We (@jimcegelski @jspencer92 @eheyne and I) got into a long discussion about this after the Install Fest. And a great resource to understand the importance of the functional paradigm in today's world is the following conference talk by Robert C. "Uncle Bob" Martin entitled Functional Programming: What? Why? When?
It's about an hour, but worth the investment. Well, once you get past "Why is there air?" (you'll see).