"Despite all the bad news coming out of biotech, the belief in a paradisaical transubstantiated future is as strong as ever among those who have always believed and it has spread, thanks to the power of the biotech idea. The faith has been made enduring by almost a century of speculation. In the twenty-five years since the dawn of biotech, the speculation has turned into public relations, the clay of raw science shaped into companies. Venture capital has breathed life into the companies and biotech has enlisted everyone by going public and proselytizing the coming miracles. Never before in human history have people been so sure that science - not magic, not God - was about to mine the secrets of nature and turn them over to human beings. This is new. It's a religion in its own right and it is making converts."Whether what we futurists are practicing is a new religion or not is debatable. Personally, I am not ready to toss out God just yet. While some within the movement would probably have no problem with the comparison, I would argue that what is developing is areligious. It's not anti-religion or pro-religion, it is something apart from religion. Religious faith requires belief in things not seen. This new biotech faith requires extrapolation from things that are seen and known. In short, it requires a willingness to speculate. A willingness to consider things that may or may not come to pass. Consideration and debate should take place now, even though it may seem a little hokey, because there may not be time for the debates later. The developments will be coming too fast then.
Religious faith requires belief in things not seen. This new biotech faith requires extrapolation from things that are seen and known. In short, it requires a willingness to speculate. A willingness to consider things that may or may not come to pass.
You're right, but I think the two are more closely related than we're usually willing to admit. Things that may (or may not) come to pass are things unseen. The notion that we can indefinitely extend human lifespan doesn't require religious faith, but it does require hope. Along with faith and love, hope is one of the three virtues that the Apostle Paul said will "endure" — that is to say, they will always accompany genuine religious experience. Para-religious overtones have a way of emerging in future-oriented modes of thought (I'm thinking particularly about transhumanism), while much religious thought has traditionally been future-directed: e.g., Christians look for the second coming of Christ, Judaism traditionally spoke not of an afterlife but of a "future life," etc. There's a wonderful opportunity for dialog, here. Unfortunately, many transhumanists have a low view of religious belief, and many believers (evangelical Christians, anyway) view the whole movement as a rehash of gnostic heresies. That's too bad, because I think the two groups have a lot to learn from each other.
Posted by: Phil at March 27, 2004 12:09 PM