Can Religion Withstand Technology?
Please watch this video and respond in our course discussion forum to these questions:
1. Are churches corporations?
2. The participants discuss the notion that more people than ever are religious. Do you agree with this statement, and is it related to the concept that technology and religion are intrinsically linked?
Summary: Three men from different ideologies, Islamic scientist Muzaffar Iqbal, skeptic Michael Shermer, and Christian sociologist Donald Miller, discuss the impact of technology on religion and vice-versa. The participants begin by discussing the possible reasons why more people are attending places of worship in the United States than ever before. They speculate about the possible relationship between technology and religion. The discussion concludes with remarks about how technology may in some cases be working to further divide people’s religious beliefs.
Extremism is any ideology or political act far outside the perceived political center of a society; or otherwise claimed to violate common moral standards.[citation needed] Indemocratic societies, individuals or groups that advocate the replacement of democracy with an authoritarian regime are usually considered to be extremists, in authoritarian societies the opposite typically applies. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extremism)
Fundamentalism is the demand for a strict adherence to specific theological doctrines usually understood as a reaction against Modernist theology, primarily to promote continuity and accuracy.[1] The term “fundamentalism” was originally coined by its supporters to describe a specific package of theological beliefs that developed into a movement within the Protestant community of the United States in the early part of the 20th century, and that had its roots in the Fundamentalist–Modernist Controversy of that time.[2] The term usually has a religious connotation indicating unwavering attachment to a set of irreducible beliefs. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamentalism)
Scientism is a term used, usually pejoratively,[1][2][3] to refer to belief in the universal applicability of the scientific method and approach, and the view that empirical science constitutes the most authoritative worldview or most valuable part of human learning to the exclusion of other viewpoints. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientism)
For more information about this discussion:
http://www.pbs.org/kcet/closertotruth/explore/show_14.html