Google® of No Return?

Abstract

This is not a case for nostalgia, a defense of business-as-usual in libraries and publishing, or (heaven knows) a Luddite plea to “leave the books alone.” I am appealing, instead, to enlightened self-interest in urging that, in the light of these changing technological prospects and possibilities, we should engage in a better review of the nature of theological learning (for instance, is theological literature format-neutral?) and of theological discourse (can it be de-personalized or de-contextualized without serious consequences?).

Think of it this way: Do we have more to fear from the success of Google's project (possibly more texts available than ever, but with proportionately fewer being authentically read than ever before) or from its failure (a lost opportunity for placing the best resources within the reach of as many students, in as many places, as possible)? If the project is completed, are we ready with a new research methodology and a new pedagogy to exploit it to its fullest extent?

However we answer these questions, it is clear that now is the time to be asking them. How well we understand what makes study in our discipline distinctive is likely to affect the outcome of projects such as Google's more decisively than the technologies themselves. We need to do our own thinking on this–as scholars, librarians, authors, publishers, network administrators, but also as theologians.