Technology and St. Steve

You might recall when the Apostle Peter was locked in a Roman prison. In the middle of the night an angel came, opened the prison gate, and Peter walked out a free man.

These days we don't need angels; we have OnStar to unlock doors for us.

We also have the iPad.

This is the cover of last week's Economist. Steve Jobs, in full saintly regalia complete with halo, comes out of the clear blue sky and delivers -- not the Ten Commandments -- but the iPad. As he points to this revelation, the lace on his silky prophet's robe features fingers pointing upwards. And St. Steve's smile is not deific; it is more of a smirk.

Religion has traditionally made use of the "shock and awe" of miracles to underscore its legitimacy.

But one side effect of technology is that it has erased much of what was once considered miraculous.

People aren't shocked or awed by much of anything these days. At least not for more than 15 minutes.

After all, we have the iPad.

It would be a fascinating study to correlate declining religious commitment to areas of the world where the fruits of cyber-technology are more readily available.

How to live a life of devotion to the call of Christ in a cyber-age filled with technological miracles? It strikes me there are two factors to remember for a retention of true spirituality.

First, technological "miracles" are those that extend the powers of human mental and physical capacities: more memory, better communication, faster fabrication of utilitarian objects, increased physical comfort, so on. But it doesn't raise people from the dead. In other words, technology might improve quality of life, but it doesn't give new life, everlasting life.

True Christian spirituality has always been about this latter category of reality.

Second, technology doesn't change human moral nature. Indeed, in terms of sheer numbers, more people were murdered in the twentieth century -- most of them by technological innovations not available to previous ages -- than in any century before.

True Christian spirituality has always been about moral beauty from within, not technological prowess from without.

Jesus himself, although He performed miracles, never predicated His message of hope on those miracles. That is because He was not primarily concerned about the betterment of this life, but that the world might have an altogether New Life through His own death and resurrection.

Jesus also knew how fickle people were. Our generation is not the only one that, having seen something visually great, forgets it in about 15 minutes. We are just better at doing it.

Logos2Go

John 20.29 Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Luke 16.31 “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’ ”

John 12.37 Even after Jesus had done all these miraculous signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him.

Acts 12.7 ... 10 And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon [him], and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from [his] hands ... When they were past the first and the second ward, they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city; which opened to them of his own accord: and they went out, and passed on through one street; and forthwith the angel departed from him.