Terasem Movement Transreligion

Speaker 1

Our next speaker is going to be Gabriel Rothblatt. You just heard him commenting a moment ago. Gabriel is here representing the TerraSem movement. And he joins us for his second year as a member of the Mormon Transhumanist Association. Gabriel also lives in Florida with his wife and four kids, and he also, and this is really exciting, recently announced his candidacy for U. S. Congress. from Florida’s eighth district, which includes the Kennedy Space Center. We’re excited to have Gabriel here, and he’s going to be talking about the TerraSem movement. which is a um another uh transhumanist religiously oriented they call it a secular approach to religious transhumanism. Happy to have you, Gabriel. What was that?

Gabriel Rothblatt

Wonderful. Well, it’s a great honor to be here in front of such a prestigious group of intellects as saw that huge number of PhDs. And there, I’m also in that minority with just a bachelor’s degree.

Gabriel Rothblatt

But yes, last year at last year’s conference, I felt I had a real awakening, what I like to refer to as a spiritually transhuman experience. I incredibly the same day that I came here, the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies published my first piece of Futurist Philosophy. And as I was sitting in the audience, like you all now, I just felt really awestruck by the depth of thought and character of the presenting guest. just as Brent did, I got really overwhelmed. The emotion of the matter just really kind of came over me, so much so that I did not sleep that following night at all. and just so overwhelmed by inspiration and a drive to become more than what I was. that I knew I had to come back here again this year with the right to share that experience.

Gabriel Rothblatt

And as last year’s conference coincided with a major milestone for me, so it does this year. This week I announced my candidacy. I’m now active candidate for U. S. Congress.

Gabriel Rothblatt

So, I’m going to get used to that and give you a disclaimer. I’m not here as a candidate. I made the decision to come here before I decided to run, but I do believe my identity as a transhumanist. Is what influenced me to want to become more than what I am. And I hope everyone here shares that experience. And comes back next year with new accomplishments and ambitions to share with us.

Gabriel Rothblatt

We are all familiar with the concept of the chicken and the egg, the dilemma of faith versus fact. Did life begin with the single cell? Or was there some kind of moment of creation? Do we believe what we know or do we know what we believe? And does an opinion, one way or the other, change anything about how the two now do exist simultaneously?

Gabriel Rothblatt

I want to invite you to expand that creation dilemma, to compare man and God, religion and theology. The very existence of one, is it contradictory or is it complementary to the existence of the other? Did or could one precede the other? It’s a simple question and has a lot of varying interpretations, which unfortunately have created a deep divide where we have physical boundaries that separate ideological differences. Does either past determine our future?

Gabriel Rothblatt

The debate has been really quite heated. I believe this is due to religious organizations. Neither humankind nor God have any benefit in the gross massacre and atrocities of war and conflict. The desire of the religious organization to manifest itself as the sole spokesperson between man and God has led us into some of the darkest chapters of our history. Their deceit and corruption has alienated many groups and made the concept of faith entirely unpalatable for some.

Gabriel Rothblatt

But contrary to the religious organization’s attempt to monopolize the God meme, the diversification of faith has made the institution stronger. Just as genetic diversity is good for life, theological diversity is good for faith. But could there be a a secular faith?

Gabriel Rothblatt

All religion is an attempt To realize godliness through cooperation, duplicatable actions amplified on a global scale. That builds reality from a community a communal belief.

Gabriel Rothblatt

I believe in the United States, through its principles of supporting freedom of religious expression, Maintains a rich marketplace for faith in the light of a world increasingly ruled by technology. And it’s no coincidence that it’s here in America where the visions of Joseph Smith were developed.

Gabriel Rothblatt

To truly realize God’s potential, all of humankind must work towards a united goal. However, people like myself have come to understand a non-cosmetic theology, described as humanist by some, agnostic or atheist by others. We prefer a unique connection with our environments, one generally free from affiliation. Which brings us to Terra Sam.

Gabriel Rothblatt

And what is a trans religion? Trans religion means transcending religion. It means encompassing all religions. Essentially, secularism. If you work for the goals of TerraSem, you are Terasem. Joining the organization is not necessary.

Gabriel Rothblatt

Terasim has three categories of rituals, core categories of rituals. I like to call uploading, networking, and meditation. All religions incorporate to some degree, even secular lifestyle does as well. There are other rituals, but I believe these three particularly facilitate the specific and common change that all groups want to see in the world.

Gabriel Rothblatt

Tarasam commonly practice a form of yoga called kundalini, which is preferred because of its rich scientific support of Increased hormonal balance and circulation. But meditation not only encompasses yoga, but prayer as well. Prayer is a form of meditation, and although less scientific study backs its results of personal health, there are some that show that even basic prayers can improve your mood. It’s truly only certain mantras that are associated to certain meditations that have any direct theological purpose to them.

Gabriel Rothblatt

Uploading is a vernacular we use in Terracem. However, special credence is given to communal stories. It’s not just personal experience. Storytelling includes reciting scriptural and auditory traditions. They also fit the definition of uploading, giving that information again to a new computing source. Secondly, we may call this journalism or just perceive it as the art of expression. In writing this paper, I was very fascinated to discover that former LDS President Woodruff, he kept a journal for sixty-three years and advocated that all Mormons maintain a life log. which is the very essence of what uploading means.

Gabriel Rothblatt

Networking, in a traditional religious sense, I think we refer to as proselytizing or congregating. And congregating as well is popular in secular culture, as well as rich socialization and advocacy of one’s positions to others in the community. In TerraceM, we like to simply view it as extropy. But the principle in all those cases are the same.

Gabriel Rothblatt

Then we have four core beliefs, which are simple statements, but I think have a religious as well as a secular appeal to them as well. The purpose of life is to create diversity, unity, and joyful immortality. Nature automatically selects for these traits Joyful immortality, unity, diversity, they’re the self-fulfilling prophecy of creation. Regardless of your stance on how we got here, there is a consensus that since we are here, We have a duty to live as long and as joyfully as possible.

Gabriel Rothblatt

Nobody dies so long as enough information about them is preserved. They are simply in a state of cybernetic biostasis. Future mindware technology will enable them to be revived, if desired, to healthy and independent living. The concept of immortality is common through religion, unanimously proclaimed as a reward for living life in the method asked by God. Save for capital punishment, there is no religious mandate that one die through a specific course or after a set of time. Again, indefinite life is rewarded through righteous living and maintenance of your temple.

Gabriel Rothblatt

God is technological. We are making God as we are implementing technology that is ever more all-knowing. ever present, all powerful, and benevolent. Geoethical nanotechnology will ultimately connect all consciousness and control the cosmos. The belief that we can be more leads us to create tools from which we need to realize that dream. In that, we create God in ourselves and in our connections to each other. The reality of God becomes more tangible through our cooperative development of the tools of our faith.

Gabriel Rothblatt

Finally, Love means that happiness of others is essential to your own happiness. Love must connect everyone to achieve life purpose and to make God complete. The magnetism of love is universal. No matter how greatly two people may see their differences, love can unite them. Just asked by white. An inherent love for others will allow you to overlook their differences to begin with. It is always in the divine and human interest to proliferate love.

Gabriel Rothblatt

And in summary, I don’t believe where you begin as is important as where you’re headed. Knowledge is never a destination when curiosity is your journey. A common misinterpretation of transhumanism and of Terasim is that immortality or godliness at any cost is the goal. In truth, both are best described by the secular values of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Which should come as no surprise given the society that transhumanism, that Mormonism has come out of.

Gabriel Rothblatt

Thank you for allowing me to speak. And if you have more time, I’ll take questions.