VATICAN CITY – Move over, Tindr. There’s about to be a much bigger fish in your matchmaking pool.
The Catholic church dove headfirst into the deep end of the GPS-enabled social networking lagoon with the announcement it soon will release a confessional-finder app.
Dubbed “Sindr” by the popular press because it functions much like the hookup app Tindr, the Catholic App (yes, that’s its name) connects those who need to unburden their souls right away with the closest provider of absolution.
According to a Vatican Radio report, “The app will allow users to find the nearest and soonest opportunities to go to Confession and Holy Mass, as well as Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.”
Scottish Archbishop Leo Cushley of the Archdiocese of St. Andrews and Edinburgh designed the app in conjunction with Edinburgh-based tech company Musemantik. The archbishop gave the ultimate credit to Pope Francis.
“The idea was really inspired by the Holy Father himself,” Cushley told Vatican Radio. “He said to be imaginative about what to do for the Holy Year of Mercy.”
Although the prototype was designed specifically for St. Andrews and Edinburgh, Cushley said he hopes other dioceses also will adopt the software, eventually creating a worldwide network of sacramental resources. Such a system could be extremely useful for travelers and those who do not attend mass regularly.
“This is a little bit of smart technology that could make a big impact on how the Catholic Church brings the mercy of God and the joy of the Gospel to our contemporary world,” he said.
Cushley said he expects the Catholic App to be available for iPhone and tablet devices in early 2017.
Social networking is nothing new for the religious community. FriendFinder Networks, perhaps the largest collection of matchmaking sites in existence, offers a number of services aimed at the faithful, including JewishFriendFinder.com and BigChurch.com.
