Traditional forms of faith drawing on divine authority claims, doctrinal certitudes, resistance to science, and detachment from “the world”, etc. are showing their wear. In the near term, if faith is to survive to rising generations in a meaningful way, it will likely need to be constituted differently, and draw its claim to authority and vitality from transformed and renewed sources. In the future, when humans have evolved beyond present conditions, or have realized visions such as a renewed world, immortality and eternal life (spoiler: these aren’t just religious visions anymore), traditional religious norms will have run their course. This session draws on Mormon and transhumanist themes to make portraits of near and distant futures of enduring faith.

Ben Blair, Michaelann Gardner Bradley, Carl Youngblood, Johnny Stephenson