The idea of a future paradise, whether in heaven, on earth, or somewhere in space, is illusory and a mere dream. Only those who fully embrace enlightenment—meaning those who are convinced of the messianic utopia of salvation and practice and enforce the consequences of justice, human dignity, peace, and empathy worldwide—can prevent a shift into mass deception and open up the conformity of today's commodity society. To solve problems in our global society appropriately, successfully, and sustainably, enlightened, autonomous individuals are committed to an enlightened realism and learn to think and live freely—in the dynamics of the provisional. The process of enlightenment is, at the end of the Anthropocene, a global and lifelong learning process. The goal of this process is the enforcement of democracy and equality: neither Athens nor Madagascar. Jürgen Schmitter, Dr. rer. pol., M.A. (Philosophy), born in 1943, is politically and unionally active and continues to write in his old age. He has contributed numerous works on educational reform, the regional history of Scopingau, and the theory and practice of Christianity and enlightenment. His latest publication with agenda Verlag, "Reflections from the Periphery in the Anthropocene: Considerations on the Anthropology of Enlightenment," was released in 2023. The author describes himself as bibliophilic and is a member of the Pirckheimer Society and the Association of Democratic Scientists. He lives and works in Metelen in the Münsterland.