Showing posts with label Battlestar Galactica. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Battlestar Galactica. Show all posts

Sunday, June 15, 2008

All New Column: Listen To a Nerd Complain


Ladies and gentlemen, I submit to you that a great tragedy has descended upon those of us in the Western world who enjoy the immense privileges of Cable TV, the internet, Big League Chew, and the George Foreman grill. What is this tragedy, you ask? What could so compel me to rise up in righteous indignation on behalf of my silently ashamed but nonetheless inflamed army of dorky brethren? I will tell you: the tragedy is that we have to wait until 2009 for the final half of season four of Battlestar Galactica. We waited one year for them to complete only ten frakking episodes? You've got to be kidding me. And now we must wait another year to see the final ten episodes? It's almost unbelievable.

[*Spoilers ahead; don't say I didn't warn you*] Setting my fury aside, I found the last episode of the summer season (which just aired on Friday) to be totally fulfilling, and entirely shocking. It leaves me wondering just where the show will be going, now that they have found the destination they have been seeking for the nearly four seasons this show has been on the air. I must confess, I did not personally expect such a pessimistic conclusion for this chapter of the show, but it does leave me wondering:

-Is it possible that humanity located to somewhere on the planet besides where the fleet landed?
-Could humanity have moved to other planets, such as Mars?
-Or could the humans of Caprica actually be descendants of Earthling explorers who left Earth after it became uninhabitable (which would mean the entire show takes place thousands of years in the future from present-day)?

One little bright spot I think we should all reflect on regarding the long break before the show resumes: take this time to get your friends into this amazing show before it comes back on the air.

Unrelated Postscript: I just received an incredible gift from one of my church elders. Two bottles of Calvinus beer, which were purchased while he was in Geneva, Switzerland. I sense that these are hard to come by in the states, and I am feeling too intimidated to drink them. They may just have to sit in my refrigerator like a pair of unapproachable trophies until I have the courage to break their seals and see what sorts of sundry delights these precious bottles might contain. Any recommendations on foods I should eat, perhaps days in advance, in order to cleans my palette and prepare me to do these beers proper justice when the time for tasting comes around? Any input is appreciated, because I thought I was ready for this, but I am not yet even close in my beer tasting experience to deserve to open a bottle with the image of Calvin himself on it.

Monday, May 5, 2008

Topic For Discussion: The Faulty Theology of Gaius Baltar


Battlestar Galactica has always had strong religious themes running through it. The most noticeable being somewhat of a rivalry between the human polytheism and the monotheism of the Cylons. Most recently, however, the humans have begun worshipping a single God (at the behest of Gaius Baltar). At one point, Gaius caught everyone's attention by declaring that:

1. God only loves that which is perfect.
2. God loves us.
3. Therefore, we are perfect.

I'm just going off the top of my head here, but I definitely believe that the first premise is the one which is in error. I'd like a discussion of why Gaius' teaching regarding the monotheistic God on BSG is wrong. Now, considering that Gaius does not have a New Testament, what would it take for someone to demonstrate rationally that God does not only love that which is perfect? And the real question we as Reformed thinkers should be able to answer is, "how is it possible for God to love the imperfect?"

Now, I have my own thoughts on this, and it may seem a tad simplistic to some, but I felt that this might make for an interesting discussion. Without Scripture to appeal to, can we answer this type of rationale? Come on, everyone; let the Thomist within you respond. If you were on the Galactica, what would you say to him?