Christian Perspectives on Transhumanism and the Church

Steve Donaldson directs the computer science program and co-directs the computational biology program at Samford University. He is senior fellow and a co-founder of the Samford University Center for Science and Religion. Donaldson has authored Dimensions of Faith (2015) and co-authored A Little Book for New Scientists (2016). Ron Cole-Turner teaches theology and ethics at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, where he holds the H. Parker Sharp Professorship. He is a founding member of the International Society for Science and Religion, and currently serves as a vice president. Cole-Turner is the author and editor of several books on science, technology, and Christian theology.

• 1. Why the Church Should Pay Attention to Transhumanism.- 2. From Lamech to Bezalel: Biblical Reflections on the Polyvalence of “Technology”.- 3. Dragons and Dog-Headed Saints: Some Medieval Perspectives on the Significance of the Human Form.- 4. “When That Which Is Perfect Is Come”: Henry Drummond and “The Changed Life”.- 5. Christianity’s Rigged Debate with Transhumanism.- 6. The Imago Dei and the Imago Mundi.- 7. Nietzsche’s Power Ontology and Transhumanism: Or Why Christians Cannot Be Transhumanists.- 8. The Failed Fictions of Transhumanism.- 9. Do Bigger Brains Mean Smaller Gods? Cognitive Science and Theological Perspectives on Transhumanism and the Church (or, Why We Can’t Outrun Faith).- 10. Will the Transhuman Future be Good or Bad for Humanity?.- 11. Origin Stories: Superheroes, Cyborgs, Artificial Intelligences (and Other Humans and Posthumans).- 12. Even Cyborgs Cast a Shadow: Christian Resources and Responsibilities in Response to Transhumanism.- 13. Rivalry, Control, and Transhumanist Desire.- 14. The Church: Bigger Bangs are Coming.- 15. People of Vision, Communities of Discernment.