This edition of “Technology and Society” will focus on an important feature of Society: Religion and more specifically, how technology has affected our observing the Sabbath.
As a mostly non-practicing cultural Jew, I am not usually interested in the practice or theory of most religions. However, this article in Wall Street Journal, “What we’ve Lost in rejecting the Sabbath” by Sohrab Ahmari, roused my interest because of its claim that, as citizens, we do our selves harm by letting the observance of the Sabbath die, and how it’s demise has been hastened by, you guessed it, Technology. One could even go so far as to say that, for many Technology has become the same kind of Religion that infects Politics.
During the 1800s, in the US, a merchant could be jailed for opening shop on Sunday. It was not until recently, in 2019, that North Dakota voted down the Sunday ban on commerce. The argument was two-fold, “people want to be free to make decisions for themselves” and (follow the money), it would be good for business. Ahmri points out the myriad of tech devices that compete for all of our time every day, not just on the Sabbath.
‘WHO’S GOT THAT
KIND OF TIME?’
I am reminded of a past “Calvin & Hobbes” cartoon where Calvin is under the microwave reading the instructions on a bag of popcorn and exclaiming, “Three minutes! Who’s got that kind of time?” That pretty much encapsulates our current times. Unarguably, technology affords us the means to work faster, smarter and more economically but it also can be a deterrent to just plain resting. And if we ever do take time to rest — to just be — we tend to feel guilty about it.
There was an old 80s issue of “Psychology Today” that had the cover banner headline, “Don’t just Do Something, Sit There” as an admonition to get off the treadmill driven by the inverse modern philosophy, “Don’t just sit there, Do Something!” The article urged the reader to investigate the effects of how driven and unbalanced we had become and actively take time to be present and allow ourselves to be curious explorers of life like we were as children and turn away from being exploiters constantly worrying and making plans for the future. Not too different from “Stop and smell the roses”, No?
“Who but a few scolds could complain? The share of Americans who don’t identify with any religion continues to grow, and even many believers reject the concept of the Sabbath as a divinely ordained day of rest. Instead, we are encouraged to pursue lives of constant action and purpose, and we do. Smart devices allow white-collar professionals to freely mingle work and play. The gig economy and the Covid-19 work-from-home trend have further blurred the line between the two. The Sabbath doesn’t fit into the rhythm of our lives. It feels like an imposition— it is an imposition.”
TIME AND SPACE
Ahmari goes on to examine the philosophy of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heshel, (Born: January 11, 1907, Warsaw, Poland; Died: December 23, 1972, New York, NY) who lectured about living in “the realm of time” vs “ the realm of space”. Briefly, this means:
“…we are encouraged to pursue lives of constant action and purpose, and….The Sabbath doesn’t fit into the rhythm of our lives.” He calls this phenomenon, “the realm of space”. He continues, “Modern life is all about conquering space: winning geopolitical territory, growing and prospering economically. But “the danger begins,” Heschel worried, “when in gaining power in the realm of space we forfeit all aspirations in the “realm of time.” In that realm, the goal is not to have but to be, not to own but to give, not to control but to share, not to subdue but to be in accord.”
This is sage advice whether you are Atheist, Agnostic, or Religious.
Dr. Stewart A. Denenberg is an emeritus professor of computer science at Plattsburgh State, retiring recently after 30 years there. Before that, he worked as a technical writer, programmer and consultant to the U.S. Navy and private Industry. Send comments and suggestions to his blog at www.tec-soc.blogspot.com, where there is additional text and links. He can also be reached at [email protected].
