Gamers who frequent the church to hunt for Pokemon were reminded by a Catholic priest to come to church for the right reasons.
Fr. Ronel Taboso, parish priest of Sto. Niño church in Tacloban City gave this statement after learning that a good number of people flocked to the vicinity of their church but with a different objective.
The worldwide online gaming craze has apparently reached this southern part of the country considered as one of the most devout provinces when it comes to Christianity. No less that Pope Francis held a mass in this city during his recent visit to the country.
“(They] should go to church for right reasons. They should use their time and energy productively and not waste their precious time,” said Taboso in a CBCP News post.
It has been reported that some of the country’s churches have become a PokeStop where gamers hunt for Pokemon.
One female Pokémon player said many youth hang around church vicinity to set up lures and catch Pokémon because of the PokéStops that have been established there.
Despite this, Taboso clarified that they are not preventing anyone from entering the church or its compound.
“No, we do not shoo them away since they are already outside the church,” he said.
A lure party was staged by players near the vicinity of the church on August 10 that made people flock to the area and join the craze.
Lure is a term used by Pokemon gamers where Pokemon characters are attracted to a specific location.
An area with lures are places where chances of catching Pokemon characters are high.
The Sto. Niño Church is considered an iconic landmark in Tacloban. (LESLIE ANN G. AQUINO)