Prayer in the Digital Age by Matt Swaim
I’m a tech guy and a Catholic school administrator, so I was very interested when a kind-hearted school parent gave me a copy of Matt Swaim’s Prayer in the Digital Age. I was hoping it would give me insights into how to help students cultivate the habit of prayer in today’s digital world. The blurb on the back promised “practical suggestions for learning how to ‘unplug’ in order to cultivate a fruitful relationship with God.”
Unfortunately, the book’s suggestions were lost in a sea of negativity, generalizations, and judgments. There are some good ideas in the book for getting into the habit of prayer, especially in the chapter called “Digital, But Disciplined.” The problem is that they are expressed in a tone that seems to assume the worst of the reader. It reminds me of that scene in the movie Airplane when the woman begins to panic and the passengers take it upon themselves to slap her out of it. I suppose it’s ok to slap readers a bit if they need waking up, but this book breaks out the boxing gloves and baseball bat.
The book also sets up a false dichotomy between technology and prayer, as if they cannot exist together. While it is necessary and healthy to “unplug” every so often, it is possible for one to be spiritually nourished and draw closer to God through technology. The digital world, as distracting and tempting as it can be, is also a world full of God’s grace.
In Prayer in the Digital Age I would have liked to have seen some concrete examples of digital tools that can be used to enhance prayer life. Apps like iBreviary and Reimagining the Examen, podcasts like Pray As You Go, and websites like Sacred Space demonstrate that technology can be a powerful aid to one’s prayer life. (For more on this, see my 2010 post “Using Technology to Get Teens to Pray.”)
If you need a wake up call to the temptations and distractions of technology and media, then this book is for you. Otherwise, a quick skim will do just fine.
Prayer in the Digital Age by Matt Swain
Ligouri Missouri: Ligouri Publications, 2011
Print length: 138 pages
