Book: Samuel D. James, Digital Liturgies: Rediscovering Christian Wisdom in an Online Age (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2023)
Have you felt enslaved by your phone? Do you find yourself reaching for it first thing in the morning, unlocking it and then wondering, "Why am I doing this?" Are you a little scared of looking at your 'screen time' report for the week? How many reels do you watch a day? Why do these little videos seem to leave us both entertained and empty? You may have lots of online interactions and friends, but why do you feel more distant from others than ever before?
Samuel James' book Digital Liturgies acts as a guide to help you navigate answering these questions. We know that digital technology is shaping the way we think, interact and behave, but is the answer to go Amish? Do we all need to go back to Nokias and dump our iPhones? James begins not with calls to go back to the so-called Dark Ages, but by explaining biblical wisdom. Wisdom is harmonising with reality; it goes 'with the grain' of what God has revealed to be true of Himself, ourselves and the world. All technology communicates to us what life should be like and what we should be capable of. Thus, biblical wisdom connects with digital technology because digital technology shapes us to think of ourselves as existing outside of our bodies; outside of reality. Digital technology distorts reality, thus putting us on a path that without wisdom, we will begin seeing the world differently to how God has revealed.
Also, technology that relates to our communication (language-based tools that aid in speaking and/or reading) have the power to shape and change the way we learn and think. One such result is that instead of caring about whether something is true, we are more concerned about how our beliefs reflect on us to others. Thus, digital technology encourages us to outsource our thinking to the crowd. Social media becomes, then, a volatile place of protecting one's own tribe and maintaining one's own status within it than a genuine search for truth. The Bible, by contrast, encourages us not only to think in community, but to think carefully and truthfully.
James argues that the internet is the greatest agent of democratisation in human history. Democratisation is the process by which people of ordinary means are able to access things which would ordinarily only be available to those of extraordinary means. The internet allows us to travel anywhere, talk to anyone and do anything virtually. The fallout is that digital technology fuels our expressive individualism. How we construct ourselves online becomes how we see ourselves, and others are forced to see and accept that reality.
Perhaps one of the most well-known facts about the internet is that its most visited sites are pornographic; the internet itself is pornographically shaped. It is a technology that feeds novelty (seeking something new to entertain), isolation and consumption. Digital technology fuels a lust-like desire for a greater high through infinitely scrolling or refreshing our feeds, reels and Tik Tok videos.
What has proved most helpful about James' book is his measured and considered advice to Christians about handling digital technology. Two particular things stand out. First, James reasons that there are great opportunities to reach people with the gospel. Social-media mob mentality and a 'cancel' culture exposes our deep sense of shame. We need something or someone to take our sense of indwelling sin. Thus, if we don't look to Jesus as the only One to take our sin and remove our guilt, we tend to try and make ourselves feel better by lashing out at the sins of others. Calling out other people makes us feel that we're not capable of or have committed similar things; it generates self-righteousness. It also creates a deep sense of fear that one day we might be called out! As Christians, we come with the gospel which declares that we are sinners under God's righteous judgement, but in Jesus' Person and Work we're given the double-cure: cleansing from sin's guilt and power. This is good news for sinners who fear being exposed and are retreating to the flimsy, fig-leaf covering of their own works.
Second, James points out the importance of thinking, meditating in the Christian life. Digital technology can leave us distracted, discontent and dislocated. However, verses like Philippians 4:6-8 provide the tonic: a thought life characterised by what is truly praiseworthy, springing from a heart that finds its worries quieted by the peace of God.
If you've been wondering why people seem to think and reason differently, if you're concerned about the influence of digital technology in the hands of your children or grandchildren, if you're weighing up deleting your preferred social media app on your phone for the umpteenth time – this is the book for you. James' writing is honest, clear, refreshing and challenging.
- Joel Otten
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