With a little tweaking, this NYTimes article could run in The Onion, although what the author of the article fails to realize is that the Church is universal, and mass intentions go all over the place as a matter of course…if I donate to a missionary order and request Mass intentions, that means a priest in another country might well be responding to that request. Big deal.

In Kerala, a state on the southwestern coast with one of the largest concentrations of Christians in India, churches often receive intentions from overseas. The Masses are conducted in Malayalam, the native language. The intention – often a prayer for the repose of the soul of a deceased relative, or for a sick family member, thanksgiving for a favor received, or a prayer offering for a newborn – is announced at Mass.

The requests are mostly routed to Kerala’s churches through the Vatican, the bishops or through religious bodies. Rarely, prayer requests come directly to individual priests.

While most requests are made via mail or personally through traveling clergymen, a significant number arrive via e-mail, a sign that technology is expediting this practice.