Resource Preview: The Church of Scotland, Society Religion and Technology

The Church’s call to be salt and light in society includes the way we interact with science and new technologies. We are affected in so many ways by new developments in medicine, agriculture or IT, and in this country we can often have a say – as individuals, churches lager organisations – in responding to these issues at a local or national level. It is important that churches can stay informed and make their voice heard, to ensure that science and technology are used to help us in our work of tending and keeping all of creation, and protecting the vulnerable in society.

2020 marked 50 years of engagement in this area for the Church of Scotland. Sadly many of the 50^thanniversary celebrations and events had to be called off due to COVID restrictions, but you can see what they’ve been doing and read a series of short articles inspired by their work here.

The SRT has number of resources on a dedicated section of the Church of Scotland’s website. Many of these will be helpful to church leaders and their congregations throughout the UK. There are a number of short leaflets (pdf download) with discussion questions on ethical issues, including human cloning, neuroscience, embryo research, stem cells, end of life issues, the internet, food, and organ donation. A number of these have been produced as part of the church’s response to upcoming legislative debates, and are accompanied by more detailed reports.