the last voyages // 4. video. no filter except for t-x.

[tobecaprican]

Some corners of my culture happen to take religion literally.

[ Gaius is using video, and sitting in his cabin. The lights are currently playing up, as they're wont to do, reflecting off all the glass and chrome of his replicated expensive apartment. He has a cigarette, a cup of tea, and little better to do but seek some conversation to defeat nerves and loneliness.

But not lonely enough to go outside. Visibly on edge, but his voice is calm, where the video feed doesn't flutter. ]

As in, there are-- were-- colonials in the universe who would swear up and down the pantheon that we really did travel in a boat down the river Styx in the afterlife. [ ffrrzzzztttt ] easy to make fun of, but they'd be the ones laughing now, I suppose. I'm dead, and look where I ended up.

I suppose they [ ffrrzzzztttt ] ing pass.

I haven't talked religion in-- well. Ever since I've been here. Not something I miss, to be clear, but there's a

discrepancy

that I'd like to explore. So talk [ ffrrzzzztttt ] your beliefs, Bargeites. Earthers, witches, the lot of [ ffrrzzzztttt ] first and last time - I'm trying to get it out of the way and over with.



[ OOC: My terribleness -- posting and running! I will tag back solidly in a couple of hours, may sneak in a couple here and there beforehand. ]

Comments

[momunculus.livejournal.com]

There were a handful of religions where I'm from, some dead and some current, though my nation leaned towards a more scientific approach. I suppose you could say that my countrymen treat God as more of an idea than an actual being, but I can't speak for everybody.

[tobecaprican]

God. I see.

Just the one? Supposing you were to speak for everybody.

[momunculus.livejournal.com]

Almost every religion I can think of only worships one god, yes. However, depending on who you ask, not every religion worships the same god, and no one can agree on which one is the true one and which ones are false. Then again, there are others who will claim that they're really one and the same, and that everyone is just splitting hairs.

To complicate matters, there's also your run of the mill frauds and charlatans. If they can't find a god to suit their purposes, then they'll simply pull a new one out of thin air.

But like I said, my own nation wasn't one for worship, other than a few fringe elements. I can only give you my observations. If you're looking for personal experience, then I'm afraid you're out of luck.

[tobecaprican]

I'll take anecdotal data as well as personal, it's all rather the same to me. I'm not religious, myself, so it's only fair.

So these monotheists, they believe theirs is the one and true god? Truer than the other ones, I mean.

[momunculus.livejournal.com]

More or less, and they'll fight tooth and nail to prove it. While some worshipers are content to leave well enough alone, there are others who are a bit more militant about their beliefs.

[tobecaprican]

Well, at least our cultures've got that in common - petty arguments over imaginary friends.

[momunculus.livejournal.com]

It's all rather ridiculous, isn't it? I have to admit, though, that there are some advantages to having these imaginary friends around.

[tobecaprican]

Except not really, on account of them being imaginary.

[momunculus.livejournal.com]

The institutions based around them, however, are quite real. Belief can be a powerful force if pushed in the right direction.

[tobecaprican]

For the stupid.

Sorry, this is why I don't ordinarily talk religion.

[momunculus.livejournal.com]

Then why are you so curious about it now, if I may ask?

[tobecaprican]

I'm trying to determine a connection between my world and this one, basically.

Our history is rooted in religious nonsense, so I thought there might be a point of similarity. Or. Difference. With Earth, mainly, or the universe where everyone thinks Earth is real even if they're not from Earth.

It's either more complicated than I thought, turns out, or needlessly baffling.

[momunculus.livejournal.com]

I think that's a common thread in all histories. Religion is one of the earliest building blocks of society, after all, and I'd be surprised to find a world where this isn't the case.

[tobecaprican]

Yes, but. I mean. Generally speaking, that's very true.

It's when specifics start to ring similar that seem unlikely. Alright, yes, the idea of a higher power is apparently quite universal and translates across societies. But apparently the religion of my culture is fiction in Earth, or dead and made literary.

You can't sweep that under generalisation.