In an attempt to attract young people to church rites, an Italian priest has decided to celebrate mass in a slot machine venue. Don Duilio Testa, from Trasacco, came up with this idea after the realization that getting youngsters to mass is becoming harder and harder as years go by.

“The idea came to me as the youth are estranged from the church. The young people choose another way of life, other places for meetings and communication. This can be discos or gambling halls where they are without their parents and feel themselves comfortable," priest Don Duilio commented.

The experience turned out to be successful, since teenagers left the slot machines and games and helped Don Duilio in the preparations for mass. Some of them agreed, and even volunteered, to read passages during the celebration and seemed really interested in attending.

“The holy mass was held in unusual silence and was heard with great attention,” the priest explained. He also added that he intends to choose similar venues in the future to continue serving mass in this unconventional way.