Beyond Paradise: Technology and the Kingdom of God

by Jack Clayton Swearengen

Technology is shaping our culture and controlling our lives-for better or for worse. Often, technology's benefits far outweigh its negative impacts, and technological advances can seem boundless. But the scientific-technological worldview tends to override other value systems. Indeed, this technological way of thinking has influenced many contemporary ideas, beliefs, values, habits, and ways of communicating. Furthermore, in addition to technology's well-known environmental impacts, social, aesthetic, and spiritual consequences are now emerging. How can we balance positive physical effects of technology with other ambiguous or negative impacts? Some of the decisions we face have no precedent from which to draw wisdom. For this reason, the resources of Scripture and the Christian tradition must be brought to bear on technological How is technology used and abused today? Does technological progress lead to human progress? How can Scripture help us, both individually and collectively, to manage technology's impact in proactive ways? Swearengen uncovers a comprehensive scriptural mandate for managing technology. On his way to a theology of technology, he evaluates which advances are moving society in directions consistent with God's purposes. Beyond Technology and the Kingdom of God aims to provide practical means for assessing technology's influence and for steering technology and its effects toward biblical ends.

364 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2007

Reviews

[Prabhav Reddy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Technology has improved human lives dramatically. Technology has changed human lives for the worse in many areas. Jack Clayton Swearengen, who is a career engineer and a engineering educator, explores the diversity of effects of engineering on human lives in this book and explored what it means to develop/practice engineering as a Christian. His conclusion is that as Christian engineers we need to evaluate the impact of the technology we develop not just in terms of the profits it makes for our clients but in a more wholistic manner - including environmental, spiritual, social impacts of the technology. He recommends using the techniques of Sustainability Engineering and Industrial Ecology to this end, and compares engineering to medicine in alleviating the effects of the fall in the world.

Quote: "The philanthropic moral purpose of engineering is to mitigate the effects of the fall from grace, by relieving burdensome toil and providing food, shelter, and material needs. More pragmatically, engineering achievements can provide substantial healing of the creation from the damage that resulted from the fall. In this sense engineering can be a Godly pursuit." p. 308