Religion: Down with Gadgetry

Taking note of the flourishing increase in such religious gadgets as electric vigil lights and mechanical rosary clickers, the Indiana Catholic and Record last week waxed satirical:

“The rosary clicker is as yet a primitive machine which must be worked by hand; the possibilities of electrifying its action, amplifying the clicks, inserting Hydra-Matic shift between the decades and possibly embellishing it with a cigar lighter modeled into the image of a favorite saint, these open wide if appalling vistas to the religious gadgeteer . . . The wedding of piety and jewelry . . . with St. Christopher money clips, St. Anthony key chains, Miraculous Medal bracelets, etc., may have something to recommend it, but we fail to see what it is.”

Then, speaking bluntly, the paper said: “If all the religious gadgets and novel devices that are marketed today were left on the market, we do not think piety would suffer one bit, though commerce might.”