Religion in 2300 AD

by Bruce Hill (copyright 2003 by Bruce Hill)

RELIGION IN THE WORLD OF 2300AD

One of the most important aspects of human behaviour - religion - is seldom if ever touched on in science fiction or role playing games. If it is mentioned, it is usually aassociated with primitive shamanism, bloodthirsty fanaticism, or anti-scientific prejudice ("Aiieee - slay the unbelievers who have dared to desecrate the sacred temple of Zog!"

But religion is an enduring human phenomenon, and is far more subtle and rewarding that its superficial critics believe. It is unlikely that religion will disappear as a highly significant influence on human affairs by the year 2300AD, the period of GDW's science fiction role playing game of the same name.

Here now is a brief overview of some of the varieties of human religious expression player characters may come across in the 2300AD universe. This is by no means a complete list - eastern religious traditions originating in India and China such as Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Shinto and Hinduism are barely mentioned, nor are smaller, ethnically oriented religious groups such as Jains, Druze etc.

BLACK CATHOLICISM

In the period of chaos immediate following the Twilight War, the power of the Vatican over the worldwide Catholic church was broken. The Cardinals and Bishops in Africa, Asia and South America were left more or less on their own to cope with the pandemics, economic chaos and psychological dislocation of their members. As always in the midst of a tragedy, ordinary people took refuge in religion, and the Church responded. In the absence of directions from Rome, the church in the Third World developed mqre localised, less euro-centric customs. In Africa for example, certain animistic traditions were appropriated as being useful for building up the relationship between the soul and creation. In South America particularly, the overtly political aspect of the church became dominant, and liberation theology became the dominant influence on this overwhelmingly Catholic continent. Links with Rome were restored eventually, but by then the theological and political differences had grown so much that the authority of the Pope outside Europe was effectively nil. The desperate need for birth control, and the approval of euthanasia in many circumstances which had become such a feature of third world catholicism made a full union impossible. By 2300 Black Catholicism, as it has become known, is the biggest single religious ideology in the American and French arms of humanspace. It is heavily divided by national and ethnic origins of its members of course, but certain common features can be noted:

- A hostility towards white, or european, culture.

- A tendency towards shamanistic or "primitive" religious practices.

- Theological conservatism and a respect for male authority.

- Extreme political radicalism, often violent.

- Total intolerance of homosexuality, cyberware, and women in positions of authority over men.

The head of the Universal Catholic Church (known popularly as the Black Catholic Church), is currently Cardinal Jean-Marie Obukassar, Patriarch of Earth (Libreville). Patriarch of the French Arm is Cardinal Claude Pompideu (Beta Canum Venaticorum), and the Patriarch of the American Arm is Cardinal Jesus Arroyo (Ellis).

THE PROGRESSIVE CHURCH

Based on a union between the American Catholic Church, the worldwide Anglican communion, the Uniting Churches (Presbyterian and Methodist) and various other Protestant denominations, the Progressive Church is largely European in ethnic composition. It is theologically forward-looking and dynamic, although critics maintain it has lost touch with the roots of the Christian faith. Women have full rights within the church, as do gays and lesbians. Many social and political activists have strong roots in the Progressive Church, as do many scientists and it is well-known for supporting a variety of causes, including conservation, anti-nuclear causes, pacifism and acceptance of cyber-enhanced humans. There have been unproved charges that some church leaders sympathise with certain aims of the Provolution.

The head of the Progressive Church is Cardinal-Archbishop Penny Nordstrom, Progressive Primate of North America. Other Archbishops preside over churches on nearly every colony world in the French and American Arms, as well as other areas of Earth.

HOLY ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

Shorn of its third world population base and deserted by key thinkers and activists in Europe and North America who defected to the Progressives, the Vatican-based Catholic church has turned tightly inward, and is now a byword for theological conservatism. The Latin Mass was reinstituted in 2054, leading to a reunification with the Lefevreite traditionalists. A deep sense of grievance and anger now suffuses the church, considering the Progressives and the Black Catholics to be heretics and schismatics. An intolerant tone has emerged in some of the more recent Papal encyclicals stoutly reaffirming the traditional stance on birth control, euthanasia, priestly celibacy, cyberware and the colonisation of other worlds. The Roman Catholic Church insists loudly that alien races simply do not possess souls.

The Pope is Paul VIII, based (of course) in Rome, and no off-planet religious authority is allowed aside from that of the Supervisor of Missions.

THE ROMAN CATHOLIC MONASTIC ORDERS

The Franciscans and the Jesuits broke away from the authority of the Pope in the mid 21st century when it became clear which way the theological wind was blowing. They both maintain that this situation is temporary, and fully intend submitting to Papal authority when the church has been suitably reformed. This process they assist in by influencing key members of the Church, providing funds for reform movements, training for Roman Catholic reformists in their monasteries, and (it is rumoured) inserting agents into key positions and engaging in what can only be described as extremely sophisticated techniques of subversion, destabilisation and manipulation, not to mention espionage. It is all in the best of causes, they maintain, but as this is a theological struggle for the soul of the church, it is waged unmercifully on both sides. There has been quite an upsurge in monastic vocations since the modifications of the Rules allowing marriage, and many new monasteries have been founded on colony worlds to cater for this. There is now no distinction between monks and nuns, both living together in monasteries. The most influential monastery of modern times is the Cluny II community on Beta Canum Venaticorum, under its venerable Abbot, Gerhardt Wolf. The Franciscans tend to wander a bit more than the Jesuits, but their community on Zeta Herculis is famed for their charitable works and the personal example of their charismatic and media-savvy leader, Trevor "Dingo" Murphy.

ORTHODOX ISLAM

The impact of twentieth-century modernity, coupled with the impact of the Twilight War, exacerbated Islam's already pronounced lean towards unreconstructed theological literalism. In times of desperate circumstances, the sort of unbending fundamentalism offered by Islam offers many people a way of enduring their troubles. Islam experienced a tremendous period of growth during the Twilight War and the period of reconstruction immediately following, with the main area of development being North America and Europe. Unfortunately for the fundamentalists, this growth brought with it large numbers of adherents who were used to questioning and speculating about religious truth, and over a period of decades, a uniquely western style of Islam arose, which very quickly began to challenge the literalist and unbending Middle East style. The sufi mystical strand allied itself with Western Islam, and in the Great Schism of 2204, Islam found itself religiously divided for the first time in its history (political differences between Sunni and Shiite strands not being as important as they once were by that time). Orthodox Islam has no real structure or hierarchy, but the ruling Sa’ud family of Arabia, with their puritan Wahhabi interpretation of Islam are looked up to as providing an example for all good Muslims. They are also in charge of the Holy Places of Mecca, Medina, Najaf and Karbala, and supervise the annual Haj, which is as massive an undertaking in the 23rd century as it ever was. Western Muslims are not permitted within the precincts of Mecca, although many are known to perform the Haj undercover. Some have been discovered and killed for their presumption. Some political factions within Orthodox Islam

vie with each other in performing acts of terrorism, usually against Western Islamic targets, but often against what they term "collaborators" in the Jewish-Muslim-Christian Federation of Palestine. Irony of ironies, many Islamic terrorists have close links with Orthodox-Nationalist Jewish groups such as Machne Leumi and Gush Emunah, who also fight "collaborators" in Palestine. The Islamic College at Karbala, and of course the fabled Al-Ahzar University in, Cairo, the oldest university in the universe, are the main centres of Orthodox Islamic thought. While there is no official structure or supreme leadership in Orthodox Islam, the King of Arabia, Mubarak Sa'ud is looked to for inspiration by many Muslims.

WESTERN ISLAM

A fusion of traditional Islamic concepts, Sufi mysticism and western sceptical enquiry, Western Islam is presently locked in a furious struggle with Orthodox Islam. While theoretically dedicated to principles of non-violence, contemplation, and cooperation, the terrorist campaign waged by some Orthodox Islamic factions has forced Western Muslims to fight back - some with weapons, and some with arguments. There is a feeling among many Western Islamic intellectuals that the best defence is a good offence, and that this is a struggle which only one group will walk away from. The Sufis within Western Islam disagree, and have initiated a campaign of passive resistance along lines suggested by Gandhi and Martin Luther King. Sufi activists now launch coordinated "Peace Offensives" by travelling to areas of Orthodox Islamic influence, together with media coverage, and simply talking to Orthodox Muslims wherever possible. This has met with mixed success. Despite winning over many people with a display of moral courage, Sufi activists have occasionally disappeared. Two of them, Hafez Hewittson and Paul Salim, were beaten to death on live TV when they visited a mosque in Dearborn, Michigan. They are now regarded as martyrs. Western Islam is somewhat better organised than the Orthodox, and have a headquarters complex in Jerusalem which includes probably one of the greatest examples of modern architecture in Earth - the breathtaking Al-Quds Peace Mosque. It's irridescent green/gold/blue plasteel dome can be seen from all over Jerusalem, dominating the skyline on the Mount of Olives. It quite overshadows the Orthodox-controlled Dome of the Rock and Al-Aksa Mosque on Temple Mount, which is precisely what it was designed to do. Orthodox Islamic terrorists are constantly plotting to blow it up. A Sufi mystic, Khalid Abu-Habib, who teaches at the Islamic College attached to the Al-Quds Peace Mosque in Jerusalem has become very prominent lately because of his writings about human unity and the necessity of destroying artificial theological barriers between people. The Muslim Brotherhood, the Ikhwan, has needless to say made his assassination a top priority.

JUDAISM

The Israeli civil war of 2067 finally broke the power of Orthodoxy, and scattered the religious nationalists to the four winds, thus clearing the way for the establishment of the Federation of Palestine, including Israel, Jordan, the mini-state of Palestine itself, and Lebanon. The political triumph of the Peace camp was foreshadowed by the religious victory of the Reconstructionist movement within Judaism the previous year, which saw the formal alignment of the Conservative (Masorti) Movement with the Reconstructionist-dominated World Union for Progressive Judaism. Professing a non-theistic world view which holds that God is immanent rather than transcendent, the Progressive movement is in many ways more radical that' the Progressive Church in Christianity. The modern style of Judaism is centred on small groups of people, usually several families, called chavurot, who share their property and participate together in life events and the cycle of Jewish religious celebrations. Synagogues are more like community centres for the various chavurot in a specific area, providing regular religious services, teaching, counselling, political and cultural facilities and so on. Many people find modern Judaism's non-theistic approach both realistic and morally attractive, and large numbers of people convert to it every year. Traditionalists cannot understand why an officially a-theistic group still identifies itself as a religion, nor why traditional Jewish practices are still kept by people who say they do not believe in an external supernatural deity. Jewish thinkers are prominent in many of the great research institutes and universities of the modern world, especially along the American Arm. The leadership of Progressive Judaism is provided by the Central Conference of Rabbis, headquartered in Jerusalem, at the impressive campus of the main theological seminary of the movement, Hebrew Union College. The College is almost entirely built underground, largely to counter acts of terrorism from the Orthodox. The most influential Progressive Jewish leader is Rabbi Miriam Bat-Ahava, who teaches Moral Philosophy at Hebrew Union College in Jerusalem and also takes several courses on comparative religion at the Islamic College attached to the Al-Quds Peace Mosque. She is fluent in Arabic as well as Hebrew and English. She and Khalid Abu-Habib have founded an important political foundation, the "Paths of Peace" organisation, which encourages understanding and cooperation between people throughout humanspace. Many sunyassi work closely with "PAX", as it has become known.

ORTHODOX JUDAISM

Out-thought by the Progressives and out-fought by the Israeli Peace camp in the Israeli civil war, Orthodox Judaism is in a bad way. It has retreated inwards, and its dwindling number of adherents live in self-imposed isolation in ghettoes that startlingly resemble those of the Middle Ages. Not all Orthodox Jews live like that though. The religious-nationalist Orthodox tend to live a slightly more modern lifestyle, although they are readily identifiable by their knitted skullcaps. Religious-nationalists are dedicated to the destruction of the Federation of Palestine, and the reclaiming of the entire historical Land of Israel for the Jewish people (by which they mean themselves of course). They live in North America and in colonies along the American Arm mostly, often in their own communities, rather like the old style kibbutzim of Israel (which by the way are still going strong in Palestine). Interpreting the Torah in a very literal way, the religious-nationalists see the destruction of Progressive Judaism and the collapse of Palestine as divinely ordained, and many are quite prepared to use force to achieve these goals. Groups such as Machne Leumi (National Camp) and Gush Emunah (Bloc of Faith) have used terror attacks in the past, and have been stockpiling arms and using their kibbutzim off-planet as' training camps for some time now. The authorities in Jerusalem are concerned at this, but they are also concerned about Orthodox Islamic groups as well, the Vatican keeps giving them trouble about Christian shrines, the Maronite Christians in Lebanon keep complaining that they feel left out of the Jewish-Muslim power structure - basically, they have more than enough trouble already without having to worry about terrorism from yet another quarter! The most influential Orthodox leader is Rabbi Nachman Halberstam, the Lubavitcher Rebbe who lives in New York. The latest in the Lubavitcher Hasidic dynasty, Rabbi Nachman's semi-feudal position amongst his own adoring followers has been extending to many other Orthodox Jews in recent years. He stresses complete obedience to the will of God (as interpreted by him), ritual observance and ethical behaviour. There is a small group of cultists who worship a former Lubvitcher Rebbe, Menachem Schneerson, who died at the end of the 20th century, as the Messiah, but they are regarded as having broken away from Judaism by worshipping a man. The Messianists, as they are known, are shunned by all Jewish sects as apostates. The current Rebbe is not thought to favour the religious-nationalists, but has so far not spoken publicly about their political goals. Rabbi Ze’ev Blitzer of Kibbutz Milchemet Mitzva on Beta Canum Venaticorum is the recognised theorist of the religious-nationalists, although no law-enforcement agency in humanspace has yet been able to trace any acts of terrorism directly to him. He never goes anywhere without several bodyguards armed with automatic weapons. Not all religious-nationalists are as fanatical as Rabbi Blitzer however, and he represents the most extreme form of that philosophy.

THE SUNYASSI

Hinduism, Buddhism and Chinese religions are largely centred in their home regions on Earth, and along the Chinese Arm. But one contribution that Hinduism has made to religion generally is the tradition of the Sunyass - the renunciant. In the final stage of life, a devout Hindu will simply pack up, settle his affairs, and move into a hut or cave, usually in a forest. In this way he renounces the world, and concentrates on things of the spirit. This tradition has slowly spread to other religions, even those which do not traditionally approve of asceticism. All over Humanspace, Rabbis, Imams, Priests, Monks, Nuns and even laypeople of all faiths, have been known to leave their possessions behind, and with only a begging bowl and a simple sky-blue robe, go out into the universe. But this is no retreat from the world. Modern sunyassi tend by and large to be quite involved with people. They also have a habit of travelling from planet to planet as the fancy takes them. They do not pay for this (they have no money), but they take up little space, don't eat much, and can provide interesting and stimulating company on a long voyage. Besides, it is regarded as bad luck to refuse passage to a sunyass, and spacemen are as superstitious as sailors ever were. Sunyassi tend to be elderly of course, and they include both men and women. Usually they will not disclose their specific religious faith, preferring instead to talk about common truths. They are known to be honest, trustworthy, and sources of good advice. Many sunyassi have regular travel patterns, and come to know many people on their route. They survive by begging, and it is very rare that a sunyass will not find a meal and a place to rest for the night, such is the esteem they are held in by ordinary people. What they don't need for their own survival, they give to charity. The "PAX" organisation is known as something of a clearing house for information and communication for the wandering sunyassi. There is one indulgence that many sunyassi share however - the practice of "Skinny-dipping". This is something that early space travellers tried and discarded as simply too overwhelming. A person strips naked, and climbs into a transparent, heated and pressurised plasteel bubble which is located in the ships largest airlock The bubble is supplied with enough oxygen for a few hours, and is attached to the ship via a monomolecular filament, completely invisible. Then the bubble is expelled gently from the airlock and drifts away from the ship, usually to a distance of several kilometres, thus making the ship invisible to the person in the bubble. This gives the person the sensation of being alone and naked in deep space, with only the universe for company. Of the early space pioneers who tried this, some returned insane, some later committed suicide, and some were hauled in dead, with no apparent cause. And a few came back apparently unharmed, but different, quieter, more reflective. Sunyassi go "skinnydipping" whenever possible, and it is regarded as the greatest of good luck for a ship and its crew if a skinny dipping sunyass is hauled back aboard dead. Such an end to life is regarded as a great blessing.

CAMPAIGN IDEAS

GMs should have difficulty in adapting this religious background for use in their campaigns. There are several major conflicts mentioned here that lend themselves to adventures. Characters may find themselves sharing a cabin with a sunyass who will tell them about some terrible injustice he is going to try to resolve on the planet the ship is bound for, and inviting them to help him. A Franciscan monk on an undercover mission to Earth may have his cover blown and be on the run when he runs straight into your party, the Swiss Guard not 60 seconds behind, machineguns blazing! A symposium on human evolution and technology sponsored by the Progressive Church may engage your party to provide security against threats from other religious factions intent on performing some outrage. A Western Muslim "Peace Offensive" may be about to begin in a strongly Orthodox Muslim city just as your party arrives in town. The tension and violence thus created, together with the inevitable presence of the electronic media may help complicate whatever mission your party is trying to complete. A Progressive Jewish Rabbi may have been kidnapped by Orthodox extremists who are threatening murder unless the government of the Palestine Federation agrees to some implausible demand or other, and you are engaged to track the group down by the Rabbi's congregation who have no faith in the local police. The "PAX" organisation in particular can be a source of endless adventures. As you may have guessed, the key religious conflict in 2300 is not that between religions themselves, but between the progressive, outward-looking modernistic denominations, and the conservative, backward-looking traditionalists who do not like the shape of the future at all, and want to turn the clock back by force if necessary. The "PAX" organisation is the central cooperative body of "liberal" religious thought which seeks to combat the activities of the conservatives. Aside from these specifically religion-oriented adventure ideas, the religious background should be used as a part of everyday life in 2300AD. It can help provide motivations for NPCs and even player characters in unusual situations. And I suppose if you really want to you can throw in a few towel-wearing, knife-brandishing cultic fanatics bent on purifying the defiled temple of Zog with the blood of the infidel intruders ... "Aiieee! The great God Zog demands blood! Blood! Slay the defilers who dare to enter the sanctuary of the All-Powerful Zog without first standing on their heads and chanting 'Another one bites the dust' three times as written in the sacred scroll of Secret Sacred Lost Ancient Knowledge which has been handed down from the Age of....oh never mind, they seem to have gone now.