Society

Impact of technology on Christians

“Everyday technology has social ramifications,” says Ian Packer, the new Director of Public Theology at Australian Evangelical Alliance, as he explains the importance of face-to-face relationships in communicating how the Gospel transforms the lives of those who are spreading it.

“Everyday technology has social ramifications,” says Ian Packer, the new Director of Public Theology at Australian Evangelical Alliance, as he explains the importance of face-to-face relationships in communicating how the Gospel transforms the lives of those who are spreading it.

Packer proposes that we give more attention to ‘everyday-technology’, those human-made devices--such as television, mobile phones, computers and the internet--used in our daily life, that often have ‘trade-offs’ of which we are unaware.

“I don’t think most people, including Christians, understand the trade-off that tends to happen when we are involved with a particular technology. Although some Christians might be critical of the amount of television some people watch or the content of certain programs, they tend to see television itself as a neutral medium. They tend not see the inherent problems that come with the introduction of television into our homes along with the benefits.”

The inbuilt problems of particular technologies are often not recognised by the inventors either, explained Packer, since inventors tend to be focused on fulfilling a particular purpose rather than looking at wider social ramifications. Often it is only through hindsight, he said, that problems and unexpected impacts are discovered.

Even though a particular technology can rarely be described as ‘wicked’ or ‘evil’, its usage should nonetheless be a topic of discussion among the wider Christian community, he continued. “In fact, the more enthusiastic we are about what a technology gives us, the more discerning we should be about what it may be eroding or taking away.” Is it saving time or using it? Does it divert our attention from those around us? Does it increase our attention span or lessen it? And so on.

Using the Amish community as an example, Packer corrected the popular misconception that they were ‘anti-technology.’ Rather, he said, they were careful in deciding whether and it what ways they might use a particular technology by discussing it in a whole community setting instead of just letting an individual ‘wilfully’ and ‘recklessly’ use it.

Importance of Face-to-Face communication in evangelism
Extending the discussion further with Christian Today Australia, Packer then moved on to the issue of evangelism and emphasised the importance of face-to-face relationships rather than the Internet.

A common assumption held by modern Christians, he said, was the idea that we must always use the latest ‘gimmick’ to advance the evangelistic cause. Before presuming a communication medium was ‘neutral’, he said, it was important to ask whether every form of media was equally helpful in communicating the gospel and its implications.

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