Fed up with mobiles ringing and beeping during Mass, Father Michele Madonna has had a jamming device installed in his church in Naples, Italy to stop phones from going off.
The Catholic priest asked an engineer to put up the device, which cost him £40, inside the Santa Maria di Montesanto Church.
The jammer seems to be Father Madonna's final resort after he had tried putting up signs asking churchgoers to switch off their phones, to no avail. According to the priest, phones went off even during funerals.
Mail Online quoted Father Madonna as saying, "What really annoyed me is that when it first started, people would switch off their phones in embarrassment. Now they are cupping their hands over the receiver and carrying on talking."
Father Madonna said that before having the device installed, he had sought the advice of the local police, who gave him the all clear to set up the jammer.
The priest's plan worked. He now enjoys services with a lot less disruption.
But not everyone is pleased. Local store owners complain that the jammer interferes with their credit card readers.
One storekeeper said, "Since Father Madonna started using the jammer, I've had real problems using my card swiper for payments.
"It just doesn't work and I'm losing money. Others are in the same position. I understand how he feels, but what about us? This is our busiest time of the year."
An online study conducted last year by the market research firm Harris Interactive for the mobile company Jumio found out that one in five Americans use their phone in church.
While the legality of using jammers differ by country, more church leaders might consider using the devices and follow Father Madonna's cue if people prove unable to part with their phones for even just a short moment of worship.
