Dublin churches to start using contactless payment for mass collections

Baskets will still be in use for the 'foreseeable future'.

Most of us have attended mass quite a bit and we all know when the collections basket goes around, you awkwardly pass it on. Most of the time we put zero cash in there, mainly because we just always forget to bring change and also because we don't want to give it to the church. Well, that could all soon be changing as card machines are being introduced into churches in Dublin as there has been a decline in mass donations. The Archdiocese of Dublin issued a statement to JOE, and explained why the church is rolling out the new scheme:

"Financial contributions to the Church in Dublin have been in decline for several years for a variety of reasons, including a decline in the number of people attending weekly Mass. "Several initiatives over the past decade have been introduced to improve Diocesan finances such as the establishment of an office for Financial Development some years ago. "Direct debit payments for the family offering (an envelope collection for parishes) has been in place for some time. Currently, we are piloting a new payment method, in a small number of Churches, with card machines in place at the back of the Church to allow parishioners to make a contactless contribution. This is done by a standalone machine. "Later this year we plan to roll out the ability for the majority of parishes to accept card-based payments using a Parish Payments System. "This will cover many transactions such as offerings, pilgrimage payments and will enable parishioners to sign up for recurring contributions. "This will not however, mean an end to the traditional basket collections at Masses which will remain in place for the foreseeable future."