Transhumanism, Anime, and Christianity: Exploring the Intersection

Transhumanism, the belief in using technology to enhance human abilities, is a topic that has been gaining more attention in recent years. But what does it have to do with anime and Christianity? Surprisingly, there is an intersection between these three topics that is worth exploring.

Anime depicts themes of advanced technology and the potential of humanity to transcend its limitations. From cyborgs to superpowered beings, anime explores what it means to be human and how technology can be used to enhance our abilities. This is where transhumanism comes in, as the philosophy shares a similar belief in using technology to transcend our current limitations and achieve a more advanced state of being. We have seen this portrayed in such anime as Akira and Ghost in Shell.

But where does Christianity fit into this? As a religion that emphasizes the importance of the human soul and the belief in an afterlife, there may seem to be a conflict between the idea of using technology to enhance our physical bodies and the spiritual nature of Christianity. However, some Christian transhumanists argue that improving our physical bodies can actually lead to a better expression of our spiritual selves.

One example of this is the idea of overcoming death through technology. While death is seen as a natural part of life in many religions, including Christianity, some transhumanists believe that we can use technology to extend our lifespan and even achieve immortality. This idea may seem at odds with Christian beliefs, but some argue that it aligns with the idea of the resurrection of the body, which is central to Christian theology.

Let me say this though, I am not a proponent of letting a machine control the body that God created us in. However, medical advancements such as robotic eyes , arms and legs have been shown to improve the quality of life for those who has ailments that impaired these and other body functions.

All this really relates to A.I. when looking at the big pictures. We have been hearing for years that A.I. has great potential and with the release of publicly accessible programs like chatGPT; we can only imagine the advancements. However, what if something like this is not regulated?

Elon Musk, while I don't agree with him fully on some things, he knows his stuff in the tech world. He appeared on TV recently saying that A.I. needs to be regulated or the consequences could be disastrous. How, you might ask? Well if you have never seen the movie i Robot, I recommend streaming it (or maybe search through your old DVD collection). Once you have seen the movie, you can guess that a future where A.I. is unregulated is not a too far fetched idea.

While there may be some conflicts between these ideas, there is also room for exploration and dialogue. Whether you believe in using technology to enhance our abilities or prefer to focus on the spiritual realm, there is no denying the potential for these three topics to spark interesting conversations and debates.

If you made it to the end of this post, you may be asking "Josh, your writing has really improved", what is your secret? Well the majority of what you just read was generated by Canva's magic write tool. That's right, A.I. was used to essentially write this entire post. Fortunately, Canva is a regulated space in which A.I. is regulated...for now. Don't worry my all over the place thoughts will be back next week!