Church to introduce ‘catextism’

Recognizing the power of text messaging, the Roman Catholic Church will tap texting to spread God’s word.

The Archdiocese of Manila has launched a service called "catextism," which allows cellular phone users to access spiritual readings and prayer exercises and even share reflections with other users through text messaging, which is highly popular among Filipinos.

"Catextism" is done in cooperation with the Jesuit Communication Center based in Dublin, Ireland. It’s a way of responding to the appeal of Pope John Paul II that the Church must use the Internet as a positive force for good.

"Texting is now undeniably a way of life for largely Roman Catholic Philippines," said project head Bishop Socrates Villegas. "The very same instrument, the cellphone, which represents the hustle and bustle of many Catholic lives, now gives reminders and guides to prayer. Catextism’s message is that God is with us in all situations."

To access the service, mobile phone users send the word "Amen" to access code 2371 (Globe) and 777 (Smart). A menu returns from which the text applications are available including the popular prayer exercise "Sacred Space," copyrighted by the Dublin-based JCC.

The service also lets users share their reflections and talk to other users. A basic feature is the sending out of random passages from the Bible.

"The Church has worked with Smart and Globe on this project and it is only with their cooperation that this project has become a reality. The two companies pioneered texting and made it overwhelmingly popular in the country," Villegas said.

"Worldwide, the Church is embracing the Internet as a forum for evangelization. In the Philippines, the cellphone is a great influence on the people’s lives," he added.

The Pope’s message for World Communication Day on May 12, a Sunday, says precisely the same thing: "Internet is a powerful force for shaping the minds and hearts of the children of God, all over the world."

Text messaging played a critical role in the youth-led "lightning" uprising known as people power 2 that ousted a scandal-tainted president.

Bishop Villegas is parish priest of the historic Our Lady of EDSA Shrine where people converged in January 2001 to overthrow then President Joseph Estrada.