The Pope wants you to put away your goddamn iPhone during dinner

Put away your phones, tablets, laptops, smartwatches, TVs, etc. — at least while you eat. Amen.

“Sadly the family meal, this great symbol of togetherness, is disappearing in some societies,” and we have technology to blame, said Pope Francis earlier this week to pilgrims from all over the world at St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican.

The Catholic church leader often takes a surprisingly liberal position on topics, but one modern thing he cannot stand is your habit of texting-and-dining. He called on the congregation to shut down tech devices that prevent them from spending quality time with their families at the dinner table, the Catholic News Agency reported.

“A family that almost never eats together, or that never speaks at the table but looks at the television or the smartphone, is hardly a family,” he added. “When children at the table are attached to the computer or the phone and don’t listen to each other, this is not a family, this is a pensioner!”

On that note, since you are probably reading this while stuffing a breakfast sandwich into your mouth, put down your phone, smile, and go tell someone “good morning.”

Editor’s note: Then get back to reading VentureBeat.