IMAGE: PHOTO OF DEATH WORM

Last month my paternal grandfather, my Papa Jerry, passed away peacefully in his sleep at the age of 90, aided by the comforting care of hospice. He began showing signs of heart failure several years ago (swelling in the legs, shortness of breath, difficulty with exertion), but the risks had been present for many years: he had a pacemaker placed several years before, he had many years of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, a distant history of tobacco use and a family history of heart disease on his father’s side.

IMAGE: PHOTO OF TAPESTRY

This Holy Saturday, Christians ponder on the silence, darkness, and death of Jesus Christ. Part of this tradition can include that story of Jesus' Harrowing of Hell where he descended into the lowest parts of earth and hell to overcome them. This symbolizes the overcoming of the monster death and unlocking hell to free its prisoners.

IMAGE: PHOTO OF GOLD DISCIPLES AROUND TABLE

Among the things contemplated this Good Friday are the events of Jesus' last moments: broken bread, betrayal, suffering, crucifixion, darkness, and burial.

At the 2017 Mormon Transhumanist Association (MTA) conference, Michaelann Bradley spoke about her impressions as she contemplated some of these same topics in light of human history and technology's role for good and evil in it:

IMAGE: PHOTO OF JESUS AND DISCIPLES PAINTING

IMAGE: PHOTO OF JESUS PAINTING

(source)

While Palm Sunday and Holy Monday renew faith in and hope for the triumph and glory of Christ in this world before the darkness of Holy Tuesday, Holy Wednesday is traditionally a time to ponder on the betrayal and condemnation of Christ in this world. As told in the Gospel of Luke, when Pilate sought to appease the crowd to perhaps spare Jesus (and a possibly bad political situation for him) “They kept shouting, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” (Luke 23:21).

IMAGE: PHOTO OF JESUS AND DISCIPLES PAINTING

On Holy Tuesday, many churches reflect on the image of Christ as Bridegroom. The intimate relationship of marriage is used throughout Jewish and Christian scripture. Perhaps we find this image so powerful because of the closeness, intimacy, vulnerability, and humanity that it brings. It brings front and center the reality and centrality of relationship and how the image of Christ can emerge from relationship.

IMAGE: PHOTO OF OLD PAINTING

IMAGE: PHOTO OF JESUS PAINTING

This Palm Sunday our hearts and minds turn to Jesus’ triumphal entrance into Jerusalem. Crowds treated his entrance into Jerusalem as that of a King – entering on a donkey as a token of peace. In that age’s Messianic culture, this was largely seen as political potential: a Messiah to throw off the subjugation to the Romans to fulfill prophecy. Jesus would define a new kind of Kingdom. On Palm Sunday, many enact, symbolically, this entrance by the use of palm fronds representing this spirit of victory, triumph, peace, and eternal life reflecting on Jesus’ vision of the Kingdom of God.

Come join us at our Mormon Transhumanist Association Utah Valley Meetup this coming Sunday (November 11th) at 8:00pm to discuss topics associated to Mormonism and Transhumanism (details can be found in the Meetup group). In this meetup, we will have a discussion about new improvements in human capability to make future horizons possible. Specifically, humanity is taking its first steps to space and creating new opportunities to live, work, and love. To achieve this, we must bring whole ecosystems with us to build new earths. We will discuss specific research that focuses on steps in that direction with plants in orbit making use of artificial gravity and direct sunlight. These early steps provide valuable information for bioregenerative ecosystem development. Some samples of research in this area may be brought as well.

The Mormon Transhumanist Association has released the following official statement, in accordance with Article IV Section 9 of its Constitution by unanimous vote of its Board of Directors.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Church of Jesus Christ) has asked its members and friends not to use the words “Mormon” or “Mormonism” when referring to it, its members, or its unique culture. The Mormon Transhumanist Association acknowledges and will adhere to that request. The Association also encourages its members and friends to respect and adhere to such requests from organizations and individuals generally.