14 OCT 2021 by ideonexus

 Mythology Prepared Minds for the Idea of Jesus as Son of God

It is, however, not difficult to account for the credit that was given to the story of Jesus Christ being the Son of God. He was born when the heathen mythology had still some fashion and repute in the world, and that mythology had prepared the people for the belief of such a story. Almost all the extraordinary men that lived under the heathen mythology were reputed to be the sons of some of their gods. It was not a new thing at that time to believe a man to have been celestially begotten; th...
Folksonomies: religion mythology
Folksonomies: religion mythology
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10 MAR 2017 by ideonexus

 Religion on Other Earth

Perhaps the most striking example of the extravagance of the Other Men was the part played by religion in their more advanced societies. Religion was a much greater power than on my own planet; and the religious teachings of the prophets of old were able to kindle even my alien and sluggish heart with fervor. Yet religion, as it occurred around me in contemporary society, was far from edifying. I must begin by explaining that in the development of religion on the Other Earth gustatory sensat...
Folksonomies: religion otherness alien other
Folksonomies: religion otherness alien other
  1  notes
 
19 MAR 2015 by ideonexus

 Religion Prevented Immortality

The other way was if you do various kinds of mumbo-jumbo then this great agent in the sky will come down and give you eternal life, in which case you could have an infinite number of sports cars. And so Pascal’s wager: either you believe in God or you don’t; if there is no God it can’t do any harm to believe in him because he’s not going to punish you because he doesn’t exist; on the other hand if you don’t believe in him and there is one then he’ll be mad at you and you won’t...
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From Marvin Minsky'S "Why Freud Was the First Good AI Theorist"

25 JAN 2015 by ideonexus

 Mormonism as Transhumanism

Most Mormon Transhumanists consider our religion to be remarkably compatible with transhumanism. We consider Mormonism to be a religious transhumanism. Eternal progression is a central doctrine of Mormonism. Basically, the idea is that we have all existed in some form or another into the indefinite past; that we have been and are progressing toward becoming like God in a creative and benevolent capacity; and that we should each help others do the same into the indefinite future. Mormon script...
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