Digital Liturgies offers a helpful look into how technologies shape who we are and our worldviews through a Christian perspective. I found this book to be very interesting and helpful.

Christians: Have you thought about your approach to the internet from a biblical and explicitly Christian standpoint? This book by author Samuel James is a good book on our internet use such as social media, which early in the book the author made the point that many go about their lives using the internet without being aware and reflecting critically since the internet has become like the water to a fish with how it has been embedded into the daily pattern of our lives. I have read hundreds of pages of books on the internet and social media the last few months and this one still has something to say above the sea of endless books on the sociology of the internet.
The book opens with a helpful and engaging introduction. The meat of the book consists of two parts. Part one looks at truth and technology and part two is on engaging the digital liturgies. There’s three chapters for part one, with the first chapter on the need for embodied wisdom in a faceless age and the next chapter on how technology shapes us and chapter three is on drowning in the shallows. Chapter four opens up part two on the problem of authenticity as one of the hallmarks of the problem of the habits (or liturgies that the author called it) with the internet. The next chapter looks at the problem of outrage and the abolition of thought which is followed by a chapter on consumption and then a chapter on meaninglessness through death by minutiae. There’s a conclusion that has some words on habits of wisdom and resistence to unhealthy and unbiblical digital liturgies.
This book was profoundly insightful. In fact for the insights of the problem the book alone is worth buying and reading; as the beginning of the book states, sometimes we can be like the fish in the water and not even aware of the water that we are in. So too the internet can be like that since today with the smartphone the internet feels omnipresent everywhere (contrast that with the days of internet before it went wireless, when one has to use dial up modem!). The author is consciously trying to think about the issues and evaluating the problem biblically and theologically while also being informed by what scholars and others who have made intellectual insights into the use and problem of internet and internet culture. One of the most insightful observation that the author made in this book is how he pointed out internet culture is itself a sort of pornified culture and vehicle; he’s not saying if you use the internet you will be addicted to pornography or have porn use. But his point is that the characteristics of the internet and many people’s means of using the internet allows meaningless infinite scrolls, ability to seek novelty of everything imaginable and isolation and privacy of internet use is something that enables the contemporary porn problem. But it’s more than that, as the author points out the term porn is now used to describe internet bingeing of even non-sexual things such as food porn, etc. As I minister more I am more convinced that if one does not address how one uses the internet one will constantly have certain problems people have be it perpetual outrage, porn addiction, depression, jealously and loneliness.
If there’s a constructive criticism (and this is the reason why I gave it a four out of five instead of a five) it is this: I wish he talked more about addressing the problem. Now I do appreciate how the author addresses the problem of duality and anti-body characteristic of internet use and internet problem and how a biblical view of body and physical presence is an important antidote. I appreciate the author bringing in the Gospel and also discuss about identity in Christ as dealing with internet problem. I felt it was almost in passing his mention of the solution; there is so much that I think can be unpacked by the author. Especially if the subtitle of the book is on Christian wisdom in an online age! Still this is a book that I highly recommend on a biblical look at the internet and internet use.
NOTE: This book was provided to me free by Crossway and Net Galley without any obligation for a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.

Just saying that the digital revolution has changed the world is an understatement. Like the story of two young fish that fail to understand what water is, some of us who have been so immersed in technology do not understand what it means to live without technology. Digital immigrants are those who have "immigrated into" the modern technology platforms while digital natives are those who grew up in technology right from the start. Regardless of whether one is a digital immigrant or native, the inherent threats to personality are the same for all. No one will be able to escape the far-reaching tentacles of the Internet and modern digital technologies. This book is a critical look at the way technology is shaping us and its implications for Christians wanting to live fruitfully in an increasingly complex world. He attempts to help us discern the digital world with biblical wisdom ethically, practically, and theologically. Concerned about the incredible amount of time people spend online, author Samuel James reflects on the significance of living in a world of "screens, algorithms, and pixels." From the threat of fake news to the dangers of disembodied living, this book is a crucial alarm to wake us up from becoming too trusting to the point of idolizing technology. It is also a wake-up call for any uncritical use or reliance on the technology we have gotten so used to using. He asks questions like:

- Is technology merely a tool to use or is there more than meets the eye?
- Is the Internet a tool or a teacher?
- How humane is the Internet environment?
- Are we becoming too comfortable in an increasingly disembodied environment?
- How is "expressive individualism" going to affect us in the long run?
- Is the Internet shaping us negatively or positively?
- Is technology really neutral?
- Are we losing touch with reality amid an online world of virtual reality?
- How do we live out our faith in this kind of technological environment?

Written in two parts, Part One deals with the need to discern Truth from everything else. From the seductiveness of "expressive individualism" to the alienation from the real community, we need to deal with the implications of a faceless age where people feel more comfortable dealing with machines instead of people. James makes a case about the deceitfulness of technology. He warns us about how technology dislocates us. He highlights the tendency of us to create our own realities to turn the use of technology into an end in itself. He laments how technology is making us change our way of thinking, perceiving, and acting. While the Bible calls us to delight in the LORD and to meditate constantly on the Word, modern technology is gradually tempting us to move away from all of that. Technology indeed has shaped our world. This has led to a deterioration in some of the most important human faculties and functions. For instance, we have shorter attention spans that do not help cultivate patience. We are tempted to treat people the way we treat our digital devices.

Part Two gives us five ways to develop proper digital liturgies. The first way is to develop authenticity in a world mixed with half-truths, fake news, and make-believe. Underlying this is how we hide behind technological facades to hide our pride. The second is about addressing online outrage that is becoming more commonplace today. James shows us the need for Christian thinking that is careful, truthful, and communal. The third way is to address the shaming (or cancel culture) with repentance and grace. Fourth, we need to push back against a culture of unfettered consumption of "I am what I eat" with godly virtues that begin with seeking after God. Fifth, we need to recognize that technology too will fall into the realm of meaninglessness, as presented by the writer of Ecclesiastes. Uncritical use of technology can lead to distraction, discontentment, and dislocation. By cultivating a heart of wisdom, we can indeed develop good habits that form us into Christlikeness.

My Thoughts
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First, this book is Samuel James's wake-up call for us. Since the turn of the century, technological pace has quickened at a speed that is unheard of in the past. We need biblical wisdom and discernment to sieve out the Truth from the rest. The way to do it is to strengthen our inner spiritual core. The central premise of this book is to build our life foundations on the Rock of the Word of God and to let the Word guide and lead us in all things. This is especially so in a world that inundates us continuously with all kinds of images and information that blur the line between Truth and falsehood. Thanks to technology, we are forced to reckon with misinformation and all kinds of fake news. The Internet is no longer simply a tool to offer us the information that we need. It is a tool that is used to manipulate people's minds for godless motives. Even Christians are caught up in the unwitting acceptance of the information being pushed at them. Like the proverbial frog in a warming pot, if we are not careful, we might end up getting cooked willingly! With regard to the rising influence and presence of technological reach, the earlier we wake up from any form of slumber the better.

Second, technology is here to stay so we better learn how to deal with it. There is no going back to a world without the technology of today. Trying to do so is like seeking to return to the Stone Age era. Just today, I read about how schools are finding it hard to deal with digital distractions in the classroom. One report says that the issue is getting "out of control." This is simply the tip of the iceberg. There are many more challenges that are to come. Samuel James joins a chorus of witnesses speaking out against uncritical acceptance of technology. Nicholas Carr, Marshall McLuhan, Cal Newport, Sherry Turkle, and others write from a secular perspective while Marva Dawn, Archibald Hart, Neil Postman, Trevin Wax, and now, Samuel James write from a Christian perspective. Both groups point to the danger of uncritical acceptance. What I like about James's book is the five astute observances that point to the dangers for us to be aware of. I believe there are more challenges for us to deal with, such as the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the use of social media,

Finally, we need to stop seeing technology as a neutral tool. After acknowledging what technology can do for us, it is high time to study what technology is doing to us. This is what Samuel James has done. However, I get a sense that mainly digital immigrants will get to appreciate James's perspectives. It will take a Millennial, or a Gen Z, or someone from this generation to express what James has laid out in their own words. Just like there is a generation gap between parents and their kids, perspectives on technology can vary from generation to generation. Having said that, I believe that truth is being threatened by the way people are insisting on their rights to self-expression. James hits the mark with his first observation about authenticity. I concur with his observation that while technology has erased traditional barriers to personal expression, it has also created a new breed of people who are quick to speak but slow to listen. If technology is being used to spread such evil, something must then be done at relevant levels to curtail or prevent such occurrences.
Samuel James is the associate acquisitions editor at Crossway. He is the author of Digital Liturgies, a regular newsletter on Christianity, technology, and culture. He lives in Louisville, Kentucky, with his wife, Emily, and their three children.

Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5.

conrade
This book has been provided courtesy of Crossway Publishers via NetGalley without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.

I was initially a little reluctant concerning this book in its beginning, especially the use of hyperlinks as an explanation of how the internet shapes and transforms our epistemology, but this book was overall a good read. I found myself relating to the author's diagnosis of digital technology's effect on us, though I had hoped that he would have dedicated more space towards explaining what can be done about it.

For a long time, “evangelicals have often focused exclusively on the content that our TVs, computers, and smartphones deliver to us rather than the form by which that content is delivered.” If one still subscribes to more wholesome, even predominately Gospel-centered, content, the internet, by its nature, creates patterns of thinking and habit making that have long-term consequences on us as individuals and society.

James draws the connection between pornography and the inherent qualities of the internet. They both designed to aimlessly immerse a user and primes his/her heart to seek out the endless novelties it has to offer. Porn and the web are “instruments of commodification that can turn the most intimate or even most elementary stuff of human life into consumable content.” Our cellphones have given us the possibility, the power, to indefinitely fulfill fantasies, dispose of them, to find new ones seconds later.

James makes it clear that avoiding social media doesn’t make a person more holy. However, we need to reconcile with the fact that regular immersion of social media does a “work on our hearts” and makes it so that the online world is more real than the world around us. It creates liturgies, structured rituals like endless scrolling, that make us more susceptible to outrage, shame, and meaninglessness.

Christian thinking is the antidote. Christian thinking is “careful, truthful, and communal.” It exercises discipline and wisdom on how to navigate this tool that is not going away in our society any time soon. This is a book that I want to put in everyone’s hands, especially parents.

This is such a timely and important read for our time, with all the screens and social media! Digital Liturgies: Rediscovering Christian Wisdom in an Online Age by Samuel D. James will release soon, so be sure to add it to your to read list! I read the online version, though I look forward to a hard copy so I can pass it on to my children to read for discussion.

The author did an excellent job of providing information, facts, and Biblical truth when it comes to how we should use and understand technology. Some very convicting truth that I needed to read too, that has me wanting to definitely make sure I use my time wisely and to step away more from technology, especially social media that does have an affect on all of us, whether you want to admit it or not. It has been proven, and you can see the detrimental effects we are having as a society, especially our youth and young adults, have been affected the most. There is no neutrality when it comes to using it, and this book goes into depth about how we are shaped and molded. What are we spending our time doing affects us! I am thankful that I did not grow up with all the technology we have now, but it does cause parenting challenges at times to know when and how much we should allow our children to use. This book is helpful with that, and I am thankful that my husband and I have been slow to introduce cell phones and apps.

Many highlights throughout the book, here are a few:

What if the issue is not that we aren’t making the internet more humane; it’s that the internet is making us less so?
Tool or Teacher? The internet is a lot like pornography.
Rather than thinking of the web and social media as merely neutral tools that merely do whatever the users ask of them, it is better to think of them as kinds of spaces that are continually shaping us to think, feel, communicate, and live in certain ways…
When we put the digital liturgies of our age up against the analog truth of the gospel, we just how flimsy, how untrue, and how unsatisfying the spirit of the web age really is.
Practical wisdom is the art of being able to discern what’s really going on in a relational, vocational, personal context.
You are what you scroll.
We live in an age of minutiae, displayed on minute devices that take our minds and hearts captive, not years at a time, but minute by fleeting minute.

I enjoyed this book! Our society has changed greatly over the last 20-30 years due to technology, and all too quickly we just accept new "ways of life" and don't think about how they may be impacting us. This book helped me stop to process how it is impacting us. While there were a few times I felt like he made pretty far leaps (like stating transgenderism is largely a result of the internet) without being able to back them up with much data, and I had a nagging feeling he was misusing the word "liturgy" throughout (he was using it more to describe characteristics of the internet) I am glad I read this book overall. I appreciated especially how he used science of neuroplasticity, which I'm familiar with, along with biblical habits to convince his readers that the repetitive nature of the internet is shaping their brains. I also really appreciated how he was explicit that many things are results of sin problems, not problems to fix in and of themselves. This book is a quick book this is written clearly and effectively and I think many would benefit from reading and pondering it.