Deathly (De)Vices
Our Ever-Present Portals to Seven Ancient Sins
- Ethics, Culture & Social Issues
- Christian Living
- Publisher: Cascade Books (Wipf and Stock)
- Published: 2026
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Publisher's Description
Vainglory, envy, sloth, avarice, wrath, gluttony, and lust. To study the seven deadly sins or capital vices is no novel endeavor. Vice lists like this one have circulated for centuries. But the innovations of today constitute a unique challenge. In this technocultural moment, most people have on their persons—nearly every waking second—a device that possesses great power, including the power to awaken the capital vices, to de-form people. Christians young and old must come to think of technology in terms of spiritual formation. They are inclined to think that they shape technology, which, of course, is true. But it is also true that technology shapes them in return. Devices mimic Jesus’ call to discipleship—“Abide in me, and I in you”—and the disciple of the lord called Digital will find that he or she is incrementally yet definitively fashioned into a new creation. But not every new creation is a pretty one.
Endorsements (4)
“Pastor Dillon T. Thornton has done something almost unimaginable in today’s hyperconnected world: he’s gone off social media—cold turkey. But Deathly (De)Vices isn’t an instruction manual on how you can do the same. Instead, it’s a thoughtful exploration of how our smartphones can warp our souls. Dillon uses the seven capital vices—vainglory, envy, sloth, avarice, wrath, gluttony, and lust—to not only shine a light on the technology, but on our own hearts. A challenging, engrossing read!”
“While critics of today’s technologies abound, Dillon Thornton offers a rare treat: thoughtful and clear-eyed teachings of Scripture that reveal God’s nature as a way to call us to face the soul malformations that are at stake in our everyday uses of digital devices and social media. A terrific resource for preaching and discipleship, Deathly (De)Vices is an accessible go-to primer that persuasively refreshes such ancient terms as avarice and sloth for our digital lives today.”
“The beauty of Dillon Thornton’s excellent book, Deathly (De)Vices, is that it calls out the seven capital sins that mark our hearts and lives and mar our discipleship of Jesus, both for those who are glued to their devices and the digitally disengaged. The book provides a discipleship health-check with warmth and humility, rich biblical insights, and practical advice. It avoids simplistic all-or-nothing approaches to technology, instead encouraging wisdom, godliness, and greater abiding in Jesus.”
“Our relationship to technology is this century’s most urgent question of theology and discipleship. With a scholar’s insight and a pastor’s care, Dillon Thornton offers crucial wisdom for navigating the complex and pernicious world of devices, media, and entertainment. By drawing our attention to the malformation we invite into our lives when we uncritically embrace technological trends, Thornton sets our sights towards higher joys and a more faithful, more human way to live.”
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