Saint POS: a church in Braşov revolutionizes donations

Hallelujah! God accepts the card! At least in a church in Braşov. If until now we prayed that our metro subscription would not expire, today we can pray that the religious transaction would not be rejected by the POS. The news went almost unnoticed last week although it appeared in several central newspapers, taken from Braşov.net. From it we learned that Braşov, the city where history meets the mountain and the POS terminal, is becoming the first point of contact between the holy and the contactless. Somewhere, in a quiet corner of the Saint John Church, next to the classic "mercy box", there is now a more modern, more elegant digital sister and, of course, with a bank fee. So, between the "Our Father" and the "Amen", we can discreetly slip the card and maybe a smile - not of repentance, but of technological satisfaction.

Isn't it beautiful when tradition is dressed in silicon and faith in tap-tap on the screen? No more need for change from the kiosk or crumpled banknotes in the inner pocket. Now we can do a good deed with a light touch, as light as the level of transparency of the donation route. What does it matter where the money goes, when we know for sure that it reaches God... through the Visa or Mastercard network?

Some look scandalized, but they are probably the same ones who still write checks. Others laugh, but it is a nervous laugh, of those who know that with each transaction an existential question also arises: if you are given "insufficient funds", does it mean that you are both a sinner and poor? Or is it just that God has switched to the Premium subscription and you have remained on the free version?

The followers of the new gospel of digitalization say that it is a natural step - and who are we to oppose progress? If the Pope has a Twitter account and holy relics have an Instagram page, why wouldn't the altar also have a POS? They say we must give to Caesar what is Caesar's, but in the meantime Caesar has a terminal and accepts contactless payments. At this rate, the next natural step would be the confession app with AI and the personalized sin newsletter.

After all, every era has its rituals. Just as a candle was once lit for someone's soul, today we can give 15 lei with a card for a good thought online, maybe with spiritual cashback. Let's not be hypocrites - we live in a world where even love comes with a monthly subscription, why would mercy remain at the stage of a rusty coin?

A beginning in which sin can be forgiven in installments, and salvation... is just a tap of the card away.