What's Religion Got To Do With It, 63
New ideas are gross; they sicken me. (Shawn, the chief demon, from the television series The Good Place)
Going Where No One Has Gone Before. Really?
C’mon, why would anyone want to discuss religion? It’s like walking in mud or molasses that eventually turns into quicksand. But I think we have a pretty good idea why, beyond the “we” can’t help ourselves.
It’s about finite human existence, that unavoidable brick wall, losing control and all those endless talks about what it all means. For a large percentage of us humans this is a central issue, with its unique and extremely personal scale.
I read a review of the book The Revolt Against Humanity, by Adam Kirsch, a poet, literary critic and the editor of the Wall Street Journal’s Weekend Review Section. David Cooper, a professor of Philosophy at Durham University in England, reviewed Kirsch’s book.
The book deals with two prominent ideas and, while these ideas are not publicly well known at the moment, they are very much alive, contentious and debated at the present time. The first one, anthropocene antihumanists, anticipates the extinction of humankind and welcomes it. We humans have done enough damage to the planet, the antihumanists proclaim.
The other idea is transhumanism, which I’ve written about in Substack, and refers to humans “evolving” into new forms of intelligent life. Think of it as a kind of Star Trek’s the Borg, but ideally no one will be “assimilated” against their will.
The transhumanists don’t want humankind going extinct just yet, at least until they get the program up and running and these new—supposedly better life forms—have settled in across the galaxy. It would be an obvious disaster in the minds of the transhumanists if humans are not around to roll out the hardware and kick start the software.
But what definitely caught my attention reading this review of The Revolt Against Humanity, was David Cooper stating that Kirsch’s “primary concern” regarding anthropocene antihumanism and transhumanism, this human revolt against humanity, is really a spiritual development.
In one form or another these ideas are being discussed by some serious people and not merely rich libertarians enthralled with themselves or people that simply believe that humankind is beyond any kind of redemption whatsoever.
In light of quite visible environmental degradation, global heating and the planet’s increasing population, I suspect the discussions will only get louder and more demanding.
The conversations won’t be suppressed or erased or ignored by the usual unpleasant group of suspects that find thinking inconvenient, unpleasant and possibly expensive, especially if human migration turns into an epic flood as it nears the shores of the comfortable, rising heat consumes more and more of us and food and water become increasingly scarce.
Empty Temples Across the Land
I don’t think it’s a surprise to a lot of Americans that traditional religious worship is declining across the country. It has been happening in Western Europe for over the past two generations. But what may be surprising is the speed of the decline, which cuts across political affiliations, education levels, income brackets, age groups and ethnicity. It’s not just Christians, the largest group in the U.S., but shows up among all groups. The “dechurching” is especially prevalent among Buddhists and Jews for example.
At the same time, however, a great many of those that have left their particular religious institution are seeking some kind of replacement. This might be in the form of spending more time in nature, meditation and physical activity.
For some the search is about wanting to “get out” of their own heads and away from the anxieties of the “material world.” Regardless, the “searching” continues to grow and take on new forms and new ideas. For a detailed explanation of the religious decline in the U.S see at the end of this post, The Largest and Fastest Religious Shift.
Reading the Steaming Entrails
Maybe it’s a sign of the “decoupling” of anything resembling an American consensus, a quaint agreement to merely disagree and argue intently, but not to violently tear America apart and discard an imperfect democratic republic and then create some authoritarian thug state ... which will of course all work out just fine in the end.
Along with the clear dechurching of the United States, there are millions of Americans claiming to support violence in order to restore Donald Trump to power! But it’s not just the MAGA crowd on the Right, but possibly as many as 22 million Americans on the other side saying that force would be a legitimate means to restore abortion rights.
But my unsettling favorite is that apparently one in ten American “adults” believe the U.S. Government is run by Satan-worshipping pedophiles.
This comes from the well respected University of Chicago’s Chicago Project on Security and Threats CPOST. See Chicago Project
On October 31, 1517 Martin Luther, a Catholic priest, nailed his 95 Theses to the door of Wittenberg Castle Church and sparks the Protestant Reformation, which eventually led to the 30-year war in Europe in the 17th century.
A Wine-Dark Sea
Charles Darwin, a young man invited to serve as a naturalist on a trip around the world on the HMS Beagle, arrived at the Galapagos Islands in 1835. It was here that the seeds of a theory began for Darwin, which turned into a lifetime endeavor.
On November 24, 1859 Charles Darwin published On the Origin of Species, the foundation of evolutionary biology, arguably one of the greatest scientific discoveries ever achieved.
More than 40 years ago I was fortunate enough to sail around the Galapagos, a group of islands on the equator 600 miles due west of the coast of Ecuador and walk on the same ground as Charles Darwin, an experience I will never forget.
As I recall it was not unusual to sleep on deck staring up at an unbelievable night sky, with no artificial light whatsoever, while the gentle rocking of the boat soon lulled one to sleep. Darkness falls quickly on the equator as the latitude determines the duration of the sunset.
It was for me as close as I’ve ever come to believing that I was a very small part of something extremely important that needs to be preserved and, above all, respected and never taken for granted.
It was one particular night that I remember waking up and seeing a light on the water darting around the boat again and again. By this time those of us on deck were all awake and staring at the sea we rested on.
It turned out to be several curious and playful dolphins stirring up the water and disturbing marine plankton, which causes the plankton to produce and emit a bioluminescent light. It was a light show the likes of which I have never seen since but one that I was fortunate to have witnessed in one short, human lifetime.
Another human ought to have that same opportunity that I had to witness something very special and certainly another dolphin ought to be able to bother and stir up the marine plankton. The sacred manifests itself in ways that we often can’t imagine.
Picture a wave in the ocean. You can see it, measure it, its height, the way the sunlight refracts when it passes through, and it’s there, and you can see it, you know what it is. It’s a wave. And then it crashes on the shore, and it’s gone. But the water is still there. The wave was just a different way for the water to be for a little while. (Chidi, from The Good Place)
links
The Largest and Fastest Religious Shift in History
Who Truly Threatens the Church
Tech Companies: A New Religion (video)
NEXT: A Journey Beyond Humans and Extinction