Priest condemned for riding a hoverboard while preaching

yinka ogunlami

December 30, 2015 10:49 PM

Filipino priest at the Laguna diocese whose name is still undisclosed has been condemned by the diocesean authorities for riding around the church on a hoverboard while preaching during Christmas Eve mass.

"That was wrong" the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Pablo said in a statement on its Facebook page.

Some of the congregation that it was cool and applauded as he greeted people and sang a Christmas song on the hoverboard before going out of the parish to "reflect".

"The Eucharist demands utmost respect and reverence. It is the Church's highest form of worship, not a personal celebration where one can capriciously introduce something to get attention," the diocese statement said.

It added that the priest saw the incident as a "wake up call".

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A version of the video which was uploaded by traditionalist Catholic group Novus Ordo onto its Facebook page and was widely shared has drawn a mixed reaction on Facebook.

A Facebook user, Scott LaLonde Said: "Complete and total disrespect not only for the Lord but also for the salvation of all those poor souls, to top it off he couldn't even sing."

Another Filipino Catholic, Romy Vicente said the incident was ridiculous: "How can you meditate if you see this happening inside the church where holy mass is going on?"

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Not everyone reprimanded his action, Rob Trainor from Canada said: "I am Roman Catholic but not a practising one that attends Mass regularly. If there were more priests like this one, I may be tempted to return to mass. If people keep calling for traditions, you will lose even the most ardent Catholics."

"Doing a sermon from a hoverboard was a great way to show how Catholic church is making strides in entering the new era," commented another Facebook user Mark Lewis.

The Philippines is the third largest Christian country on earth, with an estimated 80 million Catholics, the country's culture and society has been closely intertwined with the teaching of the church and it's values.

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