A first-of-its-kind conference in the US combining global secular and Christian leaders heard a common message from many of its non-religious speakers – do not let technology erode the human connection.
The advice given at the Rethink Conference at the California megachurch Crystal Cathedral last week could be a bit of a surprise coming from influential leaders who profit from mass communication technology.
Rethink executive director Bill Dallas recalled, “Larry King was amazing in just helping us understand that although technology is certainly useful and important, we sometimes lose connection points.
“Technology that helps and compliments our daily lives is useful, but when it becomes a crutch or when it becomes where we lose connection with people then it is dangerous.”
Dallas, who spoke to The Christian Post after the conference closed Saturday, said that venture capitalist Mark Kvamme - whose companies have funded businesses such as Google, YouTube, and Apple – also warned that technology can sometimes obstruct people from engaging in human contact.
“Kvamme has funded so many of these Fortune 500 companies and he said e-mail is a great thing,” Dallas recalled. “[But] he knows people in his company who e-mail the person in the next cubicle as opposed to getting up and talking to them. We e-mail people who are 50 feet from us and that’s when we lose connection.”
King and Kvamme were among the more than 30 prominent leaders that included former President George HW Bush, Rupert Murdoch and Kay Warren as guest speakers at the first-ever Rethink Conference.
About 1,200 unique people attended the three-day conference last week, and more than 5,000 people across the nation watched the speakers via satellite.
During Bush’s segment, the former president said loyalty is extremely important to him and what he looks for in a leader. Both Bush and media mogul Murdoch replied that family was most important to them.
