Pen N Popper I like your idea, it actually has some similar aspects to my own. Here is the idea I came up with it has a few parts: a "grand resurrection;" more non-adventuring PC run organizations; and "Epic Character Quests."
Grand Resurrection: I like the idea of getting PCs involved in this and letting them use there influence. Instead of replacing Soul Strands how changing it to the highest level member of the clergy must petition for a "grand resurrection" after the last soul strand is lost. Then the hero can be returned to life but with only say 3 soul strands. Moreover the hero's brush with the soul mother would leave them without any will to continue to adventure. So what would these characters do?
Retirement: They could become powerful leaders of world organizations. They could become the heads of trading guilds or academes. The could offer training and help to lower level PC's, direct them on quests to do and help them find and make the equipment they need. And of course for clerics the higest level cleric of a faith would be able to petition for others "grand resurrection." These PCs would no longer adventure but there is still a wealth of RP options out there, which is after all the point of a PW.
Quests: These character might no longer seek adventure but that doesn't mean adventure might not find them. GM's could still run epic quests for these characters. For instance lets say that a wizard is nicely settled in a town, building magic devices for younger adventures and taking an apprentice or too. Then some evil force decides to bring in an army to take over the town. Well the wizard can't have that so he sends messages out to some of his old adventuring friends and they wipe out the army. Then the wizard returns to his peaceful life. These characters could be brushed off every now and again to complete a quest but it would have to be a GM quest not just running around getting sticks from kabolds.
Epic Character Quests: Finally we need a way for characters to make a final impact before they are permanently put out to pasture. An Epic Character Quest would be the characters final CDQ. In the end they might be forced to sacrifice themselves, or it so scar them that after destroying the bad guy, (or good guy as the case may be) they become a hermit never to be seen again. Whatever happens the character would stop being a PC at the end of the quest but it would not just be forgotten. These quests should be on an epic scale that has some impact on the world (even if it is just a minor impact) and one last thing. A Library of Epic Heroes should be created where everyone who finished an Epic Character Quest would have a biography of that character detailing its finer accomplishments. This could be put someplace like Hempstead where people could go and read the books. Leaving a lasting impression for these characters.
This way there would be a way to "win" the game, similar to ascension in PnP D&D, and we don't end with hordes of epic level characters. Death would still mean something, but PCs that died wouldn't just disappear either so I think Players would be happy.
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Of course in my case I just tell people I am studying mediated communication. I might actually right a paper one of these and submit it to conference. Hmm thats not a bad idea actually, publish or perish after all.