Smart Phones
Aron Moss
Question: What would the Rebbe say about the age of smartphones? He passed away at the dawn of the internet so I assume he didn't explicitly speak on the topic, but can we infer from his teachings what his angle may have been?
Answer: Here's a story that may give us a clue.
In the early years of his leadership, the Rebbe was asked if his weekday talks could be recorded. It was the 1950's and consumer tape recorders were the latest gadget. The Rebbe's students wanted to utilise this new technology to preserve his teachings for future generations. They were sure that the Rebbe, who generally embraced technology, would readily agree.
He didn't. The Rebbe objected to his talks being recorded, and he explained his reasoning. If people know they can hear the recording of a talk later on, they won't bother to listen to it live. Either they won't show up at all, or even if they do, they won't listen with their full attention. When you know you can catch the replay later, you aren't fully present and attentive to what's happening here and now. Nothing can replace real live interaction. So no recordings. Listen, the first time.
But then something curious happened. Soon after expressing his disapproval of tape recordings, the Rebbe allowed them. And thank G-d for that, today we have thousands of recordings spanning over forty years of the Rebbe's talks and teachings.
This seems puzzling. If the Rebbe was concerned that people wouldn't listen to live talks if they knew they would be recorded, what changed to make him allow it? And if he was going to agree to his talks being recorded, why did he originally object?
It seems the Rebbe always intended to allow the recordings to be made. But he first expressed his concerns before giving consent. By doing so, he offered a way to approach new technology. Embrace innovation with caution. Consider the costs as well as the benefits. Before jumping onto the latest new thing, think about the risks, and try to avoid them. So you want to use a tape recorder? Great. But don't wait to catch the replay. Be present in the now.
We need this approach now more than ever. Everywhere you look, the virtual seems to have eclipsed reality. In the playground, parents push their kids on the swings while looking at their phones. At the cafe, couples sit across from each other, not looking at one another but at their screens. At birthday parties children don't play games with their friends but play video games on devices with imaginary friends. We miss real connections in our search for Wifi.
The Rebbe did embrace technology. He would probably like seeing people access Torah on their phones, fulfilling the prophecy that “The world will be filled with the knowledge of G-d”. But I believe he would caution us not to become slaves to our devices. Technology is there to serve us, not the other way around. We risk missing the moment happening in front of us because we are looking down. The Rebbe taught us to always look up.
