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Articles

3 ways to think biblically about Black Friday

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November 26, 2014

My husband and I like traditions. Part of it is owing to my own family’s love for all things familiar, but the other part is that we just enjoy doing fun things together. We like to celebrate, and like many Americans, we like Black Friday.

Yes, that is correct. We are some of the many crazy people who venture out on the biggest shopping day of the year. We scour the newspaper ads the day before, while watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. We make our list and check it twice. And we love every minute of it. Before we had kids, we even got up at hours of the morning that no one should be awake just to find a deal. Now we wait until our kids get up to face the crowds (although my husband is not opposed to going out by himself in the wee hours of the morning). But we still are avid Black Friday shoppers.

If we are honest, some of our enthusiasm over Black Friday is owing to our interest in seeing what craziness is out there (or in my husband’s case, his love for a good deal). But the biggest reason we endure the crowds and the crazy is because there is nothing like being able to finish your Christmas shopping before December even arrives.

Avoid Black Friday?

There are many reasons Christians might avoid Black Friday shopping. Perhaps the most compelling one is the rampant consumerism that seems to dominate all things Christmas in our culture. Black Friday has turned into Black Thursday, Black Wednesday, and Black All Night Long. Some even boycott stores that stay open on Thanksgiving, in protest of the perceived greed that drives many retail stores to forego the Thanksgiving break and get right into the Christmas spirit.

And I’m with them on the problems of greed and consumerism. As Christians, we know that Christmas is about so much more than getting everything on our wish list, getting the best deal, and fighting with another customer for the last toy on the shelf. The Christ of Christmas puts to death the greed and consumerism that so easily entangles us this time of year.

Embrace Black Friday?

But as one who enjoys partaking in a little Black Friday shopping, I hope to offer a different way to think about this day that doesn’t involve boycotting, fighting for toys, or coveting what we cannot have or cannot afford.

Black Friday shopping can be a form of good stewardship. While my husband loves getting a good deal, his purpose in seeking deals is not for bargain’s sake. He wants to steward our money well. He knows we have been given a set amount of resources, and he wants to multiply those resources in a way that honors God and serves others. Black Friday shopping can serve this purpose as well.

Perhaps getting all of your shopping done early enables you to truly focus on the Christ of Christmas, this is good stewardship of time. Perhaps saving a few dollars on your Christmas presents affords you the opportunity to give extra to a missions organization or a friend in need. This also is good stewardship of your finances.

Black Friday shopping can be a way to love your neighbor. Jesus commands us to love our neighbors as ourselves (Matt. 22:39, Mark 12:31). Nowhere do we see overt self-love like we do on Black Friday. But, as Christians, we have the Holy Spirit, who enables us to respond differently to the frenetic pace of the holiday season. Black Friday gives us the opportunity to love our neighbor by treating those around us differently. When the pressure rises to fight for a new gaming console or push someone aside in frustration, we can die to our own selfish desires for the next big shiny thing. We can treat our neighbors like we would want to be treated, with love, kindness, and patience.

But we also can love our neighbor in a less obvious way this Black Friday. We can love our neighbor by buying stuff. Boycotting stores for their holiday practices only hurts the men and women at the checkout counter—the very ones who need jobs the most this Christmas. By heading out to stores with open wallets, we can love the workers by keeping them in business.

Black Friday shopping can encourage a healthy spirit of giving. All of us have been given an abundance from our heavenly Father. He delights in giving good gifts to his children (Matt. 7:11). He lavishes his kindness on us in Christ (Eph. 1:7-9). As image bearers, we get to experience a small (and broken) taste of this joy when we also give gifts to those we love (2 Cor. 9:7). Because Black Friday can be a day of stewardship for Christians, it also can be a day where we have the resources to buy the gift our loved one so desperately wants or needs.

Black Friday shopping doesn’t have to be all about greed and consumerism. It doesn’t have to be about excessive spending and fights with people over the last flat screen television. It can be a time for Christians to live differently than the world around them—to be in the world and not of it. And on a day that is so often overshadowed by the sins that so easily entangle all of us, that could be good news this holiday season.

Article 12: The Future of AI

We affirm that AI will continue to be developed in ways that we cannot currently imagine or understand, including AI that will far surpass many human abilities. God alone has the power to create life, and no future advancements in AI will usurp Him as the Creator of life. The church has a unique role in proclaiming human dignity for all and calling for the humane use of AI in all aspects of society.

We deny that AI will make us more or less human, or that AI will ever obtain a coequal level of worth, dignity, or value to image-bearers. Future advancements in AI will not ultimately fulfill our longings for a perfect world. While we are not able to comprehend or know the future, we do not fear what is to come because we know that God is omniscient and that nothing we create will be able to thwart His redemptive plan for creation or to supplant humanity as His image-bearers.

Genesis 1; Isaiah 42:8; Romans 1:20-21; 5:2; Ephesians 1:4-6; 2 Timothy 1:7-9; Revelation 5:9-10

Article 11: Public Policy

We affirm that the fundamental purposes of government are to protect human beings from harm, punish those who do evil, uphold civil liberties, and to commend those who do good. The public has a role in shaping and crafting policies concerning the use of AI in society, and these decisions should not be left to those who develop these technologies or to governments to set norms.

We deny that AI should be used by governments, corporations, or any entity to infringe upon God-given human rights. AI, even in a highly advanced state, should never be delegated the governing authority that has been granted by an all-sovereign God to human beings alone. 

Romans 13:1-7; Acts 10:35; 1 Peter 2:13-14

Article 10: War

We affirm that the use of AI in warfare should be governed by love of neighbor and the principles of just war. The use of AI may mitigate the loss of human life, provide greater protection of non-combatants, and inform better policymaking. Any lethal action conducted or substantially enabled by AI must employ 5 human oversight or review. All defense-related AI applications, such as underlying data and decision-making processes, must be subject to continual review by legitimate authorities. When these systems are deployed, human agents bear full moral responsibility for any actions taken by the system.

We deny that human agency or moral culpability in war can be delegated to AI. No nation or group has the right to use AI to carry out genocide, terrorism, torture, or other war crimes.

Genesis 4:10; Isaiah 1:16-17; Psalm 37:28; Matthew 5:44; 22:37-39; Romans 13:4

Article 9: Security

We affirm that AI has legitimate applications in policing, intelligence, surveillance, investigation, and other uses supporting the government’s responsibility to respect human rights, to protect and preserve human life, and to pursue justice in a flourishing society.

We deny that AI should be employed for safety and security applications in ways that seek to dehumanize, depersonalize, or harm our fellow human beings. We condemn the use of AI to suppress free expression or other basic human rights granted by God to all human beings.

Romans 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:13-14

Article 8: Data & Privacy

We affirm that privacy and personal property are intertwined individual rights and choices that should not be violated by governments, corporations, nation-states, and other groups, even in the pursuit of the common good. While God knows all things, it is neither wise nor obligatory to have every detail of one’s life open to society.

We deny the manipulative and coercive uses of data and AI in ways that are inconsistent with the love of God and love of neighbor. Data collection practices should conform to ethical guidelines that uphold the dignity of all people. We further deny that consent, even informed consent, although requisite, is the only necessary ethical standard for the collection, manipulation, or exploitation of personal data—individually or in the aggregate. AI should not be employed in ways that distort truth through the use of generative applications. Data should not be mishandled, misused, or abused for sinful purposes to reinforce bias, strengthen the powerful, or demean the weak.

Exodus 20:15, Psalm 147:5; Isaiah 40:13-14; Matthew 10:16 Galatians 6:2; Hebrews 4:12-13; 1 John 1:7 

Article 7: Work

We affirm that work is part of God’s plan for human beings participating in the cultivation and stewardship of creation. The divine pattern is one of labor and rest in healthy proportion to each other. Our view of work should not be confined to commercial activity; it must also include the many ways that human beings serve each other through their efforts. AI can be used in ways that aid our work or allow us to make fuller use of our gifts. The church has a Spirit-empowered responsibility to help care for those who lose jobs and to encourage individuals, communities, employers, and governments to find ways to invest in the development of human beings and continue making vocational contributions to our lives together.

We deny that human worth and dignity is reducible to an individual’s economic contributions to society alone. Humanity should not use AI and other technological innovations as a reason to move toward lives of pure leisure even if greater social wealth creates such possibilities.

Genesis 1:27; 2:5; 2:15; Isaiah 65:21-24; Romans 12:6-8; Ephesians 4:11-16

Article 6: Sexuality

We affirm the goodness of God’s design for human sexuality which prescribes the sexual union to be an exclusive relationship between a man and a woman in the lifelong covenant of marriage.

We deny that the pursuit of sexual pleasure is a justification for the development or use of AI, and we condemn the objectification of humans that results from employing AI for sexual purposes. AI should not intrude upon or substitute for the biblical expression of sexuality between a husband and wife according to God’s design for human marriage.

Genesis 1:26-29; 2:18-25; Matthew 5:27-30; 1 Thess 4:3-4

Article 5: Bias

We affirm that, as a tool created by humans, AI will be inherently subject to bias and that these biases must be accounted for, minimized, or removed through continual human oversight and discretion. AI should be designed and used in such ways that treat all human beings as having equal worth and dignity. AI should be utilized as a tool to identify and eliminate bias inherent in human decision-making.

We deny that AI should be designed or used in ways that violate the fundamental principle of human dignity for all people. Neither should AI be used in ways that reinforce or further any ideology or agenda, seeking to subjugate human autonomy under the power of the state.

Micah 6:8; John 13:34; Galatians 3:28-29; 5:13-14; Philippians 2:3-4; Romans 12:10

Article 4: Medicine

We affirm that AI-related advances in medical technologies are expressions of God’s common grace through and for people created in His image and that these advances will increase our capacity to provide enhanced medical diagnostics and therapeutic interventions as we seek to care for all people. These advances should be guided by basic principles of medical ethics, including beneficence, non-maleficence, autonomy, and justice, which are all consistent with the biblical principle of loving our neighbor.

We deny that death and disease—effects of the Fall—can ultimately be eradicated apart from Jesus Christ. Utilitarian applications regarding healthcare distribution should not override the dignity of human life. Fur- 3 thermore, we reject the materialist and consequentialist worldview that understands medical applications of AI as a means of improving, changing, or completing human beings.

Matthew 5:45; John 11:25-26; 1 Corinthians 15:55-57; Galatians 6:2; Philippians 2:4

Article 3: Relationship of AI & Humanity

We affirm the use of AI to inform and aid human reasoning and moral decision-making because it is a tool that excels at processing data and making determinations, which often mimics or exceeds human ability. While AI excels in data-based computation, technology is incapable of possessing the capacity for moral agency or responsibility.

We deny that humans can or should cede our moral accountability or responsibilities to any form of AI that will ever be created. Only humanity will be judged by God on the basis of our actions and that of the tools we create. While technology can be created with a moral use in view, it is not a moral agent. Humans alone bear the responsibility for moral decision making.

Romans 2:6-8; Galatians 5:19-21; 2 Peter 1:5-8; 1 John 2:1

Article 2: AI as Technology

We affirm that the development of AI is a demonstration of the unique creative abilities of human beings. When AI is employed in accordance with God’s moral will, it is an example of man’s obedience to the divine command to steward creation and to honor Him. We believe in innovation for the glory of God, the sake of human flourishing, and the love of neighbor. While we acknowledge the reality of the Fall and its consequences on human nature and human innovation, technology can be used in society to uphold human dignity. As a part of our God-given creative nature, human beings should develop and harness technology in ways that lead to greater flourishing and the alleviation of human suffering.

We deny that the use of AI is morally neutral. It is not worthy of man’s hope, worship, or love. Since the Lord Jesus alone can atone for sin and reconcile humanity to its Creator, technology such as AI cannot fulfill humanity’s ultimate needs. We further deny the goodness and benefit of any application of AI that devalues or degrades the dignity and worth of another human being. 

Genesis 2:25; Exodus 20:3; 31:1-11; Proverbs 16:4; Matthew 22:37-40; Romans 3:23

Article 1: Image of God

We affirm that God created each human being in His image with intrinsic and equal worth, dignity, and moral agency, distinct from all creation, and that humanity’s creativity is intended to reflect God’s creative pattern.

We deny that any part of creation, including any form of technology, should ever be used to usurp or subvert the dominion and stewardship which has been entrusted solely to humanity by God; nor should technology be assigned a level of human identity, worth, dignity, or moral agency.

Genesis 1:26-28; 5:1-2; Isaiah 43:6-7; Jeremiah 1:5; John 13:34; Colossians 1:16; 3:10; Ephesians 4:24