Meanwhile: No more collection plate excuses

The Catholic community has created its own Catholic Match, Bible apps and even Confession preparation apps. Now, it has a Catholic Venmo, reports Elizabeth Bachmann of the Catholic News Service. Cathio, a free payment processor application for iPhone and Android, will “transform the way the Catholic community moves money”, founders said in a news release. The app, which CEO Matthew Marcolini projects will be available this autumn in the App Store and Google Play, is an easy-to-use donation platform that allows users to select their specific parish, even a specific cause within that parish, and send a donation in seconds. The advent of this app removes the classic millennial tithing excuse, “I don’t have any cash on me,” whispered while awkwardly averting eye contact with Offertory collectors.

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When you live on the Shetland island of Yell (population: 966), it’s not easy to pop into a church to pray. So resident Anne Dobson decided to convert the site of an old chicken shed into a chapel. Her husband Peter built the structure, while a priest donated four icons. And it has the Church’s approval: a local priest has blessed the chapel. Visitors should know that it only has room for a maximum of two people.