Julian Huxley and Gustavo Gutierrez: An Analysis of When and How Liberation Theology Can Embrace Transhumanism

In this essay, the transhumanist movement is analyzed through the lens of liberation theology, vis-á-vis the founding fathers of their respective movements, secular transhumanist Julian Huxley and liberation theologian Gustavo Gutiérrez. Although Gutiérrez is not a transhumanist, he delineates a theology of liberation which is driven by a social justice enhancement of the marginalized. The central question which will be analyzed is: How does a liberation theologian understand the transhumanist movement? Critically, both men begin on similar ground, arguing that the human condition is not as it should be. Through a careful exegesis of Guiterrez's seminal works on A Theology of Liberation and On Job: God-Talk and the Suffering of the Innocent, the arguments of liberation theology will be elucidated with respect to the transhumanist discourse, arguing that Gutiérrez privileges the telos of drawing humanity out of poverty and illness. However, Gutiérrez's work on Job restricts the potential social justice enhancement espoused by liberation theology. For Gutiérrez, God's gratuitous love precedes God's justice, making it so humanity cannot occupy the creative space of God. After establishing the theoretical arguments, the paper turns to the clinic to underscore when and how Huxley and Gutiérrez differ in relying on medical technology in the present day. The distinction between caring and curing is the deciding clinical factor to denote when a liberation theologian can embrace the transhumanist impulse. While Huxley does not limit his transhumanist project to conquer the limits of humanity, Gutiérrez sequesters the capacity of human transcendence because of his faith and hope in God's deliverance on earth.