This post made me think a lot about the state of Christian tech criticism. Thanks for writing it, Samuel.
First, I think the "gaps" aren't as wide as you'd say.
John Dyer covered the language aspect of technology in both editions of his book. The eschatological dimension was covered by Tony Reinke in some detail. Jason Thacker built his whole book on technology around love of neighbour. These are three of the leading books on Christian technology criticism. Perhaps you're thinking of Andy Crouch? But even there, his works on Culture Making and The Life We're Looking For do the kind of thing you're asking for here (eschatological in the former and love in the latter). I barely would put Morrell's book in the category of Christian technology criticism because her Christian views are implicit rather than explicit in that book.
In the podcast world, our What Would Jesus Tech podcast has covered everything you've referenced here in detail, with episodes on each point you've made (multiple, actually). I think the podcast Device and Virtue has pretty much covered everything you've referenced here as well. Same with the podcast Hope in Source, though I'm less sure about that one.
Second, should every tech book say everything?
Your Digital Liturgies book doesn't cover a biblical understanding of technology either, but I'm not going to critique it for something it wasn't written to say. Yes, there can be a way of stating a certain tech approach as "the Christian view" when in reality it isn't core to Christianity. But that's common in all Christian writing (it's almost a byproduct of all moral reasoning) and it's why so much has been written on theological triage. And I just don't think most Christian tech books present themselves as "this is the only way to assess technology," do they? Is it really that much of a gap?
Let's celebrate the current cohort of Christian tech writers
I have noticed a tendency in myself to try to act like I have the best vantage point on "the state of Christian tech criticism." I don't. You may have better insight then me into this world. If you wanted, you could share which books, articles, or podcasts that you're thinking of. I'm encouraged by the works of Alan Noble, Alastair Roberts, yourself, Clare Morrell, and the ones I listed above. I could list ten more: Michael Sacasas, Nathan Sutherland, Jay Y. Kim, Wyatt Graham, Bonnie Kristian, Dave Betts, John Perritt, Chris Martin, and Paul A. Hoffman & Sean O'Callaghan. This space has a ton of great writers and I celebrate them all.
My overall response to your article is that if you want to be nit-picky you can find these gaps in some Christian technology books. But overall I think these gaps aren't that wide and have actually been mostly filled by good Christian writers.
I might be too positive. Our diverging views of the state of Christian tech criticism may have more to do with our different personalities than anything else (I can be too much of a people-pleaser).
Hey Andrew, thanks for the note. I'm sorry if this article came off as critical and dismissive (as your response makes me think it might have). It's intended to be an encouragement toward maturity in the space, rather than a lament of most of the people in it. Digital LIturgies was certainly not a robustly theological book, and I hope I didn't imply that it set the standard (although, again, your comment makes me think that impression have might come across).
I will say, though: The fact that you mention three different authors in your first paragraph, as having covered specific aspects of what I'm talking about, is in fact evidence of what I'm talking about. The three things mentioned in this piece are things I would love to see permeate Christian tech discourse, not things I'm content to see parceled out to a dozen different writers.
I tried to take your claim as face value rather than assume it as dismissive. I'm trying to assess your claim of whether or not there are actual gaps which exist and how wide they are.
I also don't hold your book to be the standard. My point in bringing it up is to illustrate that not every book needs to say everything. Not every Christian technology book needs to discuss eschatology in detail nor theological triage in detail, just as yours does not (if I recall correctly).
John Dyer has covered all three of your points. He has a CT article on technology in heaven and discusses it in his book. I listed multiple authors to demonstrate multiple authors write on this.
I think we are talking past each other a little bit.
Dyer's work is valuable. It is also somewhat niche. From the Garden to the City is now 6 years old and has sold modestly. I don't see much evidence that many other writers are following his lead and weaving those insights into their criticism. Instead, it seems more likely that those insights show up sporadically, stretched across a varied collection of tech critics.
More integration of the three things into Christian tech criticism in general is the idea here. But nothing here is meant to imply that these three things are totally absent from the literature. The title was intentional: "A Lot of," not "All."
I wouldn’t say we’re speaking past each other. I’ve learned a lot more about the nature/scope of your argument. And we agree on much. More Christian writing on tech should center on a biblical view of technology and properly apply theological triage.
Thanks for this, Samuel. Good points here. I'm sure the book on life in the digital age I wrote with Robin Phillips (Are We All Cyborgs Now?) makes some of these mistakes, but we do have a lengthy chapter that tries to develop a biblical theology of technology from Genesis to Revelation.
"Similarly, the eschatological direction of technology in the Bible’s story is significant. For example, in Isaiah, the coming of God’s kingdom and the pilgrimage of the nations to Zion to learn the ways of the Lord is marked by the repurposing of weapons into farm tools. This would seem to suggest that there is a moral shape to human technology: Some tech is fit for life in God’s presence, and some is not."
While the idea expressed in the last sentence is an interesting one, I'm not sure if the example provided is evidence for it. Perhaps it's a distinction without a difference because the end effect is the same, but the repurposing of weapons into farm tools in God's kingdom seems to be less because God finds weapons abhorrent and more because weapons have no purpose there, because there is nothing one needs to defend oneself against. Though perhaps I'm misunderstanding what you mean by "fit for life in God's presence."
To your first point: Tony Reinke offers a theology of technology in his book "God, Technology, and the Christian Life" not just based on digital media and smartphones, but in more general ways. For example, he analyses the technology of agriculture tools, blacksmiths and city building (Babel).
Thanks for this. I confess I have been guilty of this. So, I have been trying to go deeper theologically in my own writing. For example, I am trying to finish a book that will be published independently called "A Theology of Technology." One aspect I am exploring is how God gave specific directions on how to build the temple in terms of materials, dimensions, layout, etc. This has lead me to think about technology not simply as a tool but as a way of thinking to explore purpose and spiritual formation. What is the purpose of the smartphone? What is the purpose of refrigerators? What is the purpose of the Temple? How does that purpose help me in my understanding of God?
This post made me think a lot about the state of Christian tech criticism. Thanks for writing it, Samuel.
First, I think the "gaps" aren't as wide as you'd say.
John Dyer covered the language aspect of technology in both editions of his book. The eschatological dimension was covered by Tony Reinke in some detail. Jason Thacker built his whole book on technology around love of neighbour. These are three of the leading books on Christian technology criticism. Perhaps you're thinking of Andy Crouch? But even there, his works on Culture Making and The Life We're Looking For do the kind of thing you're asking for here (eschatological in the former and love in the latter). I barely would put Morrell's book in the category of Christian technology criticism because her Christian views are implicit rather than explicit in that book.
In the podcast world, our What Would Jesus Tech podcast has covered everything you've referenced here in detail, with episodes on each point you've made (multiple, actually). I think the podcast Device and Virtue has pretty much covered everything you've referenced here as well. Same with the podcast Hope in Source, though I'm less sure about that one.
Second, should every tech book say everything?
Your Digital Liturgies book doesn't cover a biblical understanding of technology either, but I'm not going to critique it for something it wasn't written to say. Yes, there can be a way of stating a certain tech approach as "the Christian view" when in reality it isn't core to Christianity. But that's common in all Christian writing (it's almost a byproduct of all moral reasoning) and it's why so much has been written on theological triage. And I just don't think most Christian tech books present themselves as "this is the only way to assess technology," do they? Is it really that much of a gap?
Let's celebrate the current cohort of Christian tech writers
I have noticed a tendency in myself to try to act like I have the best vantage point on "the state of Christian tech criticism." I don't. You may have better insight then me into this world. If you wanted, you could share which books, articles, or podcasts that you're thinking of. I'm encouraged by the works of Alan Noble, Alastair Roberts, yourself, Clare Morrell, and the ones I listed above. I could list ten more: Michael Sacasas, Nathan Sutherland, Jay Y. Kim, Wyatt Graham, Bonnie Kristian, Dave Betts, John Perritt, Chris Martin, and Paul A. Hoffman & Sean O'Callaghan. This space has a ton of great writers and I celebrate them all.
My overall response to your article is that if you want to be nit-picky you can find these gaps in some Christian technology books. But overall I think these gaps aren't that wide and have actually been mostly filled by good Christian writers.
I might be too positive. Our diverging views of the state of Christian tech criticism may have more to do with our different personalities than anything else (I can be too much of a people-pleaser).
Hey Andrew, thanks for the note. I'm sorry if this article came off as critical and dismissive (as your response makes me think it might have). It's intended to be an encouragement toward maturity in the space, rather than a lament of most of the people in it. Digital LIturgies was certainly not a robustly theological book, and I hope I didn't imply that it set the standard (although, again, your comment makes me think that impression have might come across).
I will say, though: The fact that you mention three different authors in your first paragraph, as having covered specific aspects of what I'm talking about, is in fact evidence of what I'm talking about. The three things mentioned in this piece are things I would love to see permeate Christian tech discourse, not things I'm content to see parceled out to a dozen different writers.
I tried to take your claim as face value rather than assume it as dismissive. I'm trying to assess your claim of whether or not there are actual gaps which exist and how wide they are.
I also don't hold your book to be the standard. My point in bringing it up is to illustrate that not every book needs to say everything. Not every Christian technology book needs to discuss eschatology in detail nor theological triage in detail, just as yours does not (if I recall correctly).
John Dyer has covered all three of your points. He has a CT article on technology in heaven and discusses it in his book. I listed multiple authors to demonstrate multiple authors write on this.
I think we are talking past each other a little bit.
Dyer's work is valuable. It is also somewhat niche. From the Garden to the City is now 6 years old and has sold modestly. I don't see much evidence that many other writers are following his lead and weaving those insights into their criticism. Instead, it seems more likely that those insights show up sporadically, stretched across a varied collection of tech critics.
More integration of the three things into Christian tech criticism in general is the idea here. But nothing here is meant to imply that these three things are totally absent from the literature. The title was intentional: "A Lot of," not "All."
I wouldn’t say we’re speaking past each other. I’ve learned a lot more about the nature/scope of your argument. And we agree on much. More Christian writing on tech should center on a biblical view of technology and properly apply theological triage.
Thanks for this, Samuel. Good points here. I'm sure the book on life in the digital age I wrote with Robin Phillips (Are We All Cyborgs Now?) makes some of these mistakes, but we do have a lengthy chapter that tries to develop a biblical theology of technology from Genesis to Revelation.
"Similarly, the eschatological direction of technology in the Bible’s story is significant. For example, in Isaiah, the coming of God’s kingdom and the pilgrimage of the nations to Zion to learn the ways of the Lord is marked by the repurposing of weapons into farm tools. This would seem to suggest that there is a moral shape to human technology: Some tech is fit for life in God’s presence, and some is not."
While the idea expressed in the last sentence is an interesting one, I'm not sure if the example provided is evidence for it. Perhaps it's a distinction without a difference because the end effect is the same, but the repurposing of weapons into farm tools in God's kingdom seems to be less because God finds weapons abhorrent and more because weapons have no purpose there, because there is nothing one needs to defend oneself against. Though perhaps I'm misunderstanding what you mean by "fit for life in God's presence."
Yes! Also re: #1, Scripture itself is a technology.
To your first point: Tony Reinke offers a theology of technology in his book "God, Technology, and the Christian Life" not just based on digital media and smartphones, but in more general ways. For example, he analyses the technology of agriculture tools, blacksmiths and city building (Babel).
Thanks for this. I confess I have been guilty of this. So, I have been trying to go deeper theologically in my own writing. For example, I am trying to finish a book that will be published independently called "A Theology of Technology." One aspect I am exploring is how God gave specific directions on how to build the temple in terms of materials, dimensions, layout, etc. This has lead me to think about technology not simply as a tool but as a way of thinking to explore purpose and spiritual formation. What is the purpose of the smartphone? What is the purpose of refrigerators? What is the purpose of the Temple? How does that purpose help me in my understanding of God?
Here is an essay I wrote: https://pastortee1.substack.com/p/rootlessness-in-an-age-of-mediated
Thanks for talking about this.