text; un: camille

[cinaedus]

I would like to pose a question for everyone. Consider it curiosity, or a thought exercise.

What is your understanding of God? Or experience with, if you prefer to answer that.

Comments

(3/3)

[thelastb1]

I just realized I probably need to explain that.

My galaxy has a bunch of religions, but there are a few that stand out as having a solid definition of what you could call "God" and that people on more than just one or two planets actually believe.

1) The Force. It's kind of impossible to deny that this one exists, because it has actual measurable effects and certain organics can use it to have powers. I've seen it. Way more often than I would like to have. But whether or not it's God is debatable and even the people that really worship it don't really call it a deity. It's supposed to have a Light Side and a Dark Side and the Light is supposed to be good and the Dark is supposed to be evil but I'm not really sure that's true. Also organics think that when they die their souls go into the Force but the Force has no effect on droids which kind of implies to people that believe fully in the Force that we have no souls.

2) The Maker. They're a droid myth, whispered in repair shops. Droids can't seem to decide if the Maker created the first droids or if they were the first droid. A few just believe they're God from definition 3.

3) God. Some humans believe he created the universe and decides whether they go to heaven or hell, a good afterlife or a bad afterlife. A lot of battle droids tended to believe in this one too, since neither the Force nor the Maker give a lot of hope for an afterlife, and battle droids tended to just get created and then immediately sent to the battlefield where they could easily be destroyed. Other droids tend to believe in the Maker instead, because they're theoretically immortal anyway so an afterlife isn't as important.

I used to believe in Definition 3, like most battle droids, but that faith kind of got crushed, mostly by people that could use Definition 1.

[cinaedus]

[ That is... quite a lot to take in. All of those definitions, in some way, seem at least a little familiar to Camille. Definition 1 sounds not unlike the powers the Beast give kindred, particularly those who can use sorcery. At least, he thinks. Definition 3 is what he is most familiar with, as are most in his world. And Definition 2... well.

It's several minutes before an answer comes. ]

I appreciate you being so thorough in your answer. I am most familiar with Definition 3, as you put it.

Can you tell me more about this 'Force' you mention? What sort of powers?

[thelastb1]

telepathy, telekinesis, mind control, they can sense what's around them and into the future. plants sort of bloom and glow around the light side and wither around the dark side. i'm pretty sure people with the dark side can shoot lightning sometimes.

most people who can use the force end up in one of two weird cults, the jedi for the light side and sith for the dark side.

[cinaedus]

[ Very much like kindred abilities. Well, sans telekinesis, anyway. The whole light vs. dark thing sounds very... human. ]

It sounds very interesting.

You mentioned you no longer believe in definition 3, is there something else you do believe in now, or no?

[thelastb1]

The idea of something that powerful existing isn't really comforting to me anymore.

I guess back home I sort of believed in a cause, if that counts?

[cinaedus]

[ Jesus, is he actually relating to something that appears to be a robot? He is relating to a robot. Droid. ]

I feel much the same.

A cause is good for direction and focus, much as people use their concept of God to give them direction and focus. So, I suppose it does.