Worth Reading - 10/4/24
Here are some links worth following this week:
1. I reviewed Philip Jenkins’ newest book, Kingdoms of This World for The Gospel Coalition. He provides an intriguing assessment of the way that empires have shaped religions:
“In our cultural moment, the word “empire” has a nearly universal negative connotation. For most Americans, the word conjures images of plastic-clad stormtroopers and Darth Vader. Yet Jenkins disrupts this caricature by reminding readers of the many benefits empires have brought throughout history, displayed with satirical potency by Monty Python in Life of Brian. “Empires spark social revolutions,” Jenkins observes (32). Jenkins also reminds critics of the Great Commission as a form of imperialism that “Christian missions build and extend empires; but they also help end them” (141).”
2. Joel Miller writes about his decision to severely cut back on the news and also his perspective on how “news” evolved into infotainment that saps the soul’s vitality:
“News is now imagined as a thoroughly participatory event that supposedly requires the full engagement of every concerned person. News isn’t complete unless we engage constantly: listening, viewing, commenting, posting. It’s not a periodic update; it’s a full-time project. We don’t just consume news; news consumes us.”
3. An article in The Atlantic by Rose Horowitz explains that many students of “elite” colleges simply do not read book and offers some reasons why:
“Nicholas Dames has taught Literature Humanities, Columbia University’s required great-books course, since 1998. He loves the job, but it has changed. Over the past decade, students have become overwhelmed by the reading. College kids have never read everything they’re assigned, of course, but this feels different. Dames’s students now seem bewildered by the thought of finishing multiple books a semester. His colleagues have noticed the same problem. Many students no longer arrive at college—even at highly selective, elite colleges—prepared to read books.”
4. Anthony Cirilla argues at Front Porch Republic for the value of the five-paragraph essay in a world with generative AI:
“Like the sonnet, the five-paragraph essay traps investment in truth felt in the heart and forged in the mind by means of its life-respecting limitations. When done well, such essays are structured to capture the urgency of the present word as the only bridge between the past and the future that carries the lifeblood of thought from one mind to another, or even of one mind to itself. Artificial intelligence blunts this interaction by creating the impression of a lifeless lump of now. Only corpses are entities of the now and only the now, and the past and present working upon them are the carrion crawlers that benefit from death. Likewise the large language model freezes the user into a passive receiver of the artificial vulture’s pseudo activity, and the mind mistakes the computer’s calculations for one’s own mental life. He who would keep his life must lose it, and the lack of lost life in the hollow verbal spurts of a large language model drowns the agency of the user. User. The same word we employ for the drug addict, by the way.”
5. After an extended hiatus, Sarah Zylstra is back with the Recorded Podcast. The latest episode is about youth sports, the family, and the future of the church:
If you are looking for an Advent devotional, consider this offering from the editorial team at The Gospel Coalition:
Some links worth reading this week: 1. Philip Jenkins claims that empires influence religions; 2. Why we probably need less news; 3. Many elite college students have never read a book; 4. The value of the five-paragraph essay in an world with generative AI; 5. A podcast about youth sports, the family, and the future of the earth.