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Evangelical

2017-01-04T10:49:47-08:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Can We Transfer Consciousness to Synthetic Bodies without the Move Proving Catastrophic?

Last updated on: January 4, 2017 at 10:49 am By Paul Louis Metzger

Can we transfer consciousness to synthetic bodies without the move proving problematic, even catastrophic? The move would be made easier if we are ghosts in fleshly machines who are not vitally connected to our bodies, and who can fly about freely in cyberspace. But are we ghosts in fleshly machines? For those like myself who think we are embodied beings rather than ghosts in fleshly machines, we may fear the loss of our point of reference as humans, if we... Read more

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2017-01-04T10:49:47-08:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Pushing the Outer Limits of Humanity and Its Bearing on Space Travel: The Trans-human Quest

Last updated on: January 4, 2017 at 10:49 am By Paul Louis Metzger

In a recent post, I noted E. O. Wilson’s rejection of the idea of possibly improving humanity, such as altering our emotional states. For Wilson, the only thing that separates us from super-intelligent robots is our emotions. See “Jesus ‘became what we are so that we can become what he is’–an astronaut, an alien, a trans-human?” Here’s what Wilson says in an interview with SPIEGEL: Do we really want to improve ourselves? Humans are a very young species, in geologic... Read more

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2017-01-04T10:49:48-08:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Who Gets Left Behind If We Must Abandon Earth for Space?

Last updated on: January 4, 2017 at 10:49 am By Paul Louis Metzger

Who gets left behind if we must abandon earth as a species for space? Now some might consider the answer to the question to be a secularized version of Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins’ Left Behind series drama: instead of answering in the affirmative to “Do you believe in Jesus?” be able to answer in the negative to “Do you have bad genes?” More on that later. For now, let it be said that “Who gets left behind if we... Read more

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2017-01-04T10:49:48-08:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Do Rocks on the Moon and Mars Have Rights? And What about Life that Might Be Found There?

Last updated on: January 4, 2017 at 10:49 am By Paul Louis Metzger

Do rocks on the Moon and Mars have inherent rights? And what about Aliens, who aren’t human, and their livestock and pets? If not, can Earthlings own them, especially if there are no property laws on those planets? Some might consider these questions and issues far-fetched, but they are only as far-fetched as the aspirations of corporations and individuals considering claims to privatizing domains in outer space (They also reflect what has happened over generations on this planet). Take for... Read more

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2017-01-04T10:49:48-08:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The Universe Is In A Grain Of Sand: So Let’s Be Careful With What We Sweep Out The Door

Last updated on: January 4, 2017 at 10:49 am By Paul Louis Metzger

This was originally posted over at Northwest Dharma News, we are very grateful for the permission to re-post this piece here. (Northwest Dharma News Editor’s note: A year after the September, 2014 death of Portland Zen teacher Kyogen Carlson, evangelical Christian Paul Louis Metzger has published a memoir, “Evangelical Zen: A Christian’s Spiritual Travels with a Buddhist Friend,” about his own spiritual journey and his collaboration with Carlson. Metzger is professor of theology and culture at Multnomah University in Portland. Carlson... Read more

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2017-01-04T10:49:48-08:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Jesus “became what we are so that we can become what he is”–an astronaut, an alien, a trans-human?

Last updated on: January 4, 2017 at 10:49 am By Paul Louis Metzger

Think about it, if Jesus didn’t pass out when he ascended to heaven, what does that convey about his body? Was Jesus the first astronaut, an alien, a trans-human? The classic Christian view of divinization claims that he became what we are so that we might become what he is. But how are we to interpret the doctrines of incarnation, resurrection and ascension in the space age? If we are to become what he is, does that mean we will... Read more

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2017-01-04T10:49:48-08:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

“The Finest Hours”: A Story of Human Dignity for Submerged Souls

Last updated on: January 4, 2017 at 10:49 am By Paul Louis Metzger

WARNING: Contains Possible Spoilers for Disney’s upcoming movie, The Finest Hours! Is it easy to lose sight of human dignity and decency in the rat race to work in the morning, or when you consider the House of Cards-like drama of Washington, or mass shootings and terrorist bombs going off on the evening news? Last night, there was no time for the evening news, as my daughter and I went to see a screening of Disney’s The Finest Hours (The movie’s... Read more

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2017-01-04T10:49:48-08:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Would Black and Brown Lives Matter More on the Red Planet?

Last updated on: January 4, 2017 at 10:49 am By Paul Louis Metzger

In his sermon critiquing the Vietnam War, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. noted a strange inconsistency and hypocrisy. People lauded him for his stance on non-violence against white oppressors and denounced him for his opposition to the Vietnam War, which involved killing “little brown Vietnamese children.” There’s something strangely inconsistent about a nation and a press that will praise you when you say, “Be non-violent toward Jim Clark,” but will curse and damn you when you say, “Be non-violent toward... Read more

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2017-01-04T10:49:49-08:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Space Exploration Helps Us Explore Our Gods and Ourselves.

Last updated on: January 4, 2017 at 10:49 am By Paul Louis Metzger

Our deities make the world go round. They also make us go round the worlds in outer space. In one way or another, such exploration is bound up with our quest for deification. Space exploration tells us a lot about our deities. It also tells us a lot about ourselves. Augustine and Feuerbach wrote of how we often pay homage to gods we image, or that image us. Sometimes, to reference Feuerbach, they are one and the same. Here is... Read more

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2017-01-04T10:49:49-08:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Situational Affairs: Is There Ever a Time When Having a Concealed or Open Affair Is the Right Thing to Do?

Last updated on: January 4, 2017 at 10:49 am By Paul Louis Metzger

It has been have argued that a concealed affair can save one’s marriage and that an open sexual relationship may enhance one’s marital union. See for example the video “Is It Ever Okay to Cheat?”, an interview with Dan Savage, and the article by Mel Robbins “What’s Inside an Open Marriage?”. You can find both pieces at the following link. In his interview with Sanjay Gupta for “Colorful Conversations” at CNN, Savage offers the example of a marriage where one... Read more

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