Archive 2014

Every few years, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence publishes a report on global trends and projections of where those trends may take us in the next decade or two, not so much a prediction as a framework for thought and action. Note that the authoring organization is ... Read the article →

The Mormon doctrine of theosis (or deification) is, so far as this Mormon is concerned, the most profound and beautiful idea in the religion. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, by far the largest Mormon denomination and the one of which I’m a member, recently published to its ... Read the article →

Humanity is engaged in epochal change, an accelerating technological and cultural evolution with unprecedented risks and opportunities. Among the possibilities is that of creating new tools, processes, and organizations that together serve as infrastructure for helping everyone restore the vitality of their bodies and minds, and improve their capacity to ... Read the article →

A friend, who considers me a progressive Mormon, shared with me an article by BYU political science professor Ralph Hancock on “Progressivism Among the Mormons.” In the article, Ralph observes that progressive Mormons appear to interpret the doctrine of continuing revelation as a politically progressive mandate. And he expresses his ... Read the article →

An article at Atlanta Blackstar presents “11 Neil DeGrasse Tyson Quotes That Debunk ‘Religious Science’”, or at least purports to do so. Here are my thoughts on the quotes, including the bonus quote thrown in at the beginning of the article. “Every account of a higher power that I’ve seen ... Read the article →

Religion is a social technology – the most powerful social technology. Like all powerful technologies, it can be used for good and evil. And it clearly has been used for both historically. Focusing on the evil uses, as the antireligious do, demonstrates an unfamiliarity with the religious phenomenon, and its ... Read the article →

At the 2014 Conference of the Mormon Transhumanist Association, I started a conversation about what it means to be a Mormon Transhumanist. As the movement has grown, we’ve experienced some tension between persons who, brought together by the association, might not otherwise interact constructively at all. For example, some Mormon ... Read the article →

I recently read and enjoyed The God Who Weeps. It was co-authored by Fiona and Terryl Givens, wife and husband, and Mormon scholars. I’ve had the pleasure of interacting with Terryl on a few occasions. The most notable occasions were when he was a keynote at two conferences co-sponsored by ... Read the article →

Last week, I encouraged the Mormon Transhumanist Association (MTA) to sponsor recording of a panel discussion between Mormons and atheists, sponsored by the American Atheists (AA) and held at the Salt Lake City Public Library as part of its annual convention. The MTA leadership team agreed, and the recording is ... Read the article →

In response to the recent atheist and Mormon panel discussion, Holly Welker at Religion Dispatches asks, “Is Shunning a Part of Mormonism?” The question has sparked some controversy, most recently among some of my friends. While I sympathize with Holly’s concern, I disagree with her conclusion that we must understand ... Read the article →

Below is an experimental formulation (version 3.0) of the New God Argument. Those familiar with previous formulations of the argument will note the following changes. First, I combined all assumptions about human futurity into the Faith Assumption. Second, I dropped the Angel Argument because its conclusion is redundant with that ... Read the article →

Tell me. I’m interested in the big picture. How could and should we organize ourselves, locally, regionally and globally, going into the future to optimize for a civilization that persistently and increasingly thrives in creativity and compassion? In what ways are present governance paradigms succeeding? In what ways are they ... Read the article →

We should take seriously the risks of technofascism, an elitist “libertarianism” empowered by accelerating technological change and concentrated at high tech corporations. While many decry the governance challenges of our day, some give corporate governance a pass. And yet it’s not hard to find oppression wherever power is concentrated. That ... Read the article →

The value of religion depends, of course, on what you mean by “religion”. If religion is merely euphemization of escapism or nihilism, as it so often manifests itself, then it probably has a net negative value. I use “probably” only because I can imagine some poor unfortunate souls that are ... Read the article →

This has been an emotional day for Mormonism. As reported in national headlines, Kate Kelly of Ordain Women has been excommunicated from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for “conduct contrary to the laws and order of the Church”. While I do not have a strong opinion for ... Read the article →

At Welfare Square in Salt Lake City, I’m watching. Across the street is a half-naked malnourished man, smoking a cigarette; a backpack and large coat rest beside him in the shady grass, and he scratches at the air while talking out loud to himself, words I can’t make out. A ... Read the article →

On the morning of 24 July 1847, a group of Mormon pioneers broke camp for the last time. They traveled six miles through a deep ravine, across one last creek, and into full view of a great valley. Wondering and admiring, they gazed. The valley appeared vast and richly fertile, ... Read the article →

I finally got my digital hands on a Kindle copy of Nick Bostrom’s Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies. And the first thing I checked was how his chapter on “Superintelligent Will” compares to his 2012 paper on “The Superintelligent Will: Motivation and Instrumental Rationality in Advanced Artificial Agents.” This subject interests ... Read the article →

A well known and atheist-minded Transhumanist, Zoltan Istvan blames religion for an anti-cryonics law in Canada. Basically, Transhumanism is the ethical use of technology to extend human abilities. And cryonics is low-temperature preservation of a legally-dead body for resuscitation when new technology might cure the cause of death. Zoltan’s concern ... Read the article →

Some Transhumanists have a hard time distinguishing between Transhumanism and atheism. And some Transhumanists have a hard time recognizing the religious behavior in which they are engaged. I mention these observations, today, not because they are new. I mention them because my friend Zoltan Istvan might be equivocating and misrecognizing ... Read the article →

I’m sometimes criticized for using “religion” and “God” in unusual ways. Generally, this criticism comes from persons with fundamentalist inclinations of either the religious or antireligious sort, whose relatively rigid views of religion and God inform their opinion that I’m diverging from what these words really or generally mean. Of ... Read the article →

Ray Kurzweil is evidence for the postsecularization hypothesis: religion is not at all dying, but is merely continuing to evolve. He’s probably by far the most influential Singularitarian in the world. And he’s perhaps even the most influential living futurist. Kurzweil got there by directly engaging in postsecular rhetoric. Before ... Read the article →

If you’re a parent, like me, one of the challenges of accelerating technological change is that of encouraging children to explore and learn from our increasingly interconnected world while mitigating risks inherent in all exploratory endeavors. Friends often ask me how I do this with my children, and another just ... Read the article →

This weekend, I watched and listened to the October 2014 General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and engaged in discussion of related ideas online. Below are 97 thoughts and highlights, from me and others, about the conference. The thoughts range from affirmations to disagreements, and ... Read the article →

Most regular readers of my blog are aware of the ancient tradition of Christian authorities that teach theosis (the idea that humanity should become God, also known as divinization, apotheosis, or deification). But some may not know how broadly that tradition has endured. Of course Mormons continue to teach theosis, ... Read the article →

In the Hebrew Bible, we read of a fiery voice that burned as Moses wondered and questioned. “Why should I go to Pharaoh? Why should I bring the Israelites out of Egypt? Suppose I go and say, ‘God sent me’? What if they don’t listen? What if they don’t believe?” ... Read the article →

Today is my fortieth birthday. As you might imagine, I’ve heard the phrase “over the hill” a few times today. By present standards, I have indeed lived about half of the life expectancy for American males. But standards change. By past standards, I’ve already lived more than a full lifetime. ... Read the article →

It’s Christmas in New Zealand. I’m young and remembering, hoping to glimpse the monster at Loch Ness, wading in an icy stream at the base of the Matterhorn, spying on guards across the East German border, and clumsily asking a French vendor for an ice cream cone. Some day I’ll ... Read the article →