On this day in history, January 24th, in 1984, Steve Jobs introduced Apple’s Macintosh computer to the world.
The announcement came two days after the memorable Super Bowl commercial where Apple was seen as a victor of freedom from the Orwellian dystopian tyranny of 1984. The commercial created the buzz of anticipation to precede Job’s announcement of an all-in-one home computer featuring color graphics and a mouse.[1]
The 1984 commercial also foreshadowed Job’s visionary announcement of a computer that would revolutionize the world.
And 38 years later, it could well be argued that the Apple computer, including the iPhone, has truly revolutionized human behavior, work, communication, education, and relationships. A 2021 report found that there are nearly one billion iPhone users around the world who have infinite access to information. [2] And the average person is on their smartphone four to six hours a day.[3]
This technological revolution has also profoundly affected people’s relationship with God and with church.
Brett McCracken, author of The Wisdom Pyramid, has written brilliantly on the effect of this Apple revolution in his book. He furthermore provides a helpful and user-friendly remedy for aligning our souls back to God.
His article, “Apple’s Logo and Eden’s Forbidden Fruit” on The Gospel Coalition discusses the Apple revolution and includes excerpts from his book. Take some time to read, either on your Apple Mac or other device.
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