Pastor's Points: A Pokémon on the Church Steeple

Pastor's Points: A Pokémon on the Church Steeple

On July 6, I got home about midnight, and a young man I know in the neighborhood was out walking around. I asked him what he was doing out so late by himself. He said he was trying to catch a Pokémon. I looked at him sort of strange. Little did I know that earlier that day, the Pokémon Go app came out. I had to start asking some questions of those familiar with such things: What is this new app all about? It basically marries the real world with the digital gaming world. Using GPS, you walk around looking for “PokeStops” where you can catch the Pokémon characters.  I came to find out that our own church steeple was a designated PokeStop.  If that is the case, then we have probably had a lot of gamers coming by the campus to catch various Pokémon, including Rattatas, Eevees, and hard-to-catch Zubats.
 
Pokémon Go has caught the nation by storm. Have you seen a lot of people walking around staring at their phones and maybe even bumping into things?
 
The game is getting people outdoors and into places where they might not normally go. This includes churches!  I recommend the article below for your reading, which explain what Pokémon Go is all about, and the guide the Diocese of Grand Rapids put out about it.
 
http://www.catholicnews.com/services/englishnews/2016/churches-among-those-swept-up-in-pokemon-go-craze.cfm
 
http://www.gbdioc.org/images/Pokevangelization.pdf
 
The Church is always looking for new ways to engage the culture.  Who knew Pokémon would be an avenue for that?