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Food for thought: What if . . .

From the introduction to Gabriel McKee's The Gospel According to Science Fiction: From the Twilight Zone to the Final Frontier:

As conventional wisdom would have it, science and religion are opposing forces, struggling for influence over our minds, our souls, and our public funding dollars. On the one hand we have science, alternately described as either the quest for truth amidst ancient superstitions, or the cold, soulless attempt to turn human beings into gods. On the other hand is faith: the core beliefs that give our lives meaning, or the illusions that hold us back from fulfilling our potential.

If these distinctions are to be believed, then surely science fiction can have nothing to do with religion . . . .

But what if the distinction between science and religion is wrong? What if the apparent tension between faith and reason is simply an illusion created by a few overzealous believers on both sides who hope that one will eliminate the other? What if science fiction, is instead of simply being the cool, rationalistic prediction of things to come, is something more primal, more spiritual--the religious texts of the future?


(Image: slice from the book cover)