This document discusses the potential for future science and technology to achieve the promises of religion, such as immortality, colonizing space, and resurrection. It argues that the cosmos is a new frontier that could fulfill the role that religion and frontiers played for previous generations. It envisions future humans merging with advanced AI, meeting god-like aliens, and driving the evolution of the universe. The document advocates for new positive spiritual movements based on science to motivate progress toward the cosmic frontier.

1. Religion for The Cosmic Frontier
Salt Lake City, April 4, 2014
Giulio Prisco – giulio@gmail.com - @giulioprisco

2. Religion and The Frontier
Our grandfathers lived in a vast universe full of mystery, with benevolent
gods, and hoped to continue to live after death and be reunited with
loved ones in an afterlife.
The frontier is that place full of mystery, beyond the borders of
mundane everyday life, where the restless can hope to go. The
fundamental importance of the frontier for our mental health cannot be
overstated.
We seem to have lost both religion and the frontier.
But the cosmos is a new frontier, and future science will achieve all the
promises of religion, including benevolent gods and resurrection.

3. The New Cosmic Frontier
Future generations will be potentially immortal, and colonize the stars.
They will be able to upload their minds to more powerful and durable
substrates, leave biology behind, and merge with sentient, super-human
artificial intelligences.
Among the stars, they will meet super-advanced civilizations with God-
like powers, and merge with them in an explosion of intelligence that
will drive the future evolution of the universe.
This is the new Cosmic Frontier.

4. We Are Part of the Cosmic Frontier
We need to think that we, ourselves, can be part of the new frontier -
the wonderful cosmic adventures of intelligent life in the universe.
Transhumanism must embrace the promise of resurrection in afterlife -
to be achieved by future science and technology.
Religion must embrace science and technology, which are not the
enemies of transcendence but, on the contrary, the very means through
which transcendence will be achieved.
We need new positive, solar, action-oriented spiritual movements based
on science to keep us enthusiastic, motivated, and energetic, as we take
the first steps toward the Cosmic frontier.

5. Unicorns are sweet and I want to believe in them, because believing in
unicorns makes me a happier and better person
There may be unicorns on other planets 
We can create unicorns with biotechnology, robotics, or VR 
There is no evidence of unicorns on this planet 

6. A Simple  Blueprint For Technological Resurrection
+
Time Scanning
(aka Quantum Archaeology)
Mind Uploading (to the future)

7. Precursors and Scouts on the Cosmic Frontier
Knocking on Heaven’s Door,
film by George Carey, BBC

8. A Cosmic Order (William Sims Bainbridge)
[W]e need a new definition of spaceflight that will energize investment
and innovation. I suggest a return to the traditional view: The heavens
are a sacred realm, that we should enter in order to transcend death.
We need several really aggressive, attractive space religions, meeting
the emotional needs of different segments of our population.
Religion will continue to influence the course of progress, and creation of
a galactic civilization may depend upon the emergence of a galactic
religion capable of motivating society for the centuries required to
accomplish that great project. This religion would be a very demanding
social movement, and will require extreme discipline from its members,
so for purposes of this essay I will call it The Cosmic Order.
William Sims Bainbridge, Religion for a Galactic Civilization

9. New Transhumanist Religious Visions
The (late lamented) Order of Cosmic Engineers was founded to
implement something similar to Bainbridge's Cosmic Order.
Lessons learned:
Too many cooks spoil the soup.
Prophecy-by-committee doesn't seem to work.
Recent examples of new harmonious religious visions developed mainly
by one person:
Rothblatt’s Truths Of Terasem, Goertzel’s A Cosmist Manifesto, Perry’s
Forever For All, Bruere’s The Praxis.

10. Transhumanist religions – marketing blues
So far we are just a handful of enthusiasts who preach to the converted
in obscure corners of the Internet.
Counter-example: Raelians
(See Michel Houellebecq's
The Possibility of an Island).
The conclusion that the irrational aspects of the Raelian
cult are exactly what makes it appealing seems difficult
to escape, but we shouldn't give up yet.
We have been, so far, unable to "market" our ideas to wide audiences,
in a way that is emotionally and aesthetically appealing, but I think we
can do much better.

11. Ted Chu: Transhumanist Deism
In Human Purpose and Transhuman Potential: A
Cosmic Vision for Our Future Evolution, Ted Chu
argues that we need a "Cosmic View" - a new,
heroic cosmic faith for the post-human era.
Chu believes that we should create a new wave
of "Cosmic Beings," artificial intelligences and
synthetic life forms, and pass the baton of
cosmic evolution to them.

12. Ted Chu: Transhumanist Deism
The Cosmic Beings will move to the stars and
ignite the universe with hyper-intelligent life.
Creating our successors isn’t betraying humanity
and nature but, on the contrary, a necessary
continuation of our evolutionary journey and an
act of deep respect, to the point of "extreme
worship," for humanity, evolution, and nature.

13. Ted Chu: Transhumanist Deism
Chu's Deism may result emotionally cold.
Similar to Teilhard’s Theism,
but without the loving grace
of a personal God.
"A non-personal God that is cosmic in nature
has to be blended with certain human-friendly
characteristics in order to be attractive, in the
same way that colors are added to the pictures
taken through space telescopes to enhance
perception and draw popular interest."

14. Theism From Deism
We will leave biology behind and move to the stars,
find Gods, build Gods, and become Gods. We will
resurrect the dead from the past with advanced
science, space-time engineering and “time magic.”
This “Theism From Deism” is my core scientific/spiritual/religious vision.
Is it also yours?
Let’s say it LOUD AND CLEAR

15. It may be that our role on this planet is not to worship God, but to
create him
Arthur C. Clarke
aaa

16. Theism From Deism in Mainstream Religions
Mormon Transhumanist Association
Coming soon: Christian Transhumanist Association
+ …

17. Cosmology Is Not Geography

18. Cosmology Is Not Geography
Researchers believe they have found the signal left in the sky by
”inflation” - the idea that the cosmos experienced an exponential
growth spurt in its first trillionth, of a trillionth of a trillionth of a second.
In related news, surveyors have been climbing and re-measuring some
of Britain’s highest peaks, to see if they are high enough to be called
mountains.
Wait a sec, there something odd here.

19. Mixing Cosmology With Geography
In the first part of his second book, The
Physics of Christianity, Tipler refines his
Omega Point cosmology. Sentient life will
engineer the gravitational collapse of the
universe, which is a necessary prerequisite for
the Omega Point.
Then, he “explains” the virgin birth of Jesus,
his incarnation, his resurrection, and several
miracles in the framework of Omega Point
cosmology.
In my opinion this is mixing cosmology with
geography.

20. The Mountains Are Not The Stars
All religions, at least all the Western religions
that I am more familiar with, have both cosmic
and provincial aspects, at times difficult to
disentangle.
I often find religious mythology and
metaphors interesting and aesthetically
appealing, as a nice local geographical feature,
like looking at the stars from a beautiful place
in the mountains.
But the mountains are not the stars.

21. My Cosmology
I am persuaded that we will go to the stars and find Gods, build Gods,
become Gods, and resurrect the dead from the past with advanced
science, space-time engineering and “time magic.”
I see God emerging from the community of advanced forms of life and
civilizations in the universe, and able to influence space-time events
anywhere, anytime, perhaps even here and now.
I also expect God to elevate love and compassion to the status of
fundamental forces, key drivers for the evolution of the universe.

22. And Then We Have Zoning Norms…
What and when one should eat or drink…

23. And Then We Have Zoning Norms…
What sex is allowed and with whom…

24. In Conclusion
The cosmological and mystical aspects of different religions, are similar
or at least compatible. It’s only the geography (not to mention the
zoning norms) that is different, like the geography of England is different
from the geography of Utah. But England and Utah are both under the
stars, the same stars.
I know that many believers are emotionally attached to geography and
even zoning norms. I have no problem with them (as long as they act
with love and compassion, of course).
But others, who find the geography uninteresting and the zoning norms
arbitrary and unpleasant, reject religion altogether, including the stars.

25. In Conclusion
Let’s forget zoning and look at the stars!