Technology and Religion

"The continued expansion of technology will only bring the messages to us. … [But it is] the challenge of each individual and family … to internalize the messages of the gospel." L. Tom Perry, Ensign, May 2000, 23.

Technology has provided us with floods of quality information. Gospel messages can now be accessed from almost anywhere in the world in hundreds of different languages. Scriptures can be read online as well as talks by men of God. Using technology to learn more about the gospel can help us draw closer to God. How we choose to use the resources available to us will define our beliefs and priorities. I feel that it is important to make good use of these technology resources by internalizing the information out there and then letting others know what it means to me, so that they can also learn from whatever insights I may have received.

Writing about Writing

Writing is very useful in many instances for getting your ideas out there to the general public. There are quite a few instances where well thought out and well written words can mean the difference between failure and success. An example where good writing is important would be the President's State of the Union Address. In a situation where you're leading a country in which times certainly could be a lot better and you can't please anyone, the truth really isn't your friend. Political speech writers want to paint a new picture and outlook with every speech and shrug off accountability for all those failed promises of the past. Forget about how that hydrogen economy is coming along and all of the other "solutions" to our problems that have been proposed. Instead let's focus on diversions and blame all of our woes on terrorism and other forces beyond our control.

In order to be taken seriously writing should be well thought out and nicely written. In many situations, however, unscripted honesty is more interesting. I occasionally tune in to Off the Hook with Emmanuel Goldstein. The subject catches my interest since it's about technology and how it affects us today. Listeners call in with questions or something interesting to say about what's going on in our world involving technology. In one episode the hosts were forced into another studio that didn't have the ability to screen calls with the usual five minutes in advance that most live shows require. They just improvised and gave the entire show without callers. Emmanuel often blamed mistakes or bad content on the writer's strike. which is hilarious given that the show is obviously not scripted. The subject of the content is more interesting and important when you can tell that it's genuine.

Technology promises to bring floods of information to our fingertips, facilitate social networking and provide previously unheard of conveniences. Will these advances really revolutionize the way we live our lives? No matter how much our surroundings change we will still have the same basic needs. Henry David Thoreau's words "All our inventions are but improved means to an unimproved end," are even more applicable today. Taking in and adapting new technology to one's advantage without letting it distract us from what's important is certainly a challenge faced by todays generation. In his article "Five Things We Need to Know About Technological Change," Neil Postman says, "For every advantage a new technology offers there is always a corresponding disadvantage." For example television has brought us distance learning and hours of entertainment with all sorts of programs. Are these shows only serving to provide us with watered down versions of the real thing? One can watch shows about survival, outdoor adventures or wild animals all they want and still not know much about those subjects. Changing technology will require us to adapt, but a lot of things will stay the same.

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