Tech-savvy Catholics can install the “iBreviary” application on their iPhones.

The Vatican has approved an iPhone application for the first time.

“iBreviary” is a prayer book available for download on iTunes and created by Italian priest Father Paolo Padrini.

Though Pope Benedict XVI owns an iPod, the Vatican warned last month against the dangers of modern technologies like cell phones and the Internet, saying “In the age of the cell phone and the Internet, it is probably more difficult than before to protect silence and to nourish the interior dimension of life.”

Churches have experimenting with digital technology for years, and some have begun “godcasting.”

Read a Religion & Ethics Newsweekly report on “Godtube,” an online Christian broadcast platform.

“The Curt Jester” blog reviews “iBreviary” and recommends it.

A blogger at “Switched” writes that the Vatican has been somewhat conflicted on the technology issue, at times warning against cell phones and at other times using text messaging to engage young churchgoers.

A blogger at “Bright Hub” provides an overview of religious iPhone applications, writing that some are offensive and undermine religions rooted in natural energy and human contact.

Writer David Gibson writes about the faith of “Appleism,” using a religious analogy to discuss the iPhone’s arrival as a “Second Coming” for technology enthusiasts.

Photo courtesy of Flickr user William Hook under a Creative Commons license.

Worldfocus is now publishing a daily podcast of our signature stories.

These feature videos can be downloaded at no cost and watched on computers and mobile devices.

iTunes subscribers can subscribe using this link, and users of other clients can plug in the XML feed: http://feeds.feedburner.com/worldfocus.

A poetry site has posted useful videos explaining how to subscribe to a podcast that should be helpful to anyone with technical questions.