Sabbath - A Time to Unplug
God intended the Sabbath as a time to unplug from our own agendas, so that we might be free to consider God’s agenda. When we unplug we are free to rejoice in the abundance that is provided in the garden of creation. This may be the greatest challenge to post-modern people, some of whom seem hopelessly tethered to technology.
Fifteen years ago, I wrote an article entitled “Welcoming Machines into the Garden.” In this article, I pondered the fate of a modern Adam sitting before multiple screens and mechanized creatures of his naming: viruses, worms, and even an Apple. With all this virtual fun who needs Eve? I envisioned a day when we could wage war like a video game. I wondered if people might begin to prefer the satisfaction and control that comes from life with machines. At that time I did not imagine how dependent we might become. Now we even use machines to manage daily human interactions and to eliminate the messiness of “RL” (digital speak for “real life”).
Fast forward fifteen years... Everyday, technologists share more ways that machines can do things for us, but seldom do they ask what machines are doing TO us? We google every question on our minds and we spend more time each day operating machines than we spend doing any other activity, including sleep. In her latest study, Alone Together, Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other, Sherry Turkle questions the state of our dependence on machines. (Of course, I purchased the book online and read it on my pc kindle).
Have we become enslaved to the fruit from the digital tree of knowledge? One young leader in a parish recently shared with me a simple hope that the church could “Help me unplug.” This young canary in the digital coal mine named the dilemma for many of us. We have become tethered to gadgets which promise life in abundance, so long as we stay plugged in to the digital matrix. This is a serious challenge for a pastor who sits through a meeting anxiously while simultaneously checking his phone for texts and emails, and excuses himself repeatedly for calls. Certainly he is not the only one in the room suffering from the delusion that multi-tasking equals productivity and time saving.
It is we, not God, who brought machines into the garden. And new studies are documenting the shocking symptoms in this clinical disease. Consider the suggestion listed below not only as common sense clues to staying on good terms with other people. They also represent essential spiritual disciplines for balance in life and respect for those that God has put into our lives. In keeping these commitments, we honor Sabbath and the God who calls us to be in “RL” relationship with each other.
Consider what a commitment to the following would mean to you, to those in the meetings that you conduct and even to the most important relationships in your life:
1. I will not tag someone on Facebook or take another's picture or post that picture online without first asking that person's permission.
2. I will silence my device(s) during meals, prayers, meetings or visits, so that I am not distracted from the people with whom I am present. This will allow me to devote my complete attention to them.
3. While speaking with another person, I will refrain from taking a call or replying to a text message (I will not even look at it until after I have finished my conversation).
4. If I am expecting an urgent call or text, I will advise whoever I am talking with and I will excuse myself for the interruption if it does come through.
5. When I accept a call in public and there are people close by, I will excuse myself to a place where I can talk without disturbing others. I will also use a moderate voice so that my conversation is not disruptive to others around me.
6. When I am in a presentation or class, I will attend to the speaker and not send texts, Facebook, or tweet. To do so would contradict my commitment to learning and be disrespectful to the presenter and those around me who are keeping that commitment.
7. When driving, I will only answer urgent calls (using a hands-free enabled device) and I will never text while driving. Furthermore, I will pull over for longer conversations or calls that demand my full attention.
Which is the commitments is easiest for you? Which is the greatest challenge for you?
What behavior of others (with mobile technology) offends you most? Why?
Consider:
Do I need an external support to unplug? Try “Freedom” online as one tool that protects your energy for people and limits your time online at http://macfreedom.com/2010/04/freedom-for-windows-2/.
Honor Sabbath by making a weekly examination of conscience using the commitments listed above, perhaps on Sunday evening, in light of the week past and with a view to the week ahead. Why not discuss these ideas with the family, a friend, or a parish group? The chances of succeeding in a commitment to unplug are increased with accountability to someone else.
For activities in living more abundantly once the machines have been turned off, visit www.lifelongfaith.com/living-well-activities.html.
To read more about the risks involved in over-reliance upon technology read Alone Together, Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other (Basic Books, 2011), Sherry Turkle. Also...
Facebook, I Need to See Other People by Courtney Crisp (Busted Halo)
For a presentation to your parish on keeping Sabbath while sharing the garden with machines, contact Dennis Mahaney, 716-847-8393, in the Office of Parish Life.
Fifteen years ago, I wrote an article entitled “Welcoming Machines into the Garden.” In this article, I pondered the fate of a modern Adam sitting before multiple screens and mechanized creatures of his naming: viruses, worms, and even an Apple. With all this virtual fun who needs Eve? I envisioned a day when we could wage war like a video game. I wondered if people might begin to prefer the satisfaction and control that comes from life with machines. At that time I did not imagine how dependent we might become. Now we even use machines to manage daily human interactions and to eliminate the messiness of “RL” (digital speak for “real life”).
Fast forward fifteen years... Everyday, technologists share more ways that machines can do things for us, but seldom do they ask what machines are doing TO us? We google every question on our minds and we spend more time each day operating machines than we spend doing any other activity, including sleep. In her latest study, Alone Together, Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other, Sherry Turkle questions the state of our dependence on machines. (Of course, I purchased the book online and read it on my pc kindle).
Have we become enslaved to the fruit from the digital tree of knowledge? One young leader in a parish recently shared with me a simple hope that the church could “Help me unplug.” This young canary in the digital coal mine named the dilemma for many of us. We have become tethered to gadgets which promise life in abundance, so long as we stay plugged in to the digital matrix. This is a serious challenge for a pastor who sits through a meeting anxiously while simultaneously checking his phone for texts and emails, and excuses himself repeatedly for calls. Certainly he is not the only one in the room suffering from the delusion that multi-tasking equals productivity and time saving.
It is we, not God, who brought machines into the garden. And new studies are documenting the shocking symptoms in this clinical disease. Consider the suggestion listed below not only as common sense clues to staying on good terms with other people. They also represent essential spiritual disciplines for balance in life and respect for those that God has put into our lives. In keeping these commitments, we honor Sabbath and the God who calls us to be in “RL” relationship with each other.
Consider what a commitment to the following would mean to you, to those in the meetings that you conduct and even to the most important relationships in your life:
1. I will not tag someone on Facebook or take another's picture or post that picture online without first asking that person's permission.
2. I will silence my device(s) during meals, prayers, meetings or visits, so that I am not distracted from the people with whom I am present. This will allow me to devote my complete attention to them.
3. While speaking with another person, I will refrain from taking a call or replying to a text message (I will not even look at it until after I have finished my conversation).
4. If I am expecting an urgent call or text, I will advise whoever I am talking with and I will excuse myself for the interruption if it does come through.
5. When I accept a call in public and there are people close by, I will excuse myself to a place where I can talk without disturbing others. I will also use a moderate voice so that my conversation is not disruptive to others around me.
6. When I am in a presentation or class, I will attend to the speaker and not send texts, Facebook, or tweet. To do so would contradict my commitment to learning and be disrespectful to the presenter and those around me who are keeping that commitment.
7. When driving, I will only answer urgent calls (using a hands-free enabled device) and I will never text while driving. Furthermore, I will pull over for longer conversations or calls that demand my full attention.
Which is the commitments is easiest for you? Which is the greatest challenge for you?
What behavior of others (with mobile technology) offends you most? Why?
Consider:
Do I need an external support to unplug? Try “Freedom” online as one tool that protects your energy for people and limits your time online at http://macfreedom.com/2010/04/freedom-for-windows-2/.
Honor Sabbath by making a weekly examination of conscience using the commitments listed above, perhaps on Sunday evening, in light of the week past and with a view to the week ahead. Why not discuss these ideas with the family, a friend, or a parish group? The chances of succeeding in a commitment to unplug are increased with accountability to someone else.
For activities in living more abundantly once the machines have been turned off, visit www.lifelongfaith.com/living-well-activities.html.
To read more about the risks involved in over-reliance upon technology read Alone Together, Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other (Basic Books, 2011), Sherry Turkle. Also...
Facebook, I Need to See Other People by Courtney Crisp (Busted Halo)
For a presentation to your parish on keeping Sabbath while sharing the garden with machines, contact Dennis Mahaney, 716-847-8393, in the Office of Parish Life.
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