{"id":789,"date":"2009-06-09T04:01:33","date_gmt":"2009-06-09T04:01:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/markdroberts\/2009\/06\/technology-and-theology-your-ideas.html"},"modified":"2009-06-09T04:01:33","modified_gmt":"2009-06-09T04:01:33","slug":"technology-and-theology-your-ideas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2009\/06\/technology-and-theology-your-ideas.html","title":{"rendered":"Technology and Theology: Your Ideas"},"content":{"rendered":"

I have been asked to write an article on technology and theology for Outcomes<\/em>, a magazine for leaders published by the Christian Leadership Alliance.
\nThe timing of this request seems to be providential. The cover of this week\u2019s Time Magazine<\/em> features an iPhone that features a tweet (a Twitter entry). That tweet proclaims: \u201cI\u2019ve written this week\u2019s TIME cover story<\/a> about how Twitter is changing the way we live\u2013and showing us the future of innovation. Buy a copy!\u201d
\nThe iPhone is making its own news today, not only as a platform for Twitter. Apple announced the released of the iPhone 3GS for 3GSpeed. Now the wildly popular iPhone will process information even more rapidly, as well as offering improved photography and video capabilities.
\nAnd so it goes, day after day after day. Like it or not, technology is changing the way we live.
\nSo how should we think about this from a theological perspective? Is technological development good, evil, or a mix of the two? How can we know?
\nA few weeks ago Time<\/em> included a story on the use of Twitter in church<\/a>.\u00a0 Increasing numbers of churches are encouraging worshipers to twitter during church. Congregational tweets are projected on a screen during the service. How should we evaluate this from a biblical perspective?
\n(A note on Twitter vocabulary.”Twitter” is the name of the whole deal.\u00a0 You’ll often see the participle “Twittering,” which implies that “to Twitter” [or lower case, “twitter”] is the verb that describes one who uses Twitter to post information online. A “tweet” is a Twitter post. You’ll also see the verb “to tweet” as in “to put up a Twitter post.” Right now there seems to be a battle between the verbs “to twitter” and “to tweet” for the best verb to use for Twittering. One of Twitter’s founders said that “to twitter” was better because it was clearer in meaning.)
\nIn the days to come, I\u2019ll share with you some of my thoughts about technology and theology. I will not put up my article for Outcomes, since that needs to be a previously unpublished piece. But I will let you in on some of my musings.
\nAt this point, however, I\u2019m interested in your musings. How should we think theologically about technology? Given that the Bible doesn\u2019t have much to say about Twitter, or the Internet, or computers, or transistors, or electricity, or, well, you get the point, what biblical themes might be relevant to our use of technology?
\nAs always, I\u2019m encouraging you to contribute your thoughts by way of adding comments to my blog. If you prefer, you can email me. Let me know what you think about technology and theology.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I have been asked to write an article on technology and theology for Outcomes, a magazine for leaders published by the Christian Leadership Alliance. The timing of this request seems to be providential. The cover of this week\u2019s Time Magazine features an iPhone that features a tweet (a Twitter entry). That tweet proclaims: \u201cI\u2019ve written…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":214,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-789","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-holy-week-easter"],"yoast_head":"\nTechnology and Theology: Your Ideas - Mark D. Roberts<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2009\/06\/technology-and-theology-your-ideas.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Technology and Theology: Your Ideas - Mark D. Roberts\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I have been asked to write an article on technology and theology for Outcomes, a magazine for leaders published by the Christian Leadership Alliance. The timing of this request seems to be providential. The cover of this week\u2019s Time Magazine features an iPhone that features a tweet (a Twitter entry). 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Roberts","description":"Mark D. Roberts: Thoughtfully Christian Reflections on Jesus, the Church, and the World","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/1ff094a57b7e41f534434b1723df3d73","name":"Mark D. Roberts","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","caption":"Mark D. Roberts"},"description":"The Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a pastor, author, retreat leader, speaker, and blogger. Since October 2007 he has been the Senior Director and Scholar-in-Residence for Laity Lodge, a multifaceted ministry in the Hill Country of Texas. Before coming to Laity Lodge, he was for sixteen years the Senior Pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church in Irvine, California (a city in Orange County about forty miles south of Los Angeles). Before his time at Irvine Pres, Mark served on the staff of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood as Associate Pastor of Education. (Thanks to Janel Pahl for taking the photo to the right.) Mark studied at Harvard University, receiving a B.A. in Philosophy, an M.A. in the Study of Religion, and a Ph.D. in New Testament and Christian Origins. He has taught classes in New Testament for Fuller Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary. Mark has written several books, including No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer (WaterBrook, 2005), Dare to Be True (WaterBrook, 2003), Jesus Revealed (WaterBrook, 2002), After \"I Believe\" (Baker, 2002), and Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (Word, 1993). His most recent book is Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (Crossway, 2007). He is currently working on a commentary on Ephesians that will be published by Zondervan in 2014. Mark writes a devotional for The High Calling of Our Daily Work, a website associated with Laity Lodge. His \"Daily Reflections\" can be viewed online or sent as a daily email. If you wish to receive this email, just visit TheHighCalling.org and sign up. Mark serves on the editorial board of Worship Leader magazine, where he publishes articles and reviews, including his regular column \"Lyrical Poetry.\" Additionally, he has published dozens of articles in leading magazines and journals. He often speaks for churches and other Christian groups, and has been interviewed on over seventy-five radio programs nationwide. Mark is married to Linda, who is a Marriage and Family Therapist, a Spiritual Director, and a retreat speaker. They have two children, Nathan and Kara.For Publicity Photos and Bio Statements for Mark, please check here. Mark's Dossier Professional History: Senior Director and Scholar-in Residence, Laity Lodge, October 2007 to present. Senior Pastor Irvine Presbyterian Church, June 1991 to September 2007 Adjunct Assistant Professor Fuller Theological Seminary, 1994 to 2007. Courses: New Testament Theology and Exegesis. Adjunct Instructor San Francisco Theological Seminary, 1995 to 2001. Courses: New Testament Greek and Exegesis Associate Pastor of Education First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, 1987-1991 Teaching Fellow Harvard University, 1980-1983 Education: Ph.D. in the Study of Religion. Harvard University, 1992. Area: New Testament and Christian Origins M.A. in the Study of Religion Harvard University, 1984. A.B. magna cum laude in Philosophy Harvard University, 1979. Phi Beta Kappa; Danforth Fellowship Books: Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Crossway, 2007 No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer. WaterBrook, 2005 Dare to Be True: Living in the Freedom of Complete Honesty. WaterBrook, 2003. Jesus Revealed: Know Him Better to Love Him Better. WaterBrook, 2002. After \"I Believe\": Experiencing Authentic Christian Living. Baker, 2002. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther in the Communicator's Commentary Series. Word, 1993. Contacting Mark: You can reach Mark at: E-mail: mark@markdroberts.com mroberts@laitylodge.org Phone: Laity Lodge: (830) 792-1216 Address: Laity Lodge 719 Earl Garrett Kerrville, TX 78028","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/author\/mroberts"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/789","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/214"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=789"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/789\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=789"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=789"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=789"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}