Theological Perspectives on a Surveillance Society ─ Watching and Being Watched

This book looks at contemporary surveillance practices and ideologies from a Christian theological perspective. Surveillance studies is an emerging, inter-disciplinary field that brings together scholars from sociology, criminology, political studies, computing and information studies, cultural studies and other disciplines. Although surveillance has been a feature of all societies since humans first co-operated to watch over one another whilst hunting and gathering it is the convergence of information technologies within both commerce and the state that has ushered in a 'surveillance society'. There has been little, if any, theological consideration of this important dimension of social organisation; this book fills the gap and offers a contribution to surveillance studies from a theological perspective, broadening the horizon against which surveillance might be interpreted and evaluated. This book is also an exercise in consciousness-raising with respect to the Christian community in order that they may critically engage with a surveillance society by drawing on biblical and theological resources. Being the first major theological treatment in the field it sets the agenda for more detailed considerations.

Lecturer in Practical Theology at the University of St Andrews, UK since 2005. He has also taught at the University of Aberdeen, the Open University (as an associate lecturer on their first fully-online technology course), and developed and managed theological programmes at the former Scottish Churches Open College in Edinburgh between 2000 and 2003.