It is no doubt a sure thing to say that technology is, paramount to the development of any society, or nation.
The evolution of the world, in terms of modern technology, has seen a tremendous shift in the quantity and quality of life and service delivery, in various aspects of human endeavors.
The recent outbreak, of the novel Coronavirus, has brought a new turn of events, in various countries of the world.
Businesses have had to be shut down, movement restricted and gatherings; religious or social, banned, to contain the spread of the virus.
As known to all, religion is a crucial aspect of human social life, hence, like business organisations, religious organisations are hit hard, by the lockdown.
The ability to carry out religious activities, while not failing to comply, with the law of avoiding crowds, yet meeting the needs of its religious society, now hangs on the discretion and the resourcefulness of the various religious organisations.
To, effectively, carry out this seemingly tedious assignment, the success of each organisation depends, on how efficient and how effective the means or methods adopted become.
No one could have, ever imagined being denied access, to their respective places of worship, until the recent development of COVID-19 pandemic, which brought with it, a social distancing and avoidance-of-crowded-places rule.
Many are, even, still grappling with this reality, but we are glad that, the world has evolved and technology is reshaping our focus and ideologies.
Technology is, constantly, reshaping the world, more than ever before, in this pandemic era and has helped religious bodies to connect, with their various audience, without limits, despite the lockdown.
Thanks to the various communication devices, the internet, social media handles and terrestrial TV technology, worshipers are able, to stay at home, yet, enjoy and partake, in remote worship services, made available to them through these mediums of communication.
Remote worship and networking of scattered worshipers, into a large virtual congregation, has been, because of technology, in such a time, as this.
With the aid of technology, worship tools, e.g., Hymnals, Bible, Quran, Religious books, etc., are available, on software, as mobile Apps, E-books, Word and PDF documents, etc.
These are, easily, accessible on App stores and available for download, for use of worshipers. The need to visit a religious resource center or library for a hard copy, is no longer imperative.
E-banking provides the avenue for the collection of tithes and offering, as well as other donations from sponsors, etc., during the religious services, to be made online.
During the lock down, various religious organisations, have had to reach out to members, supporting them, financially.
This act of welfare has been reduced to monetary terms and transferred to the needy members’ bank accounts, electronically. Funds are disbursed where they are needed, to carry out these activities effectively, thanks to e-banking technology.
Unbroken communication and information dissemination are, not left out.
The use of Apps, like Zoom, WhatsApp, Facebook and various social media handles, also help to ensure that meetings are, effectively, held and information passed, as usual, like in the days before the lockdown, in spite of the distance between facilitators, participants and beneficiaries.
Online resource databases, for research and study, is another important contribution of technology to humans.
It is no news that, academic institutions, worldwide have been closed.
This, sadly, does not leave out the various institutions of learning, owned by religious organisations.
With the help of technology, however, online resource databases are available, such that, learning and research are still going on, despite the lockdown and students, can study at home.
We must be wondering what it would look like, had the world been thrown in this startling situation, in the days of old, when there was, basically, no technology around.
Wonder no more, for we no longer live in the past, rather, we look forward, to better days ahead and hope that these difficult times shall pass soon
Featured Image: pewforum.org
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