One of the things that I like about many Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches – that is, the really old ones –  is the purity of form and function. Everything from the stained glass to the arrangement of the seating, to even the weight of the doors, conveys to you some sense that you aren’t in a normal space. And of course, I’m always smiling when I see a sign asking people to please put their mobiles on silent when even visiting. Sound carries, and its jarring to the environment when something breaks that experience of those forms and moments.

In much the same way, I look at augmented reality (AR) as a step towards reclaiming some of that purity of the forms and environments around us. AR is a technology that utilizes the camera, GPS, Internet connection, and sometimes even surrounding sounds, to augment the view in front of you with a digital layer. This layer could be something as simple as a compass point for directing you to a destination, or could be more involved such as a game board across which two people are playing a game that can only be seen through the screens on their mobiles. In any effect, there’s an attempt to not litter the visual space with marketing or other data, but to leave your ability to see it as part of the treasure.

Recently, a company that specializes in AR technologies – Layar – released a new product called Layar Vision. From their website:

Layar Vision allows the creation of layers and applications that recognize real world objects and display digital experiences on top of them… Layar Vision uses detection, tracking and computer vision techniques to augment objects in the physical world. It can tell which objects in the real world are augmented because the visual fingerprints of the objects are preloaded into the application based on the user’s layer selection.

So, you in effect get something that’s a step beyond what we’ve seen with QR codes and MS Tag – there’s a recognition of objects in the real world, and then on top of those objects is something additional, something digital. In just watching the video, it seems pretty neat and something that could come in handy in some situations (though, if I had a computer in my glasses, I’m sure that I’d be using this like a fighter pilot uses their heads-up-display).

Now, about those churches and environments. Some more modern churches (than what I referenced earlier) have a different simplicity to their designs. Sure, there is this “Apple-like ethos” about the with gradients, lighting effects, and the occasional whiteboard with something scribbled on it near an office door. But, generally speaking, the worship space looks cluttered. Could AR technologies like Layar Vision point to a different using of the space than what we do now?

For example, imagine that there was a small group that wanted to meet on the beach for a concert. However, the performer was actually doing the concert overseas. Those who had the URL would be able to enjoy the concert as many would a YouTube video now, passively watching. Or, they could take a route with Layar Vision where they’d go to a specific spot on the beach and then the concert would be “projected” in front of them seen only through their mobile’s cameras, but able also to be listened to through their headphones. And depending on where they were standing, they’d experience the concert differently. When a certain number of people congregated to the same spot for this, a digital sign would appear over their heads, again, only viewable by Layar Vision or something similar. You’d have people enjoying a “silent” concert, but a means for people to find out what’s going on and even join them.

Now, I could imagine the reaction to this scene. It would probably look a lot like the reaction that the apostles received after that incident with the flaming tongues and them talking a bit differently than normal (Acts 2).

AR, at least how it can be looked at, gives us the ability to see things differently, and probably get back to appreciating environments and forms that we would normally find littered with much visual distractions. We might be a ways away from a scenario like the above being normal, but I do wonder what we’ll see when we do get there.