Religion...

"Luminous beings are we- not this crude matter." -Yoda

The flip side of phsychological experiments is sociological experiments- and religion is thoroughly entertwined with our sociology. A variety of viewpoints are represented in the following books- some of which could be considered explosive, or at least controversial. But that's what these genres are all about, ne?

Christianity

• C. S. Lewis
  • "Space Trilogy" (Biblical tales are presented in disturbing science fiction allegory.)
  • "Narnia" (Children's stories featuring basic Christian concepts translated into fantasy.)
• Judith Tarr
  • The Hound and the Falcon (Alf wanted to be a priest, but the times and the fears of humanity stand in the way.)
• Katherine Kurtz
  • "Gwynned" series (Gwynned is a Catholic country torn by racial dissension in which religion is used like a pawn.)
  • "Knights Templar" series (The secrets of the order of the Knights Templar and their various adventures.)
  • "Vampyr-Ss" series (The vampires of the German SS are opposed by an ancient order of vampiric Christian knights.)
• Madeleine L'Engle
  Note: these stories are really hard to place. Some characters are Christian, some are not, some are just religious in general. I place them here because of the high number of Christian references in L'Engle's work as a whole.
  
  
  • "A Wrinkle in Time" trilogy (Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin go on various adventures in a strongly Christian/Pagan spiritual universe)
  • Many Waters (Twins Sandy and Dennys travel to the time of Noah, when Angels, both good and bad, were closer to the Earth, and the world was changing forever.)
  • "O'Keefe and Austin Families" (Most of these books are full of Christian/Pagan spiritual themes and commentary from the characters, but in the manner of discovery, rather than preaching.)
• Robert Heinlein
  • Job: A Comedy of Justice (The apocalypse is here, and a preacher discovers that his Christian faith is a little more brutal than he thought. Satirical, but not in a humerous way.)

Paganism

• Marion Zimmer Bradley
  • Firebrand (Kassandra was a priestess of Apollo, but her religious conflicts mirrored the war outside her city.)
  • The Fall of Atlantis (Corrupt priests help destroy the great civilization.)
• Morgan Llewelyn
  • The Horse Goddess (Epona, later revered by Celts as the Goddess of the Horse, written as a flesh and blood woman with some Druidic powers.)
  • Druids (The Druids are making their final stand against the advance of Rome into Gaul.)
  • The Elementals (Four people, related through time by blood, use their power to heal the damage humans have done to the Earth. A variety of pagan styles are included.)
  • Red Branch (Cuchulain was the son of Lugh, a god. But he spent his life denying that and his connection to the battle goddess, the Morrigan.)

Other

• Frank Herbert
  • "Dune" series (Paul becomes the Messiah to the militant Fremen, sparking a jihad that will last for 4 millenia.)
• Octavia Butler
  • "Earthseed" (An empath and survivor of anarchy, Lauren creates the ideas of Earthseed- that humanity is destined for the stars if it can learn to adapt.)
• Sheri S. Tepper
  • Grass (Most humans belong to the religion that promises eternal life- through cloning. Marjorie, a Catholic, wrestles with the possible end of humanity and the morality of inter-species murder.)
• Ursula K. Le Guin
  • "Earthsea" (Explorations of truth, life, death, and magic set in a fantastical world. The second book especially contains clashes between two different spiritual realities, and the third is a journey into death.)
  • The Word for World is Forest (To the Athsheans, life is part of the dreaming, and a god is someone who brings a new dream. They have learned from humanity to make war into a god.)
  • The Dispossessed (A democratic socialist anarchy was created from a prophet's idea that a society is like a living organism- but what if it grows too big for its skin?)

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Last Updated: October 14, 1999

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