When the Makers of the Future Fear the Future

A Meditation by Rev. Cameron Trimble

“Whatever you do to the least of these, you do to me.” — Jesus of Nazareth, Matthew 25:40

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We live in a time when the promise of progress has turned strange. The billionaires of Silicon Valley no longer speak merely of innovation and expansion. Some now speak of Armageddon: of escape bunkers, technocratic one‑world states, artificial intelligences, and the end of democracy itself.

Peter Thiel, once a “move fast, break things” techno‑visionary, is now delivering private lectures on the antichrist and the inevitability of apocalypse, casting suspicion on everything from climate activism to tech regulation.¹

This is not just a fringe moment. It reveals a deeper spiritual challenge: leadership powered by fear of the future, rather than responsibility for the present.

When the makers of the future fear the future, what happens to the world they’re shaping?

What happens when those with the greatest technological and financial power invest in a future that excludes, abandons, or exploits the rest of us?

We are seeing systems designed to accelerate accumulation for the few. Escape‑colonies for the ultra‑rich. Algorithms that reward growth at any cost. Narratives that frame dissent as anti‑progress, critique as obstruction, regulation as tyranny.

In Christian theology we are reminded: the true measure of progress is not what we conquer, but whom we serve. Jesus didn’t build bunkers in the desert. He sat with the excluded and broke bread with the marginalized. The prophets spoke not of ascension but of justice. The Spirit does not accelerate us away from earth: it roots us more deeply into it.

What we are witnessing in this collision between tech‑utopian fantasy and lived reality is a kind of idolatry disguised as innovation. The idol is not technology itself, but the fantasy of control, escape, and separation.

It says: We can avoid the mess of this world. We can engineer ourselves out of vulnerability. We need only the code, the capital, the data.

But the Gospel gives us another story:

• We cannot escape into the future without first caring for the present.

• We cannot build transcendence without tending to the vulnerable.

• We cannot claim justice while enabling the suffering of others.

So we might ask: What future are we actually building?

Whose lives are included? Whose lives are expendable?

What stories of hope, rooted in compassion and humility, are being drowned out by stories of escape, dominance, and apocalypse?

If the makers of the future fear the future, perhaps the future is calling us, instead, to courage: to tend, to repair, to stay. Our work is not simply to predict the end but to re‑imagine the means, the community, the world we are called to live in now.

We are in this together,

Cameron

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Reflection Questions

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1. Where do I notice narratives of fear shaping the world around me—particularly in technology, politics, or faith?

2. Have I ever been tempted by the fantasy of escape—emotionally, socially, spiritually—rather than staying present to the suffering or complexity of the world?

3. What does it mean for me to participate in building a future that is rooted in justice, humility, and community care?

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A Prayer for the Day

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A Prayer for Grounded Hope

God of the Here and Now,
When the powerful dream of escape,
You remain with the brokenhearted.
When the wealthy reach for transcendence,
You descend into the mess of human need.

Keep us from the seduction of separation.
Root us in the sacred task of repair.
Steady our hands for justice,
Soften our hearts for compassion,
And stir our courage for truth.

Let our future not be a fantasy of control,
But a communion of care.
Let our hope not be in bunkers or balance sheets,
But in bread shared, burdens carried,
And love that stays.

Amen.

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Spiritual Practice

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Reimagining the Future

Today, spend 10 minutes reflecting on the question: What kind of future would Love build?

Find a quiet space and write or draw your answer.

Don’t think in terms of policy or perfection. Think in terms of people, places, gestures, and grace. What would it look like if our world was designed with compassion at the center?

Let the future begin not in fear, but in faithfulness.

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Upcoming Events That Might Be of Interest…

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TONIGHT!!! November 18, 2025, 7pm ET - FREE - I will be speaking on a panel with Kosen Gregory Snyder and Imam Jamal Rahman on the essential role of friendship in building interfaith understanding and cooperation hosted by Third Act Faith. REGISTER HERE.

November 20 2025, 7pm ET - In Search of a New Story: Reimagining What Comes Next, A 4-Part Online Series with Dr. Matthew Fox, Cameron Trimble, Ilia Delio, Diana Butler Bass, Caroline Myss and Luther Smith. We are living through the unraveling of many old stories—about who we are, why we’re here, and how we are meant to live together on this Earth. As these inherited narratives collapse under the weight of climate crisis, social fragmentation, and spiritual disconnection, the question becomes clear: What story will guide us now? REGISTER HERE!

July 19-24, 2026 - Join me and amazing co-facilitator, Victoria, on retreat in the back-country of beautiful Wyoming. The Art of Wilding is a 5-Day Expedition for Women Leaders. We will spend the week reconnecting to nature, exploring our inner landscapes for change, and engage the wisdom of spiritual teachings. Click here to learn more.

I drafted a Strategic Framework for Congregations as we move into the coming years of increased authoritarianism around the world. If interested, you can download it here.

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If you are a leader or member of a congregation looking for consulting support in visioning, planning, hiring or staffing, please consider Convergence.

1. https://www.thenerdreich.com/silicon-valley-apocalypse-capitalism/#ghost-comments