J. Jeanine Thweatt

Assuming some version of a transhumanist future, what sort of relationship between the human and the posthuman should there be? The origin stories we tell ourselves contain a potential answer. In modern superhero origin stories, the difference between hero and villain is simply the hero’s determination to remain connected to his or her human identity. Although it is common to wonder whether we will recognize the human within the posthuman, it is just as important to consider whether the posthuman will recognize its own humanity—the question at the heart of so much anxiety about the posthuman. It is also important to consider how the Christian origin story provides the framework of created/creator relationship: Will we accept the responsibility of the creator for our creations?

What is the 'posthuman'? Is becoming posthuman inevitable - something that will happen to us, or something we will do to ourselves? Why do some long for it, while others fearfully reject it? This book aims to clarify current theological and philosophical dialogue on the posthuman by arguing that theologians must pay attention to which form of the posthuman they are engaging, and to demonstrate that a 'posthuman theology' is not only possible, but desirable, when the vision of the posthuman is one that coincides with a theological vision of the human.