Say we discover intelligent life on other planets, or better yet that we are contacted by intelligent beings from another galaxy. Do you think it’s plausible that they could have some sort of belief system similar to that of religion, or do you think that any race capable of interstellar communication would have outgrown such a phase?
Posted: October 25th 2009
brian thomson www
The TV series Star Trek portrayed a future in which religion has been (mostly?) obsoleted on Earth, but which still exists in other “backwards” civilizations. The crews of the Enterprise operated under a “Prime Directive” that forbade them from directly interfering with alien cultures, which naturally limited how much they could do about any religion they encountered, though there were times when they ran foul of them and had to fight or negotiate their way out.
This was a reflection of the humanist values of Gene Roddenberry, who created the series, but it generated little or no comment at the time. It was as if viewers naturally understood that religion could disappear in a future of interstellar travel, and only remain effective where exposure to other interstellar cultures was limited or absent. Even today, the Conservapedia article on Star Trek is surprisingly neutral on the topic, a tribute to the sensitive way that it was handled in the various series. Personally, I don’t have a strong opinion either way, though I can hope that Earth will have a future less encumbered by religion.
Posted: November 2nd 2009
Eric_PK
I think your question answers itself. We are capable of interstellar communication, and we still have religion.
Posted: October 26th 2009