Should We Give Thanks for Technology?
If you think you have the Troubadours all figured out, you may be surprised by each one’s take on tech. What won’t surprise you, of course, is another evening of delightful dialogue from the fraternal five. So fraternal, in fact, that Dale in the spirit of the season graciously allowed William to press on past the one-hour mark.
But wait, there’s more! Chris declares that the combination of Holy Orders, celebrity, and the internet, is, to borrow Joseph’s metaphor, “a car with no steering wheel or brake only an accelerator.” In addition to metaphors, Joseph gives us the best lens with which to look at the problem, a poem. Dale quotes the wisdom of an English journalist whose name escapes him, but boy did he nail it concerning machines and freedom. Dan coins the clause, “outsource imagination,” and describes his plans for the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and William, in a disquisition on definitions and distinctions, wonders if said plans involve a technology or a tool.
Bonus: What does Dan share in common with Chris’s latest litter of spaniels?
Unsettled by screens? Join the Troubadours (on a screen, alas) for equal parts dire warning and abundant hope. In other words, exactly what you’d expect from the Troubadours. (Perhaps you do have us figured out.)
Subscribe to the Troubadours
Dale Ahlquist Society of G.K. Chesterton
Christopher Check Catholic Answers
William Fahey Thomas More College
Daniel Kerr St. Martin’s Academy
Joseph Pearce St. Austin Review
Missed a summit?
About the Troubadours Summit
The Troubadours Summit Series is an outgrowth of an annual symposium in Fort Scott, Kansas called the Prairie Troubadour.
Faithful to Holy Mother Church, The Troubadours are a group of friends inspired by the likes of Cardinal Newman, G.K. Chesterton, Hillaire Belloc, John Senior, and other stalwarts of the Faith, to live and share the Joy of Christ through stories, song and good red wine. Through our online summit series, we aim to create an authentic Catholic experience where the Good, the True and the Beautiful are glimpsed through lively discourse punctuated by earnest prayer, strong drink, and the real mirth found in friendship.
Catholicism needn’t be stodgy and narrow. Quite the contrary! As G.K. Chesterton reminds us, the walls built by the Church through doctrine and discipline are not the walls of a prison, but the “walls of a playground.”
And, as Belloc wrote, “Wherever the Catholic Sun doth shine, there’s always laughter and good red wine. At least I’ve always found it so. Benedicamus Domino.”
Indeed it is so. Let us bless the Lord!
FAQs
Email [email protected] for help with tonight’s session
How do I participate?
This monthly series is broadcast live, right here on this web page, in the video area above. The recording of the most recent summit will remain viewable here on this page until a new summit is broadcast.
When the live summit starts, the video is not loading automatically in my browser – what can I do?
You will need to refresh this page after the start time of 7pm Central. We also recommend downloading and using the Chrome web browser for the best experience.
How do I submit a question?
Please send your question to [email protected].
I can’t make all the sessions. Will there be a recording?
Each session will be recorded. The most recent session can always be viewed right here on this page. Click here to view previous sessions.
The Original Troubadour
The Prairie Troubadour is named in memoriam of poet, song-writer and man of the Kansas prairie, Gerald Francis Kerr (1944-2015). Dr. Kerr was a patriarch, physician, poet, farmer, troubadour, true Kansan and lover of the prairie. A Catholic son and beloved husband, he was father of 6 and papa to 31 grand-children. Click below to hear one of his recordings, Raggedy Man, an original composition based on a poem by James Whitcomb Riley.