Weekly Newsletter from Christian Vegetarian Association CVA - February 28, 2021
From Christian Vegetarian Association (CVA)

  1. Is Human Civilization Doomed?
  2. All-Creatures.Org Ministry

1. Is Human Civilization Doomed?

In a few weeks, in ways that tie into the previous essays on moral frameworks, I will explain why I think the answer is no and how that answer is tied closely to animal issues. I need to say this at the outset, because the next few essays will likely make it appear that, while I think human civilization is gravely imperiled, there is hope for humanity. This hope relates to Christian teachings and traditions which, fortunately, are shared with other traditions that speak to people who are unlikely to become Christian.

In a recent TED talk, historian Yuval Noah Harari (author of Sapiens and Homo Deus) noted that the source of power has changed over time. In ancient times, those with land had power. The production of food in excess of the subsistence-needs of farmers provided the resources need to generate an army and an artisan class that would equip the army with weaponry. In the industrial age, those with better technology had power. Better weapons could overwhelm a numerically superior army and thereby control land and other resources.

There has been a dramatic shift in the recent past. Increasingly, information is becoming the source of power. Those with information on how each person’s mind works can manipulate people to do their bidding. People can believe that they are making independent, voluntary choices when in fact what they believe and what they are inspired to do is largely an effect of sophisticated manipulations.

Using what we say and what we do on the Internet, artificial intelligence programs can determine, with greater and greater precision over time, what we believe and what makes us change beliefs. Most people seem oblivious to this danger, and even those who recognize the perils remain highly vulnerable. I will further explore this problem, and its implications, next week.

Stephen R. Kaufman, M.D.

2. All-Creatures.org Ministry

Newsletters: These are recent editions of our all-creatures Newsletter, which we hope you like and share with others to help end the exploitation and killing of animals:

Recipes:

Sermons:

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