Douglas Groothuis laments: The Book That No One Read

Jim
Bible, Theology & Philosophy
Douglas Groothuis

As the editor of a series of cultural critiques on compelling issues, Os Guinness wanted my work The Soul in Cyberspace to be “a shot across the bow.” I earnestly took up the challenge. At the time, Thomas Moore’s The Care of the Soul was a bestseller, and publishers were offering a proliferation of books on the Internet. Published in 1997, my book combined these two themes. My hope was that the book would sell well and help the church be more discerning. The book was a flop. My success publishing essays from it in various periodicals and an interview in Christianity Today notwithstanding, it was dead after one small printing.

The Soul in Cyberspace

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Discussion

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M. Osborne
Fri, 02/02/18 7:54 am

I read this book back as a GA writing for BJU Press. At the time I was also reading Neil Postman, Gene Edward Veith, H. Richard Neibuhr, and a little bit of Albert Borgman on Christians / culture / technology. I didn’t read Jacques Ellul until much later.

At the time I appreciated Groothuis’s work because he was pushing past mere content issues on the Internet. Sure, Christians were warning about the dangers of Internet porn, but Groothuis was asking questions about how researching through hyperlinks would affect the way we think about an issue (if I remember right), and reminding us about the need of embodied presence. My wife came across and purchased a copy of the Wipf and Stock edition for me. I should look through it again.To this day I’ve foregone any social media accounts.

Michael Osborne
Philadelphia, PA

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Larry
Fri, 02/02/18 9:12 am

reminding us about the need of embodied presence.

I remember this book and read a bit of it. I don’t remember much. But I think the concerns are real. To return to an old theme and a fairly dead horse on a topic that has jumped the shark by now, this is the concern with online education. It is a disembodied relationship. It assumes that education is merely or at least primarily about facts. We have lost a sense of community and relationship. That is concerning I think.