Keeping faith in Second Life

0 Comments | AFP, August, 2007

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) — It is a Friday evening in Second Life and Beth Odets lights Shabbat candles at Temple Beit Israel, which she created in the virtual world a year and a half ago.

"Shabbat Shalom everyone!" Odets says in a typed instant message to animated figures standing patiently in the synagogue.

The congregants appear to be youthful characters, some dressed in hats with horns on them, form-flattering pants, and decorated shirts.

They respond in kind to Odets before candles are lit and a blessing recited.

After a ceremony marking the start of the Jewish holy day, the "avatars" serving as Second Life proxies for real-world people chat about the Torah, Passover, and films.

Second Life had approximately 2,000 residents when Odets built...