SRT and the future

Murdo Macdonald looks ahead to the challenges facing the Church’s Science, Religion and Technology Project on its 50th anniversary.

Murdo Macdonald

CHANGE. It’s something which most of us find uncomfortable, perhaps even challenging – and not just because we’re Presbyterians. (You’ll be familiar with the old joke: how many Presbyterians does it take to change a lightbulb? That lightbulb has aye been there, and it’s no’ changing!) Yet change is a part of life: if nothing changed, new opportunities to progress wouldn’t arise, nothing would move on. Everything would be set in stone.

Change happens in all kinds of situations, and at varying paces. Change at a geological timescale is so slow as to be largely imperceptible; in biological systems, adaptation and change can take many generations. We see the regular changes of the seasons, and overlaid on that we are increasingly aware of the changes in our climate, which in many cases have been precipitated and accelerated by human activity.

Change takes place in our human lives, too: generations move on as children are born and others pass away. We all face the challenges and limitations which ageing may bring; we may wish to know afresh the energy and innocence of childhood, but who of us would want to face the angst of the teenage years again?

As with many things, change offers both opportunity and challenge: how we, as individuals, as society, as a church, respond to these opportunities and challenges will have a significant effect on the outcome.

Wind the clock back 50 years. Faced with a realisation that the dominant technology of the day – North Sea oil – would bring irreversible change to parts of rural Scotland (think of Sullom Voe, Nigg and Kishorn), and that much of this change was being driven by advances in technology, the General Assembly in 1969 took a decision to respond positively to the changes which Scotland would undergo. And so what was to become the Society, Religion and Technology Project (better known as the SRT) came into being.

Those of us who remember it will know that, in many ways, the world of 1970 was a very different place. At that point, the UK was busily negotiating entry into the EEC, the forerunner of the EU. Having assured us that “All you need is love”, the Beatles were in the process of an acrimonious break- up (and Bowie hadn’t even released his seminal “Changes” album). England were still holders of the football World Cup and a general election would soon replace a Labour government with a Conservative one. The north tower of the World Trade Centre and the New English translation of the Bible were both nearing completion. The abortive Apollo 13 mission had been brought safely back to earth, the first commercial “Jumbo jet” flights had recently taken place and Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, designed to limit the spread of nuclear weapons, had just come into effect. The Church of Scotland had almost 1.2 million members served by nearly 2000 ministers.

In 1970, things which we now take almost for granted- mobile phones, the internet, “test tube babies” – either didn’t exist or were in very early stages of development.

The possibility that global warming might really be happening was beginning to be discussed by the scientific community; social media platforms didn’t exist – and nobody would have predicted that the president of the United States would use it as a primary means to communicate policy decisions. Drones were found mainly on bagpipes, in beehives or in pulpits, rather than delivering missiles or (more recently) blood supplies, drugs or Amazon packages.

For millennia, advances in science and technology have had enormous impacts on all aspects of human life, in many cases changing the way we think of ourselves and society. Most of these impacts have been positive; some have had unforeseen consequences. Many have raised ethical and moral questions as to how and where a technology can and should be applied to maximise benefit and to mitigate negative effects.

The SRT Project was initiated by the Church of Scotland on May 1 1970, to help the church to engage constructively with the scientific community in Scotland and beyond. In the subsequent 50 years, the SRT Project has been involved in informed debate with many interested parties: government, regulators, industry, scientists, the church, the general public. The variety of publications which have resulted from the work of the SRT Project stand as eloquent testimony to the dedicated work of many people over the years, and many individuals have been stimulated to think – and to act – through the work of the project.

Justice, mercy, humility

The SRT Project seeks to assist the church in being faithful to Scripture’s call through the prophet Micah: “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6: 8 (NIV)).

We as people of faith are called upon to use the tools, talents and abilities which God has given us. In the same way that the apostle Paul used the technology of his day (travelling on roads built by the Roman empire, sailing in ships which were usually plying commercial trade, writing letters to be read by faith communities which he may never visit) in order to share the good news of Jesus Christ, we too have a responsibility to respond to the need which we see round about us. To seek to apply technological advances in ways which bring about justice – especially to those in our society who are most marginalised or least able to speak out for themselves. We are called to be merciful and compassionate in all of our dealings.

As humans, we have the ability to exploit the world around us, to develop tools and to have a profound effect not only on our environment, but also to manipulate and modify the other species with which we share the planet (initially by selective breeding; more recently by direct modification of the genetic code of plants, animals – and even of humans). With that ability comes great responsibility; Micah reminds us of the need to walk in humility, to not get ideas above our station.

Many might argue that the church should not interfere with issues which lie outwith its perceived remit. Yet the church in Scotland comprises many people with professional expertise relevant to all kinds of areas – including areas which may be considered controversial. As the national Church, the Church of Scotland can call on a wide range of expertise and experience from within the ranks of the Church: to be able to harness even a fraction of this strength in depth, and to apply the resulting wisdom, would mean being faithful to our call and bring great benefit to all in the communities we serve.

Discerning the future

What will the future bring? What will the world look like in another 50 years’ time, and what issues will our brothers and sisters be wrestling with in 2070? A degree of “futurology” may be required in identifying what will be important. What might be the implications of the ability to use digital technologies to track people’s behaviours and health? In what ways might precision genetic modification technologies be used?

Where we will derive our energy from once we have weaned ourselves offour current carbon addiction? How will our interactions with machines evolve?

There is much uncertainty as we look to the future. However, we can be sure that things will change, and there will be new opportunities for people of faith to serve in a spirit of justice, mercy and humility.

In 2020, the SRT Project celebrates its 50th anniversary. To learn more about the events planned to mark this milestone, if you think your congregation would like to hear more about the SRT Project, or for more information about anything mentioned in this article, please see the website: www.srtp.org.uk or contact Dr Murdo Macdonald: mmacdonald@churchofscotland.org.uk