Millennium
The Millennium in Mormon tradition is understood as an imminent epoch, following the Apocalypse and the Return of Christ. Scripture describes it as a "day of transfiguration" during which the living are transfigured and the dead are resurrected to embodied immortality on Earth. This epoch is anticipated to be a time of continuing growth in knowledge and power, leading to significant world changes. The Millennium is characterized by peace after turmoil, beyond traditional notions of enmity and poverty and death.
This is a list of articles that Lincoln Cannon has written about the Millennium. A full archive of all articles that Lincoln has published since 2005 is also available. You may also search for articles and other content that's available on any of Lincoln's websites.
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AI Apocalypse
AI is taking over the world, it seems. ChatGPT is doing homework. Midjourney is revolutionizing art. And Copilot is writing code. For those who haven’t been paying attention, it may seem like all of this has come out of nowhere. Suddenly, anyone with an Internet connection can have a conversation ... -
The Economy of Godhood
Godhood is the ultimate conceptualization of power. From many Gods through one God, human minds evolved. We knew many. We knew one. Now the apocalypse is here: whether there’s one God or many Gods, all are being revealed. And as they appear, we are seeing that we are like them. ... -
What If It All Works Out?
What if the best prophecies are fulfilled? What if the worst are avoided? What if, by the grace of God, we make heaven on Earth? What will that look like? Such questions come from one of my favorite professional anthropologists, Jon Bialecki. He has been studying and writing about Mormon ... -
Are We at the End of the World? Or the Beginning?
What a spring! Pandemic, shutdowns, layoffs, protests, riots – not to mention earthquakes and rumors of, what, murder hornets? I wouldn’t blame you if you’re tempted to think it’s the end of the world. But I’ve got a proposal for you. Instead of the end, maybe it’s the beginning. I’ve ... -
Return of Christ
This is an edited transcript of my presentation at the 2018 Conference of the Mormon Transhumanist Association. I talked about the Return of Christ. I touched on how it relates to Transhumanism. But my focus was on some foundational theology that leads to what I believe is a more robust ... -
Mormon Projections on Superintelligent Communities
Transhumanists, at least the more far-sighted among us, imagine the possibility that humanity will evolve into superintelligent capacities, indefinitely long lives, ethical and esthetic sensibilities that we cannot presently imagine, and perhaps even minds whose thoughts constitute nothing less than the creation of new worlds. But perhaps we don’t often ... -
Myths and Visions of Mormon Transhumanists
This is a transcript of my talk at the 2015 Conference of the Mormon Transhumanist Association, held yesterday in the Salt Lake City Public Library. The conference attracted about 75 attendees in person, and about 900 visitors to the live stream on Transfigurism.org. Keynote speakers were Ralph Merkle and Kristine ... -
Ecumenical Mormonism
The Mormonism that has inspired me from childhood is the ecumenical Mormonism. It doesn’t pretend to exclusive access to God. And it welcomes truth from any source, whether it be Mormon, non-Mormon, or non-religious. Too many Mormons, like many persons of most other religions, are sectarian in their outlook. They ... -
Millennial Vegetarians or New Meat Manufacturing?
Mormon prophetic tradition includes the idea that humans (and perhaps other animals) will no longer eat other animals when the Earth attains its millennial or terrestrial glory. For example, see this recent post at the Mormon blog, Times and Seasons. Some have interpreted these prophecies to support vegetarianism. Others may ... -
Messianic Postures toward Artificial Intelligence
Observing trends in information technology, some researchers conclude that artificial intelligence (AI) will eventually surpass the brightest human minds and take control of its own evolution. Assuming these researchers are correct, it is in our interest to ensure that we design AI to be friendly from the beginning. Whether AI ... -
James Hughes on Apocalypticism and Millennialism
I just came across an excellent article written by James Hughes, who is a director of the World Transhumanist Association. The article is entitled “Millennial Tendencies in Responses to Apocalyptic Threats”. Here is the abstract: Popular discussion of utopian possibilities and apocalyptic risks from new technologies is sometimes dismissed as ... -
Eternal Recurrence of Our Children
Adam Greenwood at Times and Seasons speculates regarding millennial children. He wonders whether we might have future opportunities to raise new children or experience again the raising of our current children. Among Mormon Transhumanists, we see parallels between the Millennium and the Technological Singularity. The Singularity is a hypothetical period ...