{"id":2187,"date":"2016-07-12T12:27:05","date_gmt":"2016-07-12T17:27:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.pts.edu\/blog\/?p=2187"},"modified":"2021-08-02T10:15:30","modified_gmt":"2021-08-02T15:15:30","slug":"pokemon-go-churches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pts.edu\/blog\/pokemon-go-churches\/","title":{"rendered":"Pokemon Go: Augmenting Reality, Transcendence, and Dragon Doors"},"content":{"rendered":"

Chances are you\u2019ve heard quite a bit about Pok\u00e9mon Go lately. There have been safety concerns, bizarre findings<\/a>, and lots of people moving around in odd ways.<\/p>\n

So what is it?<\/p>\n

Augmenting Reality<\/h1>\n

Pok\u00e9mon Go is a game that uses a GPS signal of a smartphone, along with the camera and display to bring a video game a little closer to the reality.<\/p>\n

By using the phone\u2019s GPS information, users can view specific locations in the real world through the camera and display of their smartphones. The game then overlays a video game creature on the phone\u2019s display. The result is an image that makes it appear as if the game characters are inhabiting the real world.<\/p>\n

This is a style of gaming called \u201caugmented reality.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pok\u00e9mon Go isn\u2019t the first game to use real world movement to capture new characters. Some have used real world wifi signals.<\/a> Others have used simpler means like a camera that detects colors<\/a>.\u00a0Decades ago there were even games that created monsters from player\u2019s CD collections<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Pok\u00e9mon Go also isn\u2019t the first game to use \u201caugmented reality.\u201d Years ago a video game promised to project fictional pets on living room floors.<\/a>\u00a0While Pok\u00e9mon Go isn\u2019t the first game to use real-world information to augment reality, it\u2019s certainly made a big splash.<\/p>\n

So what do we do with this information in ministry? I think there are two opposite responses worth considering.<\/p>\n

Transcendence<\/h1>\n

First,\u00a0it\u2019s important to recognize that\u00a0as humans we have a yearning for something that reaches beyond the world we experience. We always have.<\/p>\n

Theologians call this \u201ctranscendence.\u201d\u00a0Don McKim, the author of the Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms<\/a>, defines \u201ctranscendent\u201d as \u201cthat which stands beyond all limits of human experience.\u201d\u00a0He quickly adds that Christians often use this word to describe God.<\/p>\n

As humans, we hope, we suspect, we believe that there is something deeper than the world we can see and touch and taste. We have a fascination with the strange and bizarre. There\u2019s something deeply human and healthy about it. In fact, churches have used art in similar ways for centuries.\u00a0Just consider the symbols of the four evangelists.<\/a><\/p>\n

Pok\u00e9mon Go is one way we take that deep yearning and let it out to play. It\u2019s a way to give expression to the longing for transcendence through silliness and fun.<\/p>\n

Perhaps, as we consider ministry in a world with Pok\u00e9mon Go, it may be helpful to recognize the yearning for transcendence, and allow people to express it in deeper ways.<\/p>\n

Dragon Doors<\/h1>\n

Second,\u00a0it\u2019s important to realize that we often fail to\u00a0see how bizarre reality can be. G. K. Chesterton<\/a>, with his typical penchant for quotability, mused that \u201cA child of seven is excited by being told that Tommy opened a door and saw a dragon.\u00a0But a child of three is excited by being told that Tommy opened a door.\u201d<\/p>\n

His point was that in childhood, we recognize how amazing the world can be. There is no need to augment reality\u2013reality itself is fascinating.<\/p>\n

At its best, a game like Pok\u00e9mon Go can help us recapture some of the fascination with the world around us.<\/p>\n

The downside, of course, is that augmented reality games do put dragons behind doors. At their worst, they cause us to miss out on the excitement of reality.<\/p>\n

Pok\u00e9mon Go doesn’t just give church leaders something to think<\/em> about; it also gives them something to do<\/em>. Consider this: Pok\u00e9mon Go may actually bring new people to your church\u00a0since tons of churches\u00a0are locations for the game. Wondering\u00a0how you can reach these potential visitors<\/a>? Check out\u00a0the “Church Marketing Sucks”\u00a0blog post on the topic.<\/p>\n

Perhaps in a world of augmented reality, we can strive to help people to see the wonder of reality itself. We can encourage others to see the wonder of doors and trees and clouds, whether or not there are cartoon dragons behind them.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Rev. Derek Davenport \u201905\/’17 <\/em>is a PTS alumnus of the Master of Divinity (MDiv) Program and Master of Sacred Theology (ThM), between which he served at a church in Orlando, Fla., for five years. Derek also participated the Seminary’s Miller Summer Youth Institute<\/a>. He serves as a preacher in Western Pennsylvania, researches church symbolism<\/a>\u00a0on his\u00a0<\/em>website,<\/em>\u00a0and tweets at\u00a0<\/em>@DerekRDavenport<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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Augmenting Reality Pok\u00e9mon Go is a game that uses a GPS signal of a smartphone, along with the camera and display to bring a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2188,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[7],"tags":[267,268,269],"series":[],"class_list":["post-2187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-theological-reflection","tag-pokemon-go","tag-pokemon-go-and-churches","tag-pokemon-go-and-ministry"],"yoast_head":"\r\nPokemon Go: Augmenting Reality, Transcendence, and Dragon Doors - Pittsburgh Theological Seminary<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Pok\u00e9mon Go is everywhere these days. 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