayers are recited, the eRosary allows users to select from three ways of praying. users have the option of the standard rosary, a contemplative rosary and a thematic rosary.
The eRosary is also water-resistant and can be paired with both Android and Apple iOS smartphones. According to the Vatican, the Click to Prayer eRosary is a project that falls under the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, which emphasizes on "mobilizing Catholics through prayer and action."
A Click to Pray press release stated: This project brings together the best of the Church's spiritual tradition and the latest advances of the technological world."
The device is not the first attempt of the Catholic Church tried to attract the youth via technology. In 2019, a Catholic evangelical group launched the Follow JC Go! game, largely inspired by the widely successful Pokemon Go app.
The Follow JC Go! game allows players to "catch" saints or characters from the Bible instead of the pocket monsters. It was developed by Fundación Ramón Pané in preparation for World Youth Day 2019, a Catholic youth event held last January 2019.
