Smart devices not equivalent to Bible - Cleric

Rev. Fr. Anthony Okereke, the Catholic priest in charge of Saint Thomas Aquinas Church, Okokomiko, Lagos, has admonished the faithful not to replace the Bible with smart devices that contain the scriptures.

Okereke, known for his unabridged preaching of the good news, gave the advice at the church’s youth Lenten retreat, held at the church on Monday.

The theme of the one-day retreat to reform people was “Hearing and Heeding God’s Voice.”.

According to the priest, the Bible is one of the essential paraphernalia of Christian worship and should always be part of it.

Okereke, newly posted to the parish, frowned at the use of phones and other devices to read verses of the scriptures by people.

“Your smart devices can’t take the place of the Bible in Christian worship and lifestyle.

“Clutching your Bible to the church portrays you in a good light before others in the public, as it gives you a sense of identity in the public.

“Reading the word of God from the Bible instead of your devices draws you closer to God and helps you to hear from Him.

“The practice of having and reading from your Holy Book makes you distinct and compels one to doing what is in the book.

“The Bible has a spiritual aura and fragrance that poses threats to evil spirits and persons thereby act as shield to the holder,” he said.

He warned that if the trending tradition of using devices instead of the Holy Bible is allowed, the Bible may go into extinction in the years to come.

“God forbid,” he said.

The use of new technologies should be to advance mankind, not to discourage the worship of God.

He advised that people should not allow this “satanic manipulation” to blur the solemnity of the holy book.

NAN reports that the reading and preaching of the Gospel by people and pastors respectively from smart devices are gaining popularity in the contemporary times.