This week’s Pub Theology Topics for our Zoom meeting at 7:00 pm on Wednesday, May 12th

Brendan Murphy on May 11, 2021

We hope to virtually see you on May 12th at 7 pm for Pub Theology. Please invite others!

Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81979620716

THIS WEEK: Communication technologies, the Bible, clergy burnout, pandemic-inspired faith

  1. Do you prefer to communicate by: phone, text, email, social media, other? How many emails are in your inbox?
  2. The history of human communication can be traced back since the origin of speech circa 500,000 BCE. The use of technology in communication may be considered since the first use of symbols about 30,000 years BCE. Among the symbols used, there are cave paintings, petroglyphs, pictograms and ideograms. Writing was a major innovation, as well as printing technology and, more recently, telecommunications and the Internet.

    It has been only 100 years since the first radio broadcast. What kind of communication do you envision 100 years from now?
  3. The writing of the Bible was dependent upon the available technologies at the time: originally oral communication, later written down on scrolls and parchment. Given the rapid advancement of human communication, could something like a singular holy book be created (or received) today? Discuss the role of available technology in the founding of various religious traditions.
  4. For some pastors, the past year was a sign from God it was time to quit, says a story from Religion News Service. Already stretched thin, these clergy found the demands of the pandemic — from producing video church to combating conspiracy theories — took all the joy out of the job, not to mention the political and racial turmoil happening at the same time. A recent survey of Protestant pastors by the Barna Group found that 29% said they had given “real, serious consideration to quitting being in full-time ministry within the last year.” Discuss the threat of clergy burnout and what can be done to mitigate it.
  5. Nearly half of white evangelicals in the U.S. (49%) said their faith grew stronger due to the coronavirus outbreak — more than any other group, according to a new Pew Research survey. Discuss this survey result and how your own faith been impacted by the pandemic.