This seminar was first delivered at the African Enterprise Leadership Training Centre in July 2010. The overarching objective was to interpret the value of technology through the eyes of faith.
The complete course material, including an extensive mind map, videos and student workbook, is attached below. Note that the mind map used to structure the whole seminar (it was projected on a screen the whole time) requires the free XMind software.
Outline
In this three-day seminar, we will critique the role of technology in society from a Christian standpoint. What is technology and how should we respond to it? We will review the history of technology, including attitudes towards technology in the Bible. We’ll look at many examples of technology in today’s world and peer into the future. One particular example will be the possibility of artificial intelligence and how it might change our understanding of what it means to be human. In group discussions, we will consider some of the ethical challenges posed by modern technology. Demonstrations of Internet tools will highlight practical applications for current technology in Christian ministry.
Relevance
This seminar will be relevant to Christians who feel swept along by the fast-moving swell of technological change and who want some framework for distinguishing the good from the bad. This seminar will lend a hand to those who feel they are drowning. It will also help the technologically literate to think more critically and spiritually about the value of new technologies, and will provide pointer for church leaders seeking to harness the internet in ministry.
Format
Lecture, visual examples and demonstrations, small group discussions.
Topics
The seminar included 14 sessions, each roughly 1.5 hours, spread over three days. Each day commenced with devotions and prayer so that all our discussions were set in the context of worship.
Day 1:
- Overview: What is Technology?
- History of technology – Past and Present
- Technology in the Bible
- Harnessing the Internet for ministry (I)
- Reflections on each others’ experience of technology
Day 2:
- The relationship between social and technological change
- Questions of ethics
- The range of responses to technology
- Artificial intelligence and what it means to be human
- Harnessing the Internet for ministry (II)
- Online gaming
Day 3:
- Future of technology
- Harnessing the Internet for ministry (III)
- Pray for each other, the church and the world