Christian clergy may be irretrievably divided on doctrine, but whether priest, pastor, bishop or apostle, they agree on this: Smartphones can be a pain in the pulpit.
There’s nothing like the sudden blaring of an AC/DC “Highway to Hell” ring tone to throw off the rhythmic meter of an Orthodox liturgical chant, make Catholics grimace as they file toward Holy Communion, turn an evangelical pastor’s altar call for salvation into thoughts of perdition, or cause Mormons to drop a word or two of that sacramental hymn.
Yes, cellphones can be an ecumenical annoyance, disrupting sacred services, distracting worshippers from the Word and plunging the ponderings of even the most fervent followers from the heavenly to the worldly.