Posted 20 August 2007 - 06:43 PM
Quote from "Man into Superman" (shared by Mark Plus):
There are still many who worry about the sin of pride and about the futility of dreams of heaven on earth. But most of us who intend to go forward do not dream of any simplistic heaven on earth; indeed, we explicitly recognize that mere material comfort, even universal peace and good will, constitute only a starting point, not by any means a final goal. We go forward into the unknown because there is nowhere else to go. Is the past so beautiful that we should dust it off and wear it? Is the present so precious that we should preserve it in amber? Shall we walk with downcast eyes in circular ruts? For us this is not possible--and some of us are Christians.
We aspire to be supermen not necessarily because we are vain and arrogant; rather, our dissatisfaction with present endowments and attainments reflects a realistic humility--we are painfully aware of our shortcomings. The Christians- among us are not rebelling against God nor aspiring to equality with him (if such a thing were conceivable); they seek rather to become his more effective tools, his worthier stewards. Neither do we seek endless change just for the sake of change; we pursue intermediate goals on what we hope will be an ascending road, a road perhaps some day leading to the Celestial City--wherever and whatever that may be.
Does not Christianity need supermen? Can any but a superman be a complete Christian? Can the highest spiritual merit be built on less than an adequate intellectual substrate? We have got to grow, and growth requires more than formulas or incantations; it requires changes in the biological structure, changes which in all probability those of our generation will not experience except after freezing, storage, and revival.
(end)
I found this a very interesting quote. But it is mainstream Christian doctrine that our physical shortcomings (growing old, birth defects, memory and intellectual limitations, disease, etc.) is in fact God himself schooling us in adversity so we may strongly develop such qualities as patience, endurance, humility and a host of other spiritual strengths (as they are called). Upon death we will be free of the body and as a disembodied spirit rejoice in being free of our flawed and limited mortal glove. But the greatest rejoicing will come when the spirit is reunited with a perfected and "glorified (this basically means impervious to harm, disease and age- and totally perfect in every way)" resurrected body. The resurrected form is to be somewhat like the embodiment of the Transhumanist ideal of the still human but utterly enhanced current body form.
In the game/novel universe of Warhammer 40,000 there is a benevolent and immortal "God Emperor" who leads humanity and is a genetically engineered superman of amazing physical, mental and psychic development (though not immune to injury or death by violence). He has created from his very DNA a group of "primarchs" or super-enhanced generals who are just a rung or two less than what he is. From the primarch DNA many legions of space marines, genetically engineered shock troops, are created. The creation of these men by humanity was with the goal that a physically and mentally superior man would be an ethically superior man. But old human traits of jealousy and resentment rise to the surface and with goading from demonic aliens a massive civil war breaks out between the supermen of humanity and many billions perish.
I have enjoyed reading a new book series detailing this war and it had me wondering how we could redesign a new and super-enhanced humanity without our "old habits" of greed, mistrust, conflict and war erupting from our "vastly improved" offspring.
What would Kirk say?
John Grigg
