Cardinals are gathered in the Sistine Chapel, so it must be time to play that new hit online game, "Fantasy Conclave."
"It's a fun game," said creator Michael Marchand. "Hey, come join the Fantasy Conclave. And they're actually getting evangelized and educated about the church in the process."
Michael Marchand works for the social media marketing company eCatholic. He Skyped with us from a Starbucks in Tomball, Texas.
"We kind of stole the idea of Fantasy Football and teamed that up with evangelism," he said.
Here's how it works: Go to FantasyConclave.com, fill in your pick for pope (including the name he'll choose and the date he'll be elected).
It's a little like March Madness brackets, except everyone roots for the cardinals — and no one loses money.
"It's totally free to play, so there's no gambling component," Marchand said. "And when you sign up, you get daily e-mails from us learning about the church."
The winner receives gift cards, a DVD series on Catholicism, and a life-size cutout of Pope Benedict XVI. Marchand said he hasn't heard any reaction yet from the Vatican.
"Well, we haven't got a 'cease and desist' letter yet," Marchand laughed.
In fact, he said priests across the country are tweeting parishioners to sign up and play along with them at FantasyConclave.com.
E-mail jdouglas@wfaa.com
