Mocs News Reporting the news that matters most to UTC
By Owen Kennedy,
RICHMOND, VIRGINIA (mocsnews.com)- In the world of COVID-19 and the restrictions it has had on the world around us, many people have looked for ways to try to live a normal life. While in quarantine for exposure to COVID-19, Garrett Bernal missed his usual Sunday church service that he attends.
Without leaving his home, Bernal found a way to attend church through worship in the metaverse. With the click of a button and the putting on of a virtual reality headset Bernal was transported into a 3D wonderland with computer-generated Biblical passages that have come to life.
The metaverse is a form of virtual reality which consumers are immersed into a world by using internet-connected headsets and controllers to be transported into a world with others from all around the world.
The service that Bernal has been attending is the VR Church, which was founded in 2016 by D.J. Soto a former high school teacher and pastor at a nonvirtual church.
Attendance at Soto’s church started off slow and found attendance to be just a handful of people at times. Since the beginning his service has grown to up to 200 members and has gained other ministers from his home in Virginia.
“The future of the church is the metaverse,” Soto said. “It’s not an anti-physical thing. I don’t think the physical gatherings should go away. But in the church of 2030, the focus is going to be your metaverse campus.”
