The Internet Chapel: True Faith or Bogus Interpretation of Religion?

Sakeen Kashem, a pre-med student at New York University, wakes up at 6AM every morning to begin his prayers. As a Muslim, Kashem’s duty is to pray towards the city of Mecca five times a day. Instead of the usual routine, Kashem uploads his uncle’s website which contains live footage of the Kaaba square and simply sits at his desk for minutes of prayer. The website tricycle.com allows Buddhists to send questions to various “cybermonks” who are willing to share their thoughts in spiritual generosity. The United Church of Christ Prayer Chapel is a quiet place for Internet prayer and meditation where veneration and worship helps are offered. Internet prayer has endured an era of controversy since its popularity began in early 2004. What is usually a united religious group in America has been split on the issue of whether Internet prayers resemble true faith or whether they represent bogus interpretations of religion.

Surely, not attending church and simply viewing Sunday morning proceedings via Internet takes away from the integrity of religion. But, a true religious believer would never allow Internet to be the medium for prayer. A Buddhist monk would never prey with his followers using a Webcam from his room in some apartment in New York. But, a person who is unavailable to attend, or unwilling to be as devout may find it pleasant to access his sermons through their computer. In fact, the Internet allows individuals who normally wouldn’t attend church or give prayers to do exactly that. And, websites such as the United Church of Christ Prayer Chapel allow people who are normally not religious to use faith as a means of healing themselves (chpl.net).

I find it convenient to use the internet for many purposes. As a devout Hindu living in America, I often find it difficult to listen to sermons during religious holidays. Thus, during festivities such as Diwali (festival of lights) and Durga Puja (celebration of the goddess Durga), my family and I gather around the computer and upload the images of a Hindu temple in Calcutta with the audio of the sermon playing in the background. Thus, for people like me and my family, the utilization of the Internet for religious purposes can be quite beneficial. I find it ironic that the scriptures that were written thousands of years ago are being transmitted through technology that has been developed within the last five years. But, the Internet Chapel is certainly important, and cannot be regarded as a bogus interpretation of religion.