How does technology make you feel?
Excited? Anxious? Confused?
We see the power of technology throughout all of life, for good and evil, yet always under the redeeming rule of God through Christ Jesus.
Our mission is to help guide people through the challenges and opportunities of life in our disruptive technological world, by applying the beliefs and wisdom of the Christian faith, towards redemption in Christ, for the glory of God.
The Goals of Redeeming Technology
1. Understand the Technological Age
First off, we can only reckon with the challenges posed by technology once we understand what they actually are, and begin to grapple with the complexity of how technology shapes us.
3. Develop a Framework for Redeeming Technology
In order to help our discernment of technology, we need a Biblical and practical framework for evaluating technology. This needs to enable clear, generalised and enduring tests for triaging technology to reject, receive and redeem.
2. Clarify the Biblical Foundations
Next, we need to uncover the core Biblical teaching as it relates to technology, including the sovereignty and purposes of our creator God, and our role as sub-creators under him, the fall, and God’s purposes for technology in this world.
4. Implement within each domain of the Christian Life
Finally, what good is it to listen and understand if we do not act? To avoid technology’s hazards and experience its blessings, we need to act decisively in specific ways within the context of church, work, family, community and personal life.
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The Redeeming Technology Community is intended to provide Christians with a space to explore issues in the relationship between faith, technology and the Christian life together, and to become equipped to navigate our disruptive digital age with confidence and discernment.
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Who’s behind Redeeming Technology?
Tom Bell, PhD
Redeeming Technology is run by Tom - a researcher, writer and follower of Jesus, with a passion to guide people through the challenges of life in this disruptive technological age, with wisdom and faithfulness.
For much of my life, I was unthinkingly bullish on tech: “It’s fantastic! How impressive! Why not!?”. As my expertise working in technology research, engineering and consulting grew, I developed a much more cautious approach - even bordering on wholesale cynicism.
It wasn’t until I understood God’s relationship with technology, and its place in His created order, that I developed the discernment to be both cautiously sceptical, but also confidently ambitious. I want to flee from the temptation, distraction and decay which technology so often brings about. But I also want to be the first to benefit from its blessings, wherever it can help me fulfil my God-given responsibilities in life more effectively and joyfully.
I’ve worked in emerging technology, within academia, industry, charitable, political and ministry contexts for many years. These have typically been roles in computer science, emerging technology, and security, addressing some of the most pressing technical challenges we face today.
Instinctively I enjoy surrounding myself with technology. Not only do I find it fascinating, but I’ve always had that intuitive sense that technology can be a profound force for good, and for the honour of our creator God. Yet today, so much of what we now associate with technology is to our great detriment: predatory social media companies, ruinous pornographic material, misleading information or reporting, addictive gaming and a lack of privacy and security online.
Indeed technology itself seems to be immersing us in a story that is fundamentally at odds with the gospel - one which elevates the lies of the subjectivity of truth, expressive individualism, philosophical naturalism, self-sufficiency and self-ownership.
This story is a direct assault to the Bible’s teaching of our God-given status as image-bearers, who have the responsibilities of Christian stewardship, and for whom salvation from sin through Jesus and the future restoration are our only hope of enjoying real life as God intended.
So the question has to be asked: How can Christians live faithfully, wisely and confidently in such a disruptive technological environment?
Redeeming Technology is the vehicle for answering that question, and helping the Church to live it out.