Extropianism, also referred to as extropy, is an evolving framework of values and standards for continuously improving the human condition. Extropianism describes a pragmatic consilience of transhuman thought guided by a conscious, pro-active, self-directed approach to human evolution and progress.\n\n-wikipedia\n\nEven though the universe is condemned to entropy, humans value extropy. Do you Christians even care about the improvement of the human race? You seem to be caught up in mere fantasies, instead of meaningful scientific research.
205445
Your question is flawed by an assumption that all Christians think alike. There are many denominations of Christian Churches which would be described as extropiatic. There are some fundamentalist Christian churches that condemn members for thinking outside the circle. There is everything in-between. I attend a Christian church whose membership tolerates all human understanding and celebrates the differences.
601224
"Evolution" is a discussion of the adaptation and development of species and sub-species in respect to their environments.  "Better," "worse," "advanced" and "primitive" actually are quite meaningless in this discussion.  Similarly, "race" has utterly no significance except as an expression of certain features of environmental adaptation.\n\nHowever, since this concept was first articulated by Charles Darwin in his book, "The Origin of Species," people have had terrible debates about its validity and meaning.  Oddly enough, a great many people who absolutely deny the validity of evolution, mainly religious people, have also been among those persons who adopted its terms in a distorted concept called "social Darwinism," which has been used to support and promote racism.\n\nMost people today who say evolutionary theory is racist are attempting to smear the concept rather than deal with it.  And some of these people are terrible religious bigots.
634222
A religion involves a commerce of the supernatural.\nThat is, a trade of actions, rituals, or beliefs for supernatural, or supernaturally influenced gains.\n\nEvolution is based on proof, not faith.\n\nFaith is based on nothing but certainty in the absence of proof or in spite of proof to the contrary.\n\nEvolution does not deal with the beginnings of life. That's organic chemistry's bailiwick. Evolution requires genes.\n\nThat the natural world has not always been as it is now is an incontrovertible fact.\n\nEvolution provides an explanation for the mechanisms of change.\n\nThe hereditary mechanism predicted by the theory was unknown at the time of evolutions proposal, it has been proven to exist.\n\nThe hereditary mechanism has been proven to be capable of spontaneous change as the theory predicted.\n\nThat a change in a life form's hereditary makeup can alter it's physical and behavioral traits has also been proven true.\n\nThat a significant change in a life form's body or behavior will effect it's ability to survive and reproduce is simple common sense.\n\nNone of that requires faith, just the ability to reason objectively and honestly from factual truths. No, it is not a faith. \n\nThere is no supernatural gain or influence to be won by accepting the validity of evolutionary theory. No, it is not a religion.
370010
Lots of atheists in the Religion & Spirituality section use anthropomorphism when they say things like, "If God were real, He would do this. . .," or, "If God were real, He would never do that. . ."  They're ascribing human attitudes and perspectives to Someone who isn't a human being.
366721
Science/evolution is how.\nReligion/God is why.
138484
1. "Hung" is an interesting word to use, but I'll go along with it.\n\n2. Well, interpreting this literally, then I suppose my house had several: at least one architect, a bunch of builders, a plumber or two, the list is endless...\n\n3. Pretty much.\n\n4. OK\n\n5. Now this one opens up a whole new can of worms, but I suppose, broadly, I can accept this.  In fact, it's an interesting one when you bear in mind that the bible was written by some of the most intelligent men of their era.  Naturally, they would have been pre-occupied with some of the same things that our present great minds think about (such as the nature of the universe and time).  Of course, they didn't have the benefit of as long a scientific and philosophical tradition as we have.\n\n6. Yup. They'd probably stone you to death.  I'm really finding it hard to see your point with this one, however. Please explain.\n\n7. Fair enough.\n\n8. Another can of worms.  It depends on your definition of "better". From our point of view, altruism - which is what you're describing - is preferable.  The best explanation for the reason for that is that altruism was a beneficial trait during our evolution.  This idea is covered by group selection theory.  So if you look at it from that point of view, "love your fellow-men as you love yourself" actually CONTRIBUTES to the survival of the fittest (have a look at the link below before you dismiss this out of hand).\n\nANSWER.\n\nI suppose I can, for the sake of argument, say that I broadly agree with all of the eight premises you've outlined.  I also believe that some of the morals encouraged by the bible and by religion in general are beneficial.  Many of the teachings of Jesus Christ (who I believe existed as a mortal man) are also compelling as a model of the values that it is a good idea to try to live your life by.\n\nWhat I don't believe in is the idea of an intelligent creator.  Nor do I believe in the existence of an afterlife, no matter how much I WISH it could be true.
355093
That is called theistic evolution.
654364
ahh, well, not really a higher power, just a unifing spirit between all people, and yes, other life forms spread out in this vast universe of ours. and yes, the whole ceasing to exist after death, but i have to believe that humans are still evolving, just not as rapidly anymore as the same rules of "survival of the fittest" don't really apply anymore since we can save even the weak ones.
303670
We are eternal spirit souls RIDING in the temporary VEHICLE of a human animal-mammal-primate-vertebrate-chordate-hominid Homo sapiens. Genetically inherited animal vehicles are born, eat, mate-breed, defend, sleep, get ill, cheat, steal, die. Genetically inherited ego structures-intellect-minds and personalities assist the body in these things so the karmic wheel of this huge cosmic computer-machine can keep on turning.  We are different from-superior to animals in one KEY AREA.  As humans we have the ability to ask the correct-wise-higher questions of WHO AM I REALLY AND WHY AM I HERE REALLY. Animals can't-don't do that! Answer to these questions are to know, love, serve, remember and glorify the Creator, and to know the difference between the three items listed below, not just say you believe and go to church for hour on sunday and be kinda "good" when you feel like it. It takes effort, grace, willpower and mercy!\n\nDo you know the difference between:\n\nillusion and Truth\ntemporary and Eternal\nmatter and Spirit\n\nOnce we KNOW who we REALLY are, why we are REALLY here (Bhakti Prema) then we can go back to the Eternal Home where we can serve the Creator. Until then, we are just here playing with matter, trying to be controllers and enjoyers of matter and the material world and play the role of "little pseudo-gods" instead of doing what He wants. Once we want to play with Spirit more than matter then we have BEGUN the REAL PURPOSE of human life, to NOT BE ANIMALS-INHUMANE.....but to become Self and God Realized (not ego realized!) and go back Home. Thus, most humans are behaving like animals.  \n\nEstimates are that about\n\n5-6% of humans are infant souls\n20 % baby souls\n30% young souls%\n33% mature souls\n10% old souls \n\nTypically it is not until souls are "later old souls," probably the last 2%,that humans start to REMEMBER the real purpose of life and are INTERESTED-COMMITTED in its deep pursuit. Christ came to help humans open their hearts and become at least "mature human" if they can do what He teaches instead of living the Old Testament animal way of "eye for an eye." Compassion is one of His many major teachings. If humans are incapable of love-compassion on any level, then they are animal Homo sapiens.  Some dogs are more compassionate, kind, caring, serving, devoted than some humans.\n\nbody\nmind\nintellect\nintelligence\nego\nSpirit\n\nThis is the "order of hierarchy-lowest to highest" of our utilizable components while here.  Once Spirit runs the show we are spiritual beings riding within a human experience.  But if body-mind-intellect-ego are "trying to run the show," then we are just animals, fancy and intellectually sharp sometimes, but not truly human-humane.\n\nStages of development of love (in order) include:\n\nnurturance\nbonding\nalliance\nreciprocity\nunderstanding-comprehension\nappreciation-gratitude\naltruism-selfless service\nagape-unconditional love\n\nIf we aren't doing these,then we must be going down the rung to lower animal behavior, aka "hell on earth".\n\nIf you can be tolerant and "agree to disagree" then you can be a "civilized human", but if not, the following DOWNHILL ANIMAL CANCER spreads:\n\ndisagree\naggravation-grudge-repressed anger-frustration\ncivil disputes\nfeuds-gang-regional warfare\ncriminal disputes\nwar (>1000 die over a specific issue)\nannihiliation\n\nbut the highest level of spiritual love (the only true-deepest love) is Prema!\n\nHave a great day-life!
315247
By Arthur Custance \n"Man in Adam and in Christ"\n\nTO MY MIND, one of the saddest and most disastrous results of the theory of evolution as applied to man is that it has led to an entirely false conception of what man's true nature is.\n\nIf human evolution is true in the sense that Huxley and Simpson have held it to be, then man is an angel in the making, changing steadily for the better as he moves further away from his animal ancestors. His propensity for wickedness is recognized as unfortunate, but more in the nature of a relapse, a temporary set-back, a kind of unfulfilled-ness, which there is every reason to believe he will in time grow out of.\n\nBut if man is a divinely created being who has fallen from grace and can by nature change only for the worse, then his propensity for wickedness is something more than merely evidence of unrealized potential. From the biblical point of view it is a demonstration that something has gone dreadfully wrong from which there now seems no possibility of self-recovery.
500907
Your proposal was getting interesting until you introduced a gratuitous element into it - "God". I've seen this argument before and it actually works against the concept of a god, or gods. Rupert Sheldrake has proposed a less ambitious, but interesting, theory wherein human mentation is necessarily projective - a bit like a classical field in ordinary physics. The point is that if it were true, then humanity can be seen as more intimately integrated to some essential character of the universe - but this essence needs no supernatural characteristics. Indeed the concept would be diminished by it.\nFor example, in his proposals there are empirical parameters for detection of this characteristic or its manifestations - again, just as if you were talking about, say, electromagnetism.\n\nI'm not saying I buy the theory. I am saying that the substance of the theses points away from the supernatural. Of course if the theory has any success, it may provide a basis for talking about what humans have disguised, or abstracted, as god or gods.
298314
Each society has their own value system. And to each of us it looks strange of the other society. That is where a very important word and belief comes in. It is called tolerence!
505922
Science has shown us that all biological life - including the human species - is the product of unthinking, undirected natural processes.  As part of our evolutionary 'toolkit' of survival strategies, we have a highly developed awareness of other entities in our environment - We often notice human faces in carpet patterns, rabbit-shaped clouds and so on.  There is more survival value in seeing what really *is* there, and also seeing some things that *aren't* really there, than in missing things that really are there and going hungry, or worse, ending up as someone else's lunch.\n\nThe consequence of this undeniably true aspect of human nature is that we have a natural tendency to imagine entities behind natural phenomena and events in our own lives that aren't really there - i.e. gods and goddesses, demons, angels, spirits - a whole menagerie of supernatural characters.  Society and culture binds up these characters with our wishes and fears, our desires for dominance and submission and shared identity, and we end up with religious belief and ritual and dogma, in thousands of different flavours, with the vast majority of people broadly following the religion of their upbringing.\n\nReligion is a biological phenomenon, not a supernatural one.
21383
Self-awareness, consciousness, emotion can arguably be found in animals, and yet clearly, they are not human. So humanity is not as easily defined as the presence of a given set of traits.\nPersonally, I like the dictionary definition. A member of the species of Homo Sapiens. Going by that, unless your robot is activated via incubation by a human female for 9 months and expelled violently into the world soon thereafter, I won't be calling it human anytime soon.
89309
You are entirely correct! The power of the mind is limitless. The reason we humans have such low expectations is because we are weak at mind and conscious. We constantly underestimate ourselves, we humans are by far the most intelligent things to have ever existed on earth, we simply lack the drive and fear too many things.
460635
"Humans represent just one tiny, largely fortuitous, and late-arising twig on the enormously arborescent bush of life."\n\nI assume it is the phrase "largely fortuitous" that Wells objects to. Arguably, this opinion is more philosophical than scientific (though it's also arguable that it isn't). Still, one phrase in one quote in an interview that is peripheral to the main text hardly seems worth getting overexcited about. It doesn't mean that the treatment of evolution, or of human evolution, in that textbook is not accurate.
638784
Everything & everybody changes. How pitiful the man who claims not to have changed & how more pitiful the man who sees it as a strength. It's what life's all about. Learning, adapting, changing, & evolving. Even the cells of the body are completely new after so many years.\nThings don't remain the same, nothing in this entire universe is changeless, so anything or anyone claiming to be constant & changeless is simply crapping from its orifice.