I really enjoyed this talk by Father Thomas Hopko that he gave a while back at St Elijah in Oklahoma City. He really brings up some powerful questions for me concerning what it means to be human, and how allowing technology to augment us too drastically may threaten our humanity. His point of view on the end times isn't that things will get "worse" in the way that most people consider it, his suggestion is that people will cease to be human as we try to engineer away every aspect of our humanity that we don't find appealing, yet somehow still attempt to call it Christianity. The verse came to mind "My strength is made perfect in weakness", meaning that at some point I may have to say no to some awesome technology and remain weak, so that I am purposefully human, weak and dependent on God. Not to eschew technology as something evil, but to do so to purposefully guard my reliance upon God as something sacred.
I think there is a ethical and even a biological element to consider to all of this as well. It is wonderful that we live in an age that I can learn to do almost any task by simply youtubing it and mimicking the instructor. The learning curve for so many things has drastically been shortened because of technology, however I can't help but to wonder if we aren't missing out on some other aspects of life that may be just as important, the chaos, uncertainty, and humility that is found when you have to figure something out all on your own, or even depend on some time in prayer to seek the answers.
In what way are we affecting brain development if our brains never experience the terror of that abyss called the unknown? The humiliating aspect of learning something new? That place where we find ourselves reaching out to others and even to God for answers as we try to solve a complicated problem? If technology allows us to overcome that, and we grow accustomed to not having to experience it, will we even endeavor to take on challenges that haven't already been conquered and figured out by someone else? Will we even be physically capable of challenging the status quo to seek something better?
I think there is a ethical and even a biological element to consider to all of this as well. It is wonderful that we live in an age that I can learn to do almost any task by simply youtubing it and mimicking the instructor. The learning curve for so many things has drastically been shortened because of technology, however I can't help but to wonder if we aren't missing out on some other aspects of life that may be just as important, the chaos, uncertainty, and humility that is found when you have to figure something out all on your own, or even depend on some time in prayer to seek the answers.
In what way are we affecting brain development if our brains never experience the terror of that abyss called the unknown? The humiliating aspect of learning something new? That place where we find ourselves reaching out to others and even to God for answers as we try to solve a complicated problem? If technology allows us to overcome that, and we grow accustomed to not having to experience it, will we even endeavor to take on challenges that haven't already been conquered and figured out by someone else? Will we even be physically capable of challenging the status quo to seek something better?
