Religion in Star Trek

Religion in TV, Movies, Books, etc.

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Dropship
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Religion in Star Trek

Post #1

Post by Dropship »

Religion in Star Trek

An alien 'god' demands Kirk worships him but Kirk replies-"Mankind has no need of gods, we find the One quite adequate" (OST: 'Who Mourns for Adonais")
The rebels on Magna Roma, a nearly perfect "Parallel Earth", seem to worship the "sun", which Uhura discovers is actually God's "Son" Jesus. (OST: "Bread and Circuses").
In the wedding chapel on the Enterprise we can see a sort of altar and some religious symbols, among them a cross (OST: "Balance of Terror").
The computer M-5 states: "Murder is contrary to the laws of man and God" (OST: "The Ultimate Computer").
Dr. Ozaba quotes from the Bible- "In His hands are the deep places of the Earth. Psalm 95, verse 4." (OST: "The Empath").
Dr. Phlox says he has been to a Tibetan monastery and that he has attended a mass at St. Peter's Square. This is a most definite statement that religion still plays a role in the 22nd century (ENT: "Cold Front").
Spock, traveling back in time to save his own life, presents himself to his parents as a cousin making a ritual journey "to honor our gods". (TAS: "Yesteryear").
Vulcans, like many other races, believe in a spiritual place from which they as a people were born. Their name for this place is Sha Ka Ree ("Star Trek V")
Bridge officer Lt. Rhada is wearing a bindi, a traditional Hindu symbol, on her forehead (TOS: "That Which Survives")
Edith Keeler runs a Christian mission and soup kitchen in New York in the 1930s (TOS: "The City on the Edge of Forever")
Data mentions a Hindu Festival of Lights in his log entry (TNG: "Data's Day")
There is a mention of a Christmas party (TOS: "Dagger of the Mind")
The Caldos Colony includes a church or chapel and we can hear the attendees say "Amen" (TNG: "Sub Rosa")
The American Indians on Dorvan V continue to practice their old rituals such as vision quests. Picard says he has the deepest respect for them (TNG: "Journey's End")
Kilana asks Sisko: "Do you have any gods, captain?" He replies- "There are things I believe in." (DS9: "The Ship")
Sisko recites from the Bible to his son's surprise. He also appears as a priest in Ben's hallucination (DS9: "Far Beyond the Stars")
Kasidy says she would like to have a priest to perform the wedding ceremony (DS9: "Penumbra")
Captain Saavik asks Admiral Kirk for suggestions. He replies- "Prayer, the Klingons don't take prisoners" (Wrath of Khan)

Below-A church in VOY "Spirit Folk"
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Below-Picard celebrates Christmas with his family in the Nexus ("Star Trek Generations")
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MORE excerpts-http://www.ex-astris-scientia.org/incon ... ligion.htm

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Post #2

Post by Divine Insight »

And the point is exactly what?

That science fiction writers tend to write in the superstitious beliefs of their culture?

Also Christmas (albeit named as it is) has actually become something far more than a mere religious tradition. Even the Christmas tree itself is actually a pagan symbol that became the focal point of this holiday and has nothing at all to do with Christianity.

From History of Christmas Trees
"But, as late as the 1840s Christmas trees were seen as pagan symbols and not accepted by most Americans.

It is not surprising that, like many other festive Christmas customs, the tree was adopted so late in America."
So celebrating Christmas does not indicate a belief in Christianity in any case.

The same is true of Easter traditions. For example, bunny rabbits and eggs are pagan symbols that refer to pagan beliefs and practices, and have nothing at all to do with Christianity.

See Easter Symbols and Traditions

So many things that Christians would like to believe are specific to Christianity actually aren't.
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Spiritual Growth - A person's continual assessment
of how well they believe they are doing
relative to what they believe a personal God expects of them.
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Post #3

Post by OnceConvinced »

This could potentially be a great thread. It could be used as an example of how you can take a fictional subject and turn it into a serious debate. You don't actually have to believe something is real to discuss it...


When it comes to Star Trek Gene Rodenberry had a vision of an Earth where there was no religion. Then he brought in characters like the Q who were supposed to be God like alien beings who were often shown to be the cause of religious belief on Earth. Q himself was actually revealed to be Satan who had made a name for himself back in biblical times.

I loved the way Star Trek turned Gods into flawed alien beings, some of whom were simply conmen using their superior technology and abilities to convince humans to believe they were Gods.

The race of aliens that intrigues me the most when it comes to religion are the Bajorans and in Deep Space Nine we got to see a lot of the Bajoran's religious practices and beliefs and I have to say it's one of the best reflection of Christianity I've seen on TV. The Bajorans were just such deluded people so convinced their beliefs were real and that their gods were real, but yet we the viewer could see just how mistaken they were and how they were so indoctrinated, even when at times their prophecies appeared to be accurate. We also saw how even the religious leaders weren't as holy as they made themselves out to be.

It was like giving a birds eye view of what it was like to be an Atheist. As an outsider you could see the reality of the situation... you could see the Bajorans beliefs were nonsense, but the Bajorans themselves just couldn't.

Society and its morals evolve and will continue to evolve. The bible however remains the same and just requires more and more apologetics and claims of "metaphors" and "symbolism" to justify it.

Prayer is like rubbing an old bottle and hoping that a genie will pop out and grant you three wishes.

There is much about this world that is mind boggling and impressive, but I see no need whatsoever to put it down to magical super powered beings.


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Post #4

Post by Dropship »

Maybe we should "modernise" the way we regard the Bible..:)-

"And God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it. As he was destroying, the Lord looked and relented of the disaster, and said to the angel who was destroying, “It is enough; now restrain your hand.� Then David lifted his eyes and saw the angel of the Lord standing between earth and heaven, having in his hand a drawn sword stretched out over Jerusalem" (1 Chron 21:16/16)

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Post #5

Post by OnceConvinced »

I think it's being modernised enough as it is. :) Modern translations are trying to do away with things like cockatrices and satyrs and attempting to turn them into vipers and mountain goats.

Society and its morals evolve and will continue to evolve. The bible however remains the same and just requires more and more apologetics and claims of "metaphors" and "symbolism" to justify it.

Prayer is like rubbing an old bottle and hoping that a genie will pop out and grant you three wishes.

There is much about this world that is mind boggling and impressive, but I see no need whatsoever to put it down to magical super powered beings.


Check out my website: Recker's World

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Post #6

Post by Dropship »

Jesus said - "Enter through the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it,but small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it."(Matt 7:13)

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Religion in Star Trek

Post #7

Post by KenRU »

While the Star Trek universe does have references to religion, you might find the following of interest:

Gene Roddenberry himself is said to have rejected the idea of religion lasting into Humanity's future. Ronald D. Moore commented regarding the fate of specific religions in Trek history: "Gene felt very strongly that all of our contemporary Earth religions would be gone by the 23rd century, and while few of us around here actually share that opinion, we feel that we should leave this part of the Trek universe alone." (AOL chat, 1997) "It was a core tenet of Gene's Trek." (AOL chat, 1997)

Brannon Braga said that "In Gene Roddenberry's imagining of the future [...] religion is completely gone. Not a single Human being on Earth believes in any of the nonsense that has plagued our civilization for thousands of years. This was an important part of Roddenberry's mythology. He, himself, was a secular humanist and made it well-known to writers of Star Trek and Star Trek: The Next Generation that religion and superstition and mystical thinking were not to be part of his universe. On Roddenberry's future Earth, everyone is an atheist. And that world is the better for it." [X]wbm


Source: http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Human_religion
Source: http://www.ex-astris-scientia.org/incon ... ligion.htm
"Religion is an insult to human dignity. With or without it you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion." -Steven Weinberg

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