Have some faith in your PC

Some truly inspired software is adding new meaning to the phrase “Jesus saves.” Dario Gibellini christened his software “Pocket Chapel” and calls it the first Christian altar software for the computer. For a tithing of $12 the software provides the interaction of a real altar by allowing users to add colorful candles, relics, flowers and stained glass to their computer screens.

Gibellini -- a self-described geek, computer addict and software engineer from Hamburg, Germany -- has worked on products such as face-scan technology to create better hairstyles. His divine inspiration for the Pocket Chapel (https://www.pocketchapel.com/index.html) came four months ago while playing a computer game.

“I noticed that we can kill 1,000-plus enemies on our machines, but where is the counterweight to all these tons of splashing blood? I am not against these games, but I think if there is a dark side there must be a bright side too. I like harmony. It’s time that a part of the Christian habits becomes digital.”

Gibellini, who calls himself a “believing but not a dogmatic Christian,” says response to the Pocket Chapel varies along geographic lines. His fellow Germans ask questions such as “Is the guy crazy?” and “Is this good for our minds?” But users in the U.S., England and Japan, where it sells best, praise the “hip” software.

The best earthly reward for Gibellini’s creation? “My little daughter, 4 years old, loves to play with it.”