Wednesday, 25 July 2012
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Does Faith Belong in Sci-Fi?
"I have nothing against Christian or Christian writers, but when I want a 'Christian' story, I will buy one. When I want military Science Fiction, that is what I want.""Pages upon pages of God this and God that ... Oh GOD cut it out! If I want to be preached to, I'll go to a sermon. When I read military science fiction, I want a good story, NOT a spiritual rant."
"The main character had a fixation on the Bible. For no apparent reason he would start thinking about his 'faith,' question god's 'plan,' do some soul-searching, then decide he is doing what god 'wants' him to do.'
Well...that answers that!
Not so fast.
The quotes that kicked this entry off, if you haven't figured it out, are from selected 1-star reviews for Dawn of Destiny, the first installment of my Epic series (NOT representative of the vast majority of its reviews). The same sentiment can be taken from each: an unequivocal insistence that stories of faith have no business being in science-fiction. They are oil and water. Wheat and chaff. Teenagers and turn signals. So the question remains. Does faith belong in science-fiction?
My answer is unabashedly, wholeheartedly, yes.
Now before some of you get all crazy on me, take a moment to understand the statement you just read. It did not say, "To not advocate [insert any name of any religion] is to fail." Nor did it read, "To say that God is not real is to fail." Take a look at the fundamental basis of the originally-proposed question. Does faith belong in sci-fi?
According to a 2011 survey, 51% of the global population has a belief in God, with varying percentages falling under such options as, "believes in an afterlife," or "undecided." Only 18% classify themselves as "not religious." Bear in mind, "not religious" does not equal "atheist." It simply means "not religious."
Faith is real. That is not to argue that it is correct, or proper, or in need of emphasis. It is simply to state what it states. Faith -- the human belief in some sort of Almighty -- is real.
This is really just touching on something that has become somewhat of a passion point for me lately: the mindset that the word "God" should never appear in any sort of science-fiction (unless it's followed by an expletive). Characters who seem real should appear in science-fiction, and if characters who seem real should appear in science-fiction, then characters of faith should appear, as well. That's not an opinion. Unless your protagonist is an atheist who will have zero contact with any other human throughout the course of your story, or the full length of the narrative takes place at an atheists' convention, then faith must appear to some extent to capture the essence what we should strive for: realism..
Obviously the question still remains, to what extent should faith exist in a science-fiction story? And the answer is, "whatever you want." Including faith does not mean pushing it. It does not mean leaving footnotes to Bible verses. It doesn't even mean making the person of faith the hero (heroes are heroes, religious or atheist). But it shouldn't be ignored. It exists, in the same way that atheism exists, in the same way that agnosticism exists, in the same way that this whacked-out kid who married a cow exists.
Me, personally? I'm not a fan of laying it on thickly. In spite of what the reviewers at the top of this entry think they read -- I'm fairly certain it wasn't my book -- my preference for faith inclusion leans toward light and subtle. Because isn't that how most of us are, most of the time, with everything we do? Realism is captured in subtleties. Now, the faith element of Epic and in particular in Scott Remington, my protagonist, is absolutely there, and I make zero apologies. But we -- and particularly the owners of the quotes that kicked off this entry -- make a mistake when we view "there" as "preaching." We make a mistake when we don't want faith present at all. We might as well marry a cow.
Okay, so that last line didn't make sense. But just the same...what the heck was that kid thinking?
Do you think faith belongs in science fiction? What are some science fiction books or movies that include elements of faith in God?
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About the Author
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- From: epicuniverse
- Name: Lee Stephen
- Location: New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
- About Me: Lee Stephen is a native of Luling, Louisiana, where he lives with his wife, Lindsey, and their dog, Jake. In addition to being a science-fiction author, Lee is a full-time coordinator with the Department of Homeland Security, an avid churchgoer, audio producer, and Saints season-ticket holder.
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Comments (6)
yes. like it or not, faith is real, and VERY human. It is ignorant to leave it out of any literary genre which seeks to accurately portray humanity, in any context.
I'm presently reading Isaac Asimov's book, Foundation... i'm finding his universe(er...galaxy)'s investment in Science as religion very interesting. I'm glad he didn't leave faith out, even if it's not my own faith.
I work in a Christian book store that has many Sci-Fi books done by Christians. And based solely on the opening questions. God is not Just a "Christian" God. Jews & Muslims also believe in a monotheistic faith. So why, do you assume that the God in one film or book is a Christian God?
Star Trek's main characters where played by Jews who had a huge impact on the film. Spock- was always raising up his hand with his fingers forming a shin (the Hebrew letter representing Shaddai - God Almighty) and "Live long & Prosper" is a reference to Arron's Blessing found in the Book of Numbers (the Torah part of the Bible) and that's just for starters!
I'll answer your question with another question: Who are you trying to please with your writing? (or who are ya trying to sell too?) If its an American public we are talking about 95% of the population who believe in a single God!
When you speak of the things of God, you are touching on a Core belief that is the foundation of many peoples lives. It touches people's hearts and that is what most people consider a Good book or movie- is when you move them or touch their heart.
Science fictions include faith in deities but in no way does it mean that faith is exclusive to that area. In fact, faith is very real and relevant to human life today.
I recently read John Griffins' "Alone in the Universe"...and I agree with his reasoning about Drake's Equation being untenable. I think we really are on our own with God in the universe, and I think it is scientifically reasonable to think so. I enjoy science fiction, but I have to be honest with myself when watching or reading it that its premise that other sentient races exist is something that denies the Bible. Yet as an allegory or a vehicle for something to think about...that is not a problem to me at all. The problem comes in when an assumption is conveyed that counters what is reasonable according to our God-given intellects, and we do not identify it and thereby "defuse" it.
I don't want to lose my ability to reach the right conclusions! Yet I am afraid that is exactly what I see increasingly today... people who have forfeited their ability to reach truth by their taking in of a mish-mash of contradictory mindsets and scenarios, caring not whether anything "jives" with what they know to be true or not. The product is a very mushy societal mind.
It's more of an element of fantasy than sci-fi.