Technology, Interrupted

May 16, 2012 by James Faulconer

Continued from Page 2

When the world reveals itself as God's creation, when something reveals itself as uniquely itself, when I encounter another person as both other than me and a person, my experience of the world as merely technological is interrupted. By showing us a God beyond our mortal world, religion makes all these revelations possible.

Perhaps put too simplistically, Heidegger's answer to the problem of technology is the beautiful. If we can be saved, the beautiful will save us from a world that threatens to annihilate humanity, whether by nuclear burst, by environmental disaster, by turning us all into things in reserve for use in circulating powers, or by some combination of those possibilities.

But Jews and Christians reply that it isn't only the beautiful that can interrupt the truth of technology to reveal a prior, deeper truth. Salvation from technological disaster comes in the conjunction of the true, the beautiful, and the good—types of the True, the Beautiful, and the Good.

Grace, that which is good for nothing but itself, is the word that Heidegger has overlooked but that we must remember, not merely by keeping it in mind, but by instantiating the recognition of its appearance in the world through our lives as God's children.

Page: 3 of 3

12/2/2022 9:09:22 PM

Mormon

Speaking Silence

Art

Beauty

grace

History

Philosophy

Technology

Mormonism

more at patheos

Whose Vision of Human Flourishing Reflects The Common Good?

Dennis Knapp

The Beautiful World under the Ocean Declares God’s Glory

Randy Alcorn

When Jesus Seems Distant

Frank Viola

Mortal Kombat 2: Can Video Game Movies Save Us?

Coyle Neal

About James Faulconer

James Faulconer is a Richard L. Evans Professor of Religious Understanding at Brigham Young University, where he has taught philosophy since 1975.

Patheos Logo Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Subscription Support Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In

Follow Patheos