Should We Ban the Internet?
1,318 views · Published 17 May 2012 · 1:32:42 · Indexed 29 September 2026
Channel: Rabbi Simon Jacobson at Meaningful Life Center · 2012 · Howto & Style
SHOULD WE BAN THE INTERNET? A Tale of Two Titanics Should we ban the internet from our homes? And if not, how should we protect our young -- and ourselves -- from the vices of cyberspace? This question is now being debated in many orthodox circles. Next week, some 40,000 frum men are expected to pack Citifield Stadium in New York -- an interesting venue to condemn modernity -- for an emergency meeting about the evils of the Internet. What should our attitude be to all this? Should we avoid cyberspace? Is that even possible? And then, why not ban mobile devices and other electronic communication tools that can also lead someone astray? And finally, and most importantly, what is the Torah's attitude to technology? What did the rabbis of old do when, say, the printing press was discovered in the 15th century? Did they ban books? This question is obviously not new and is far broader than how do deal with the Internet. The real dilemma is how to deal with the universe -- with science, with reason, with business, with success and prosperity, and with all of the blessings and challenges of the modern world. Can we bridge faith and modernity? Do we need to build walls or do we engage the world? Insulation or immersion? What should be our approach to new ways to access information -- good and bad -- when we cannot really filter out one from the other? Please join Rabbi Jacobson in a daring discussion on this explosive topic, and discover that the sinking of the Titanic, and the rise of another Titanic -- exactly 100 years ago (connected with the first information revolution which we celebrate next week as the holiday of Shavuot) -- provides us with astonishing lessons about dealing with today's information revolution.
