Necromis
Lifeless on my Boat
Joined: 11 Apr 2005
Posts: 748
Location: USA
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 Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2007 11:13 am Post subject: |
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The first of the two episodes, subtitled “Over Here,” picks up with Colonel Elizabeth Lochley (who was a Captain the last time we saw her). Ten years later and Lochley (Tracy Scoggins) is still the commanding officer of Babylon 5. In a Babylon 5 first, Lochley thinks someone on the station is possessed by a demon and has requested a visit from a Catholic priest. The result is an episode that not only deals with the possible presence of true demonic forces in the galaxy, but some interesting conversations between Lochley and the visiting Father Kelly (Alan Scarfe) about the place of religion once mankind has extended into space.
The story is a return of one of the elements that made “Babylon 5” so interesting but didn’t get much of a chance for exploration in the spin-offs: ideas of spirituality, philosophy, and theology. I’ve always had an admiration for J. Michael Straczyinski’s ability to handle that kind of subject matter despite his atheism (or maybe because of it). It’s clear Straczyinski has thought out how mankind might react once the Universe has been explored and no heaven or hell has been found, and here he makes a pretty good case for it, as well as a presented reminder that religion isn’t necessarily just about the tangible and the seen.
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To be honest this is a very simplistic look at the substance of what was said in the DVD. You should rent this movie and watch it. The first story alone is worth it. It makes you think about things even if you are not religious.
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Father Kelly: I'm afraid there aren't many priests in this section of space, or any sector to tell the uncomfortable truth. We're something of a vanishing breed out here.
Lochley: I'm sorry.
Father Kelly: Don't be. A decline in faith and influence of the Church was to be expected once humans penetrated heaven and found there was no angels, no fire eternal, no not even a delinquent sarafin left behind by the general evacuation, just infinite space. For two hundred years mankind has walked among the stars on legs of fire and steel failing to encounter the wonders of the burning bush.
Lochley: True, but still there are a lot of scientists who believe in God.
Father Kelly: Oh sure, physicists have tried to soften the blow with quantum mechanic consolation prizes. Noting the mystery is yet to be resolved in tiny sub-atomic particles whose actions hint of the presence of intelligence, but where in those infinitesimal spaces can be found the God who stopped the sun in the sky over Jericho, parted the Red Sea, birthed the universe, and shaped the molecules of dust until their name was man and woman. Once we got into space, the deck was stacked and the clock was ticking, but that doesn't scare me. I think the Church still has a few surprises up our sleeve.
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