IMAGE: PHOTO OF OLDER WOMAN

I had the opportunity recently to sit down with my wife's 98 year-old grandmother. The occasion was an LDS temple sealing of my niece and her, now, husband. As we waited for the party to arrive, I made my way over to where "GG" (great-grandma) sat next to her rather modern-looking walker which doubles as a portable oxygen system -- a machine extending her life. Once she recognized people who sat down next to her, she was eager to have very lucid and engaging conversation with the wisdom of a 98 year-old smile and laugh.

IMAGE: PHOTO OF PROSTETHIC LEG

It starts with a small opening, not even a wound But the opening grows, intensifies, parts It is the rift of the world; a rift that begins to tear and to bleed and to rend the mind and the lungs and the flesh. We are no longer together, no longer one, no longer whole. Instead there is a rupture so great there is no going back; the history of the world is changing.

IMAGE: PHOTO OF CARTOON DRAWING

I remember being told in my youth that God saw everything we did, and that when we did wrong His spirit would go away. I know variations on this are common teachings, and it did cause me a little distress at times, knowing that God saw the things I had done wrong and would judge me for it. But God was pretty impersonal for me, despite intellectually believing in Him as my father, so the impact never lasted long. It didn't make me choose right, although it did likely foster feelings of shame. The shame of being watched really hit home when I thought about the spirits of my Mormon ancestors and children to be floating around and caring about my welfare. It was always presented that way -- they were cheering me on to make good choices -- but it was a whole lot more emotional to imagine them watching me as I obsessed over a lingerie catalog, and I couldn't help but make the connection.

IMAGE: PHOTO OF OPEN CITY SQUARE

I was very sad when I heard of the terrorist attack against the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo on January 7. I have been in the Middle East many times, and I only had good experiences with Muslims, but it seems that the Western and Islamic civilizations are on a violent collision course, and nothing good can come from that.

IMAGE: PHOTO OF RAINBOW WIND PAINTING

I love windy days. They remind me to have faith in the beauty of things I can’t see. Though the wind is intangible I can feel it all around me, and though I can’t see it I can see continual evidence of its presence. I believe the same is true of God.

IMAGE: PHOTO OF DOROTHY DEASY

The Mormon Transhumanist Association is pleased to announce that it has appointed Dorothy Deasy to serve as Chief Humanitarian Officer. Dorothy will continue to serve in her positions as board member and secretary of the board. Humanitarian managers, Hank Pellissier and Roger Hansen, will also continue to serve in their positions.

IMAGE: PHOTO OF STAIN GLASS WINDOW

Two board members of the Mormon Transhumanist Association, Christopher Bradford and Dorothy Deasy, will present papers at Samford University’s Transhumanism and the Church conference. The conference will take place on September 24-26 in Birmingham, Alabama. Bradford’s talk is titled “Transhumanism as Grace: God's Hand in the Radical Remaking of Human Nature.” Deasy’s presentation is titled “The Narrow Gate: Vulnerability in a Transhuman Age.” The conference is open to those who wish to attend. More information on the conference may be found here:

IMAGE: PHOTO OF SUNSET WITH DINOSAURS

One day we’ll know how our universe came into existence, and how such complexity was accomplished with such basic materials over so vast a space-time. We may even be able to recreate such complexity. We have made tiny accomplishments towards that end, making small simulated environments that are very well defined and static (as in CGI movies), and making other amazingly vast dynamic worlds with extremely simple rendering (such as Minecraft). At some point on this car ride to Creator status, we’ll start asking, “Are we there yet?” Well, we can start asking now. And the answer may be that we are almost there. Case in point: No Man’s Sky.

IMAGE: PHOTO OF COLONIAL SHIPS

So much angst in debates either for or against religion comes from pitting a dogmatic pre-secular attitude towards religion against reductive secular-only world-views. Often both see no possible way forward. And if religion can only ever be pre-secular and if secularly-informed world views can only ever be secular-reductive then perhaps that might be the case. But between these two extremes there lies a faith which delights in the truths gained through honest secular endeavors but that still acknowledges the reality and power of God.

IMAGE: PHOTO OF PLAY VIDOE BUTTON

At almost any minute of any day, your life could change drastically. Our bodies are fragile, our destinies determined second-by-second. Snap your fingers. That’s how suddenly what you have come to expect for yourself, or a member of your family, could change as the result of an illness or accident. What would it mean in terms of work, mobility, relationship, identity? How quickly or slowly would you adapt to a drastically new state of reality?