Local Catholics with iPhones no longer have an excuse for missing mass.
The Archdiocese of Vancouver has launched a mobile web application that provides mass times and even maps to all of its churches.
The archdiocese's Paul Schratz acknowledges the faithful are busy, and when they're on the go on Sundays, sometimes mass falls by the wayside.
"If there is one thing that Catholics know is that they have to get to mass on Sunday. So if you're from Surrey and visiting relatives on the North Shore or your kids are playing soccer in Coquitlam, they go onto their iPhone and find out when mass is at the nearest church."
He says producing the app was a natural development, given the mass finder is the most popular feature on the archdiocese website.
He notes Catholics who stop attending church say it's because of their active lives.
"They drift away from the church gradually because they are busy, and they are constantly travelling or working Sunday morning. That's the number one reason they tell us that they drift away from the church."
For now the app is only available for iPhones, iPads and the iPod touch, although an Android version is being considered.