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Commentaries On Science/Technology Themes
The phrase "spiritual gifts" usually suggests qualities or
abilities which are thought of as peculiarly "religious." Paul
lists such gifts of the Spirit in Romans 12:6--8 and 1 Corinthians
12:4--10. The passage in Exodus 31 is likely to come as a
surprise. Preparations are being made to construct the tent of
meeting and its furnishings and to make vestments for the
priests, and God tells Moses that people have been given "divine
spirit" (ruach 'elohim; the alternate translation, "the spirit of
God," is given in the NRSV margin) in order to carry out this
work. Carpentry, metalworking, and sewing can be spiritual gifts.
One might go on to speak of the inspiration of all technology.
The subject in this text, however, is not technology in general
but technology within the community of God's people, serving
God's purpose. While all technology depends in a fundamental way
upon God, technology directed to wrong ends is, in Pauline terms,
"flesh" rather than "spirit." Technology in the proper
relationship with God's purpose, on the other hand, is properly
"spiritual."
Much the same can be said of the gifts in Paul's lists.
Teaching and even "speaking in tongues" are done by people
outside the community of God's people, and may serve evil
purposes. It is when they are in line with God's intention for
the world that they are gifts of the Spirit.
Christians who work in the sciences or engineering have
sometimes been made to think that they should leave this aspect
of their lives at the church door. If their community of faith
has shown no real hostility to their work (and this has
happened), it may also have shown little appreciation for it.
Attitudes may be changed if some attention is given to the
possibility of scientific and technological abilities being gifts
of the Spirit.
Leviticus 25:1--24
This would be a good text for "Stewardship of Creation Sunday"
or any time when a scriptural word about care of the earth is
needed. If parishioners wonder why churches are concerning
themselves with environmental matters, the answer here is simply
because the Bible tells them to! The Israelites are told, as part
of God's covenant with them, that they are to let their land lie
fallow at regular intervals. This is an elementary practical way
to try to preserve and restore fertility. Today's farmers will
look to science to help determine the best patterns of crop
rotation and other ways of caring for the land. The point which
our text makes for us is not so much the precise method given in
Leviticus but the fact that care for the earth is a clear
religious concern, part of obedient service to the God of the
covenant. This is not so surprising if we remember that God's
covenant is not just with Israel, or even the human race, but
with "all flesh that is on the earth" (Genesis 9:8--17; see also
Hosea 2:18). Furthermore, the "new covenant" in the blood of
Christ is established under the forms of the bread and wine which
come from the earth (1 Corinthians 11:24--25).
We see here also that care for the earth is closely tied to
justice for people. Racial and ethnic minorities and the poor
today often suffer the most from damage to the environment; it is
easier to dispose of toxic wastes in their neighborhoods than in
those of the well--to--do. (This is the problem sometimes referred
to as "environmental racism.")
Justice also requires that the burden of solutions to
environmental problems be distributed equitably. All of us will
have to pay some price for protection of the environment, but
people who get their living from the land or waters should not
have to pay a disproportionate share. God's covenant commits us
to justice for the earth and for all humanity.
Job 28:20--28
This passage is part of an interlude within Job's self--defense
against God. The question of where wisdom is to be found is
central to the drama of the story of Job, for Job believes that
God unfairly hides wisdom and knowledge from humanity (vv. 20--
21). But the finale of the story is foreshadowed in v. 28.
And [God] said to humankind,
"Truly, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom;
and to depart from evil is understanding."
Here Job implies that this is a weak out for God. God, he
says, needs no self--defense, only threats. But, as God claims in
Chapters 38 and 39, and as Job finally realizes in Chapter 42, it
is indeed wise to be in awe of God, for we cannot know
everything. (See commentary for Proper 7 B.) Human beings are
finite creatures. We cannot experience the depth of reality that
God experiences. Thus one moral of the story of Job, captured in
this foreshadowing of the end, is that human knowledge and wisdom
(understanding) are limited.
There may be a hint of a theology of the cross in verse 22.
"Abaddon and Death," the limits of our earthly experience, have
heard a "rumor" of genuine wisdom.
Isaiah 2:6--22
We discussed the opening verses of this chapter and the idea
of appropriate technology for 1 Advent A. The rest of the chapter
suggests two other themes related to technology.
Science, Technology and Idolatry: In verse 8 the prophet
speaks of the fashioning and worship of idols. Often we think of
these as images of gods, but humans "bow down" to things they
have made which are not explicitly religious. How often we find
ourselves worshipping the products of our technology,
seeking security and fulfillment in the "work of our hands"! When
faced with intractable social or environmental problems we seek a
technological fix. Many people place their ultimate hopes on
medical science and technology. Some seek to "play god" with
life--span increasing technologies or genetic manipulation.
This is not to say that people of faith should abandon science
and technology. The theme of appropriate technology provides a
positive role for technology and science. As we struggle to
understand the possibilities and problems of genetic
manipulation, even the science and technology embodied in this
form of human activity might have redemptive power.1 But we must
consider the ways in which we have replaced faith in God with
faith in science and/or technology. To what degree has science
become our god? To what extent have we bowed down to
technological imperatives instead of those of our faith?
Technology and Hubris: The whole of Isaiah 2 provides a third
entree into issues of technology and faith. This is the link
between sinful human pride ---- hubris ---- and technology.
The NRSV gives verses 5--22 the heading, "Judgment Pronounced
on Arrogance." The prophet describes the pride of the House of
Jacob and God's response "in the days to come." We catch glimpses
of technology: "There is no end to their chariots" (v. 7), and
the LORD will be "against every high tower, and against every
fortified wall; against all the ships of Tarshish, and against
all the beautiful craft" (vv. 12, 15--16). Again the judgment is
against not merely weapons, but any technology which embodies
hubris. This theme is forcefully expressed in the story of the
Tower of Babel: See the commentary for Pentecost C.
Sirach [Ecclesiasticus] 38:1--15
These verses from the Apocrypha are the most sustained
discussion of physicians and medicine in the Bible and give quite
a positive view of the healing art. Physicians are worthy
of honor because God has created them for healing (v. 1).
Medicines too are God's creation, things that God has arranged
for the earth to produce, and it is foolish to despise them (v.
4). The example which the writer gives in v. 5, Moses' use of a
piece of wood to sweeten the bitter waters of Marah (Exodus
15:22--25), is not an appeal to miracle but precisely an
illustration of the kind of healing powers available in creation.
Sirach does not neglect the role of prayer in healing, but
observes the proper order. First one is to pray (v. 9), and then
consult the physician (v. 12). Compare here our discussion of
Mark 6:1--13 and the anointing of the sick for Proper 9 B. This
text from Sirach would be a helpful reading for a service of
healing. It would help to bring out the fact that prayers for
healing are not intended to replace the work of the healing arts
and sciences. We are called to thank God for those arts and
sciences, and for the men and women who practice them.2
Comparison of the Greek and Hebrew versions of the last verse
produces some ambiguity. (For a long time, Sirach was known only
in Greek. Parts of a Hebrew version were found a century ago, but
it is not clear which comes closest to the original.3) The Hebrew
maintains the note of respect for doctors ("He who sins against
his Maker, will be defiant toward the physician"), but the Greek
("... may he fall into the hands of the physician") gives a
negative view. The latter idea may have to do with the belief
that illness is a punishment for sin. And it is true that some
sick people are like the woman who "had endured much under many
physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no
better, but rather grew worse" (Mark 5:26). Doctors are not
perfect, and medicine today still involves art as well as
science.
The verses about doctors and medicine are part of a discussion
in Chapter 38 of various honorable callings, those of scholars,
workers in crafts, and smiths. These are all good and they
maintain the fabric of this world (38:34 NEB), but Sirach gives
them all second place to the study of God's law (39:1--11).
Wisdom 7:7--22
Verses 7--14 of this passage have been discussed for the
Commemoration of Theologians. The remaining verses speak of some
of the things which God's Wisdom enables a person to understand;
these are things which today are considered parts of physics,
astronomy, zoology, botany, meteorology, psychology, and
medicine.
Knowledge of these fields is not the highest wisdom of God.
What is most important in Israel's wisdom literature is to know
God and God's will. But the fact that "a knowledge of the
structure of the world and the operation of the elements" (v. 17
NEB) is a gift of God is not insignificant. If the created world
is indeed good, then understanding of it and the way it works is
desirable. The ancient wisdom traditions in which Israel shared
were not concerned only with abstract philosophy, but with that
which enabled people to deal wisely with the world and with human
society.
Today that view of wisdom will encompass science and
technology. And it will go beyond a "how" understanding ---- how
natural systems function and how to do things ---- to provide
ethical guidance for the use of science and technology. The
present passage is set within a whole book in which the Wisdom of
God is presented as a guide for all of life.
1 Timothy 6:20--21
A brief warning in connection with these verses is in order
because the King James Version can be misleading at this point.
It speaks at the end of v. 20 of "oppositions of science falsely
so called." Christians upset about scientific developments, such
as evolutionary theories, have cited these verses to show that
the Bible warns against false science. But gnoseos (NRSV
"knowledge") in this context does not mean "science" in the
modern sense. It refers rather to the elaborate philosophical and
religious systems of Gnosticism which were strong rivals of
Christianity during the early centuries of the Church.4
There is, of course, false science, and scientific
developments are sometimes used to attack Christianity. Today
science has been successful in so many ways that people may be
tempted to look to it, rather than the biblical God, to provide
ultimate meaning for life. Such challenges to Christianity must
be resisted, but they are not what these verses of Scripture are
talking about.
Titus 1:12
The writer of Titus, concerned about the situation of the
church on the island of Crete, quotes a Cretan of earlier times,
Epimenides, to the effect that "Cretans are always liars ...."
That reputation was widespread in the ancient world.
But "the paradox of the Cretan liar" is of interest today in
the study of logic and the search for artificial intelligence. It
has connections with the theorem of G8odel which suggests that
the universe cannot be, in a logical sense, a closed system. For
Epimenides' statement is "self--referential" because he himself
was a Cretan. If taken in the strict sense that Cretans always
lie, he was lying when he said it, which means it's false, so he
didn't have to be lying, which means it's true, so he was lying
...! It is easy to see why Epimenides' statement has been
described as a "paradox."
Our text is not concerned with questions of mathematical
logic, and it would be wrong to emphasize such concerns in
connection with it. But it is worth nothing that the Bible speaks
within the world of discourse in which these questions have been
raised.5
James 5:13--15
This is the classic text for the practice of anointing the
sick with oil as a rite of healing. We have discussed the
relationship of this practice to themes of science and technology
in our
discussion of Mark 6:1--13 for Proper 9 B. As with the passage
from Sirach 38 discussed above, this would be an excellent ---- one
might almost say "essential" ---- text for a healing service.
Calling attention to the common use of olive oil as medicine will
help to bring out the full significance of the anointing of the
sick today. Oil can be seen as a symbol of all medicines, and the
rite as a prayer for divine healing through medical means.
Endnotes
1. See Cole--Turner, The New Genesis, for an excellent discussion
of this issue.
2. E.g., "Service of the World for Healing" in Occasional
Services (Augsburg, Minneapolis, 1982), pp. 89--98.
3. John C. Rybolt, Sirach (The Liturgical Press, Collegeville MN,
1986), p. 6.
4. J.N.D. Kelly, The Pastoral Epistles (Harper & Row, San
Francisco, 1960), pp. 150--152.
5. Kelly, The Pastoral Epistles, pp. 235--236. Douglas R.
Hofstadter, G"del, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid (Basic,
New York, 1979). (References to "Epimenides paradox" are on p.
763.)
abilities which are thought of as peculiarly "religious." Paul
lists such gifts of the Spirit in Romans 12:6--8 and 1 Corinthians
12:4--10. The passage in Exodus 31 is likely to come as a
surprise. Preparations are being made to construct the tent of
meeting and its furnishings and to make vestments for the
priests, and God tells Moses that people have been given "divine
spirit" (ruach 'elohim; the alternate translation, "the spirit of
God," is given in the NRSV margin) in order to carry out this
work. Carpentry, metalworking, and sewing can be spiritual gifts.
One might go on to speak of the inspiration of all technology.
The subject in this text, however, is not technology in general
but technology within the community of God's people, serving
God's purpose. While all technology depends in a fundamental way
upon God, technology directed to wrong ends is, in Pauline terms,
"flesh" rather than "spirit." Technology in the proper
relationship with God's purpose, on the other hand, is properly
"spiritual."
Much the same can be said of the gifts in Paul's lists.
Teaching and even "speaking in tongues" are done by people
outside the community of God's people, and may serve evil
purposes. It is when they are in line with God's intention for
the world that they are gifts of the Spirit.
Christians who work in the sciences or engineering have
sometimes been made to think that they should leave this aspect
of their lives at the church door. If their community of faith
has shown no real hostility to their work (and this has
happened), it may also have shown little appreciation for it.
Attitudes may be changed if some attention is given to the
possibility of scientific and technological abilities being gifts
of the Spirit.
Leviticus 25:1--24
This would be a good text for "Stewardship of Creation Sunday"
or any time when a scriptural word about care of the earth is
needed. If parishioners wonder why churches are concerning
themselves with environmental matters, the answer here is simply
because the Bible tells them to! The Israelites are told, as part
of God's covenant with them, that they are to let their land lie
fallow at regular intervals. This is an elementary practical way
to try to preserve and restore fertility. Today's farmers will
look to science to help determine the best patterns of crop
rotation and other ways of caring for the land. The point which
our text makes for us is not so much the precise method given in
Leviticus but the fact that care for the earth is a clear
religious concern, part of obedient service to the God of the
covenant. This is not so surprising if we remember that God's
covenant is not just with Israel, or even the human race, but
with "all flesh that is on the earth" (Genesis 9:8--17; see also
Hosea 2:18). Furthermore, the "new covenant" in the blood of
Christ is established under the forms of the bread and wine which
come from the earth (1 Corinthians 11:24--25).
We see here also that care for the earth is closely tied to
justice for people. Racial and ethnic minorities and the poor
today often suffer the most from damage to the environment; it is
easier to dispose of toxic wastes in their neighborhoods than in
those of the well--to--do. (This is the problem sometimes referred
to as "environmental racism.")
Justice also requires that the burden of solutions to
environmental problems be distributed equitably. All of us will
have to pay some price for protection of the environment, but
people who get their living from the land or waters should not
have to pay a disproportionate share. God's covenant commits us
to justice for the earth and for all humanity.
Job 28:20--28
This passage is part of an interlude within Job's self--defense
against God. The question of where wisdom is to be found is
central to the drama of the story of Job, for Job believes that
God unfairly hides wisdom and knowledge from humanity (vv. 20--
21). But the finale of the story is foreshadowed in v. 28.
And [God] said to humankind,
"Truly, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom;
and to depart from evil is understanding."
Here Job implies that this is a weak out for God. God, he
says, needs no self--defense, only threats. But, as God claims in
Chapters 38 and 39, and as Job finally realizes in Chapter 42, it
is indeed wise to be in awe of God, for we cannot know
everything. (See commentary for Proper 7 B.) Human beings are
finite creatures. We cannot experience the depth of reality that
God experiences. Thus one moral of the story of Job, captured in
this foreshadowing of the end, is that human knowledge and wisdom
(understanding) are limited.
There may be a hint of a theology of the cross in verse 22.
"Abaddon and Death," the limits of our earthly experience, have
heard a "rumor" of genuine wisdom.
Isaiah 2:6--22
We discussed the opening verses of this chapter and the idea
of appropriate technology for 1 Advent A. The rest of the chapter
suggests two other themes related to technology.
Science, Technology and Idolatry: In verse 8 the prophet
speaks of the fashioning and worship of idols. Often we think of
these as images of gods, but humans "bow down" to things they
have made which are not explicitly religious. How often we find
ourselves worshipping the products of our technology,
seeking security and fulfillment in the "work of our hands"! When
faced with intractable social or environmental problems we seek a
technological fix. Many people place their ultimate hopes on
medical science and technology. Some seek to "play god" with
life--span increasing technologies or genetic manipulation.
This is not to say that people of faith should abandon science
and technology. The theme of appropriate technology provides a
positive role for technology and science. As we struggle to
understand the possibilities and problems of genetic
manipulation, even the science and technology embodied in this
form of human activity might have redemptive power.1 But we must
consider the ways in which we have replaced faith in God with
faith in science and/or technology. To what degree has science
become our god? To what extent have we bowed down to
technological imperatives instead of those of our faith?
Technology and Hubris: The whole of Isaiah 2 provides a third
entree into issues of technology and faith. This is the link
between sinful human pride ---- hubris ---- and technology.
The NRSV gives verses 5--22 the heading, "Judgment Pronounced
on Arrogance." The prophet describes the pride of the House of
Jacob and God's response "in the days to come." We catch glimpses
of technology: "There is no end to their chariots" (v. 7), and
the LORD will be "against every high tower, and against every
fortified wall; against all the ships of Tarshish, and against
all the beautiful craft" (vv. 12, 15--16). Again the judgment is
against not merely weapons, but any technology which embodies
hubris. This theme is forcefully expressed in the story of the
Tower of Babel: See the commentary for Pentecost C.
Sirach [Ecclesiasticus] 38:1--15
These verses from the Apocrypha are the most sustained
discussion of physicians and medicine in the Bible and give quite
a positive view of the healing art. Physicians are worthy
of honor because God has created them for healing (v. 1).
Medicines too are God's creation, things that God has arranged
for the earth to produce, and it is foolish to despise them (v.
4). The example which the writer gives in v. 5, Moses' use of a
piece of wood to sweeten the bitter waters of Marah (Exodus
15:22--25), is not an appeal to miracle but precisely an
illustration of the kind of healing powers available in creation.
Sirach does not neglect the role of prayer in healing, but
observes the proper order. First one is to pray (v. 9), and then
consult the physician (v. 12). Compare here our discussion of
Mark 6:1--13 and the anointing of the sick for Proper 9 B. This
text from Sirach would be a helpful reading for a service of
healing. It would help to bring out the fact that prayers for
healing are not intended to replace the work of the healing arts
and sciences. We are called to thank God for those arts and
sciences, and for the men and women who practice them.2
Comparison of the Greek and Hebrew versions of the last verse
produces some ambiguity. (For a long time, Sirach was known only
in Greek. Parts of a Hebrew version were found a century ago, but
it is not clear which comes closest to the original.3) The Hebrew
maintains the note of respect for doctors ("He who sins against
his Maker, will be defiant toward the physician"), but the Greek
("... may he fall into the hands of the physician") gives a
negative view. The latter idea may have to do with the belief
that illness is a punishment for sin. And it is true that some
sick people are like the woman who "had endured much under many
physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no
better, but rather grew worse" (Mark 5:26). Doctors are not
perfect, and medicine today still involves art as well as
science.
The verses about doctors and medicine are part of a discussion
in Chapter 38 of various honorable callings, those of scholars,
workers in crafts, and smiths. These are all good and they
maintain the fabric of this world (38:34 NEB), but Sirach gives
them all second place to the study of God's law (39:1--11).
Wisdom 7:7--22
Verses 7--14 of this passage have been discussed for the
Commemoration of Theologians. The remaining verses speak of some
of the things which God's Wisdom enables a person to understand;
these are things which today are considered parts of physics,
astronomy, zoology, botany, meteorology, psychology, and
medicine.
Knowledge of these fields is not the highest wisdom of God.
What is most important in Israel's wisdom literature is to know
God and God's will. But the fact that "a knowledge of the
structure of the world and the operation of the elements" (v. 17
NEB) is a gift of God is not insignificant. If the created world
is indeed good, then understanding of it and the way it works is
desirable. The ancient wisdom traditions in which Israel shared
were not concerned only with abstract philosophy, but with that
which enabled people to deal wisely with the world and with human
society.
Today that view of wisdom will encompass science and
technology. And it will go beyond a "how" understanding ---- how
natural systems function and how to do things ---- to provide
ethical guidance for the use of science and technology. The
present passage is set within a whole book in which the Wisdom of
God is presented as a guide for all of life.
1 Timothy 6:20--21
A brief warning in connection with these verses is in order
because the King James Version can be misleading at this point.
It speaks at the end of v. 20 of "oppositions of science falsely
so called." Christians upset about scientific developments, such
as evolutionary theories, have cited these verses to show that
the Bible warns against false science. But gnoseos (NRSV
"knowledge") in this context does not mean "science" in the
modern sense. It refers rather to the elaborate philosophical and
religious systems of Gnosticism which were strong rivals of
Christianity during the early centuries of the Church.4
There is, of course, false science, and scientific
developments are sometimes used to attack Christianity. Today
science has been successful in so many ways that people may be
tempted to look to it, rather than the biblical God, to provide
ultimate meaning for life. Such challenges to Christianity must
be resisted, but they are not what these verses of Scripture are
talking about.
Titus 1:12
The writer of Titus, concerned about the situation of the
church on the island of Crete, quotes a Cretan of earlier times,
Epimenides, to the effect that "Cretans are always liars ...."
That reputation was widespread in the ancient world.
But "the paradox of the Cretan liar" is of interest today in
the study of logic and the search for artificial intelligence. It
has connections with the theorem of G8odel which suggests that
the universe cannot be, in a logical sense, a closed system. For
Epimenides' statement is "self--referential" because he himself
was a Cretan. If taken in the strict sense that Cretans always
lie, he was lying when he said it, which means it's false, so he
didn't have to be lying, which means it's true, so he was lying
...! It is easy to see why Epimenides' statement has been
described as a "paradox."
Our text is not concerned with questions of mathematical
logic, and it would be wrong to emphasize such concerns in
connection with it. But it is worth nothing that the Bible speaks
within the world of discourse in which these questions have been
raised.5
James 5:13--15
This is the classic text for the practice of anointing the
sick with oil as a rite of healing. We have discussed the
relationship of this practice to themes of science and technology
in our
discussion of Mark 6:1--13 for Proper 9 B. As with the passage
from Sirach 38 discussed above, this would be an excellent ---- one
might almost say "essential" ---- text for a healing service.
Calling attention to the common use of olive oil as medicine will
help to bring out the full significance of the anointing of the
sick today. Oil can be seen as a symbol of all medicines, and the
rite as a prayer for divine healing through medical means.
Endnotes
1. See Cole--Turner, The New Genesis, for an excellent discussion
of this issue.
2. E.g., "Service of the World for Healing" in Occasional
Services (Augsburg, Minneapolis, 1982), pp. 89--98.
3. John C. Rybolt, Sirach (The Liturgical Press, Collegeville MN,
1986), p. 6.
4. J.N.D. Kelly, The Pastoral Epistles (Harper & Row, San
Francisco, 1960), pp. 150--152.
5. Kelly, The Pastoral Epistles, pp. 235--236. Douglas R.
Hofstadter, G"del, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid (Basic,
New York, 1979). (References to "Epimenides paradox" are on p.
763.)
