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spectru
Posted 2015-05-15 4:18 PM (#10551 - in reply to #10536)
Subject: Re: Pick and Mix 2015		Quote Reply



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I've read that religious philosophy was a recurring theme for Bliss, but I haven't read much of his work. A Case of Conscience is on my list to read. I get the feeling that whether one likes or dislikes this book varies much with the individual. A couple of other well known SF books with religious themes that come to mind are Stranger in a Strange Land and A Canticle for Leibowitz. I liked the first and disliked the second.

There is a bit of religious reference in the first book of Cities in Flight, but it's not overbearing, in fact rather subtle. The Believers are having a big revival in New York, but the book doesn't delve into their beliefs except for the effect that the anti-death drug will have on their eternal life doctrine. One of the main characters, Senator Bliss Wagoner, does seem to kind of pick up the mantle of a Christ figure at the end of the book when he chooses to go back to earth to face the music, to give them a scapegoat, but it isn't blatant. In the second book we learn that he had been executed for treason. So far, in the second book (I haven't gotten that far along yet) I haven't noticed any religiosity.

I read and disliked The Great Divorce by C. S. Lewis. It is supposedly in the SF/F genre, but I would classify it as a religious tract. I haven't read Lewis' Narnia books. They are supposedly deeply steeped in Christianity. Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy (first book is The Golden Compass) was supposedly a counterpoint to the Narnia series and was denounced by Catholics as being atheistic. It did portray the Church as villainous, but I don't think it was atheistic as much as just showing the dark side of organized religion.

I will have to read A Case of Conscience and make up my own mind.





Edited by spectru 2015-05-15 4:22 PM

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