What’s at Stake with Transhuman Projects?

This article was originally published by The Christian Post. Republished with permission by the author.

The famous political scientist Francis Fukuyama once identified transhumanism as “the world’s most dangerous idea.”[1] He’s correct, and Christians must take note. 

There’s a new movement afoot given the advances in technology and science. You may have heard it called transhumanism (the view that humans can evolve beyond bodily limitations through science) or the new humanism (the belief that value is rooted in humans, not God, and happiness can be achieved through rationality). 

One might be forgiven for thinking this isn’t much of a problem for Christians for, after all, only a minority of people publicly affirm transhumanism. But its patterns permeate much of our daily lives via things like the metaverse, cryptocurrency, space colonization pursuits, transhumanism, and even AI.[2] And like the humanism of old, there is much at stake with the new humanism. As one author put it: “The moral danger comes from the fact that all [of these] projects embody the first steps toward a realized transhumanism.”[3] But our society keeps pressing forward. For instance, Klaus Schwab, founder of the World Economic Forum has declared that we are entering the fourth industrial revolution, whereby transhumanism will use advanced technology, AI, and medicine to liberate us from biological limitations and restructure nearly every facet of life.[4]

In her recent work, anthropologist Jenny Huberman highlights three aspects that define transhumanism: hedonism(pleasure for the masses), individualism (self-expression), morphological freedom (absolute autonomy over your body and living without bodily constraint).[5] In addition to the transhumanism project, it’s apparent that these three values drive much of our daily lives. We’ve become accustomed to immediate satisfaction and the constant allure of a better, more advanced version of you.

What’s the harm in using advanced medicine and technology? American Christians have for too long approached life with a “whatever works to improve life is permissible so long as it’s not inherently evil” attitude. But in an age of changing technology, we must answer questions about how to use it. 

The Scriptures are not silent here. They guide us to be wary of empty and hollow philosophy as we are in the constant process of renewing our minds by taking every thought captive to Christ (Col. 2:8; Rom. 12:2; 2 Cor. 10:5). Therefore, we must no longer approach technology casually, without concern. 

We must orient ourselves to realize that all of life is God’s, and set our minds on things that are lasting. In other words, we must set our eyes on those things of ultimate concern, which science, technology, or medicine can’t give us. 

We must orient ourselves to those transcendent goods that are non-copyable, and give up hedonism and expedience before it’s too late. We must realize that our ancestry, heritage, and physical biology matter because our family—and God’s design—matters. We can’t escape our history and the ways it affects our future. We must not place so much emphasis on the artificial, homogeneous ways that technology purports to reduplicate our heredity. 

There is no doubt that transhumanism is a powerful movement, so how can Christians navigate it with moral clarity? Here are just a few things to remember. 

First, we must remember that physical place cannot be replaced by virtual space. Given our embodied natures, we are to live, move, and breathe through our bodies. Our bodies give us a place in this world, and this cannot be replaced by the metaverse. 

Second, we must remember that real transcendence is more than living on as a copy of ourselves. We are not the types of things that can be duplicated in a lab through embryonic modification, nor are we robots who can go on existing in the form of an algorithm. 

Third, we must remember that the project of achieving immortality by medically, technologically, and scientifically altering our biology will ultimately fail. Just as bodily limitations exist, so do scientific limitations. The Scripture clearly teaches that every person will die, a fact that ought to motivate us toward Godliness.[6]

Fourth, we must remember that we should not use our bodies in any way we like during this lifetime. Though our society uses the mantra “My body, my choice” to express an infallible right of personal autonomy, Scripture reminds us that God created us and formed our bodies to fulfill his purposes.[7] We are human beings—male and female—who bear special dignity rooted in the image of God. This means that in many cases, his purposes may override human desire, including matters of the unborn, gender expression, sexual values, and body altering. 

Fifth, we must remember that a Christian view of eternity is much more than ongoing existence—it is about fullness of life in relation to God. And our attempt to short-circuit the process of achieving immortality reveals a big problem of the heart: we prefer the things of this world to God’s vision for the good life. 

Ultimately, transhumanism denies a fundamental truth: that human life on earth must be lived within God’s embodied, time-bound design. 

That is why it is imperative for Christians to live with both prayerful discernment and biblical clarity concerning our bodies. We will need it as we navigate the new world of cyberspace, chatbots, and unending body modifications. There will be many who declare that ultimate earthly happiness is what really matters, so we should pursue every technological enhancement to maximize pleasure. But we must remember that science is incapable of giving us what ultimately matters. Real life, joy, and pleasure are found in God alone.

Works Cited:

[1] Francis Fukuyama, “Transhumanism,” Foreign Policy 144 (2004): 42-43.

[2] Jonathan Taplin, “How Musk, Thiel, Zuckerberg, and Andreessen—Four Billionaire Techno-Oligarchs—Are Creating an Alternate, Autocratic Reality,” Vanity Fair, August 22, 2023, https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2023/08/musk-thiel-zuckerberg-andreessen-alternate-autocratic-reality.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Klaus Schwab, The Fourth Industrial Revolution (New York, NY: Crown Currency, 2017). 

[5] Jenny Huberman, Transhumanism: From Ancestors to Avatars, New Departures in Anthropology (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2020).

[6] Hebrews 9:27-28.

[7] Genesis 1:27-28; Genesis 3:1-24; 2 Corinthians 6:19-20.