Technologies of Narcissism: The Printing Press to Facebook

Written by Rachel Armamentos. In a 2005 commencement speech given by David Foster Wallace at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, a story of only two sentences in length was told. Although concise and simple, this story and the speech that followed made an impact on the audience in attendance, as well as to audiences today. […]

Media, Journalism, and Communication: A Student’s Guide

Dr. Read Mercer Schuchardt’s latest book, Media, Journalism, and Communication: A Student’s Guide, is available from Crossway and Amazon starting March 31.  

The Technological Church

A version of this paper was published by the Moody Media Lab. Graphics by Ben Neary.   Dear church leader, Please allow me to introduce myself. I’ve never studied Greek or Hebrew, I’ve never preached a sermon or even taught a youth group, and I’ve never led worship. I’ve never had to make difficult decisions […]

The Reformation as Media Event

A version of this paper was published in The People’s Book: The Reformation and the Bible in April 2017, which was itself a print version of a talk given in 2016 at the Wheaton Theology Conference. The book can be purchased here and an alternate version of the video can be viewed here.  If historians are to attempt to write […]

The Reformation as Media Event (Part 7)- Technological Determinism

The following excerpt is the seventh portion of Read Mercer Schuchardt’s piece, The Reformation as Media Event. This excerpt explores the ways in which the printing press produced, in all of the above, the “technological determinism” that is the very reductionist, simplistic, and dismissive concept proposed by many contemporary scholars to buffer themselves against the percepts of […]

The Reformation as Media Event (Part 6)- The Counter-Reformation

The following excerpt is the sixth portion of Read Mercer Schuchardt’s piece, The Reformation as Media Event. This excerpt explores the ways in which the Printing Press produced the vast majority of the Counter-Reformation. A version of this paper was published in The People’s Book: The Reformation and the Bible in April 2017, which was itself a print version of […]

The Reformation as Media Event (Part 4)- The Cure of the Reformation

The following excerpt is the fourth portion of Read Mercer Schuchardt’s piece, The Reformation as Media Event. This excerpt explores the ways in which the printing press produced the cure of the Reformation. A version of this paper was published in The People’s Book: The Reformation and the Bible in April 2017, which was itself a print version of a […]

The Reformation as Media Event (Part 3)- The Mindset of the Reformation

The following excerpt is the third portion of Read Mercer Schuchardt’s piece, The Reformation as Media Event. This excerpt explores the ways in which the printing press produced the mindset of the Reformation. A version of this paper was published in The People’s Book: The Reformation and the Bible in April 2017, which was itself a print version of a talk […]

The Reformation as Media Event (Part 2)- Indulgences

The following excerpt is the second portion of Read Mercer Schuchardt’s piece, The Reformation as Media Event. This excerpt explores the ways in which the printing press produced the cause of the Reformation. A version of this paper was published in The People’s Book: The Reformation and the Bible in April 2017, which was itself a print version of a talk […]

The Reformation as Media Event (Part 1)- Technologies of Devotion

The following excerpt is the first portion of Read Mercer Schuchardt’s piece, The Reformation as Media Event. This excerpt explores the ways in which Johannes Gutenberg, a devout Catholic, was interested in manufacturing technologies of religious devotion, and how the Printing Press was a natural spiritual heir to the Pilgrim’s Mirrors he was previously producing. A version […]

Support Second Nature

If you find value in the work we do at Second Nature, please consider making a modest donation. Every donation, no matter how small, is a huge encouragement to us in our work.