“Should we entrust our love lives to algorithms and dating apps?” That was the question a group of students asked one evening at the Dominican Center in Montreal. The CeDum, led by the brothers under the direction of Gustavo Ortega, offers a wide range of activities. Since last year, in addition to liturgies and traditional prayer or adoration groups, more surprising activities have been added. Encouraged by the prior of the Saint Albert convent and the Provincial Prior, CeDum has become an OPTIC Lab. It has joined a network of places where students or young professionals can reflect together on their relationship with technology, ethical issues, and societal impacts.
The events they organize are part of an activity developed by the OPTIC network, which centers on debating films or television series episodes. This project, called Bright Mirror, refers to the popular Netflix series Black Mirror, known among young people for its realistic yet dystopian worlds. Students themselves, with the support of OPTIC, lead debates for their peers.
And that evening, the conversation was lively around the topic of dating apps, which most of the students use. “Do they simplify meeting people? Do they help find one’s soulmate? Or, on the contrary, do they trap us in an endless quest for perfection, for a person who meets countless criteria, chosen from within an infinite network? How are these algorithms configured? Do they help people meet the right person, or do they encourage clients to remain users for as long as possible?” These were some of the questions posed by Clément Augustin and Marc de Preaumont, the evening’s moderators. Both students at HEC Montreal, they are committed to fostering reflection among their friends and other members of the chaplaincy, ensuring technology is used for the common good and with respect for human dignity.
The OPTIC network offers an activity kit for brothers, sisters, or lay leaders of student or young professional groups to raise awareness of the issues surrounding digital technologies, which have permeated every aspect of our lives: informing, working, consuming, meeting people, sharing news… The kit includes video suggestions to watch together and, for each one, questions to guide the debate.
Such an approach is extremely important for making young people aware of the benefits, as well as the risks, of these technologies, enabling the next generation to be more mature and responsible in their choices. In this way, digital technology can be fully harnessed for personal, human, and spiritual growth, as well as for building a society aligned with Gospel values.
Far from being pessimistic, the OPTIC network seeks to ensure that technology brings out the best for the greatest number. It is a way of preaching at the borders, even if these borders are neither physical nor social, but digital.
If you want to create your own OPTIC Lab, request the activity kit and support from the OPTIC network by writing to contact@optictechnology.org.
OPTIC is an international network initiated by the Order and serves the Dominican family. It is a project directly overseen by the Master of the Order. More information at OPTIC
