[SFCC] SF research question on Jesuits in Space

Thu Oct 4 12:38:26 PDT 2012

Michele,

I found this on the internet:

http://www.adherents.com/lit/sf_jesuit.html

Author

Title

Attitude
toward
Jesuits

Approx. year
events
take place

Sample Quote and/or Description

Patricia Anthony

God's Fires. New York: Ace Books (1997)

mixed

1600

[During the Portuguese Inquisition, the crash-landing of a space ship presents a devastating moral dilemma when the Jesuits capture and imprison three beings, who escape the crash, and must confront the question about who or what these mysterious beings are.];

Pg. 77:
"Porra! Am I not worthy? I have been damned by sniveling Dominicans and... Cistercians; and yet before each battle Jesuits petitioned God for me. What sort of father are you, who would turn his back on a son who disobeyed Rom for you, who slaughtered Spaniards when you asked? Damn you Jesuits to Hell for serving the Holy Office. For leading this country from one war to another..."

James Blish

A Case of Conscience. (1958)

?

2150?

This is a classic and important pioneering work in modern religious-themes science fiction. A variety of religious issues are explored in this about a Jesuit priest<http://www.adherents.com/lit/sf_jesuit.html> who gradually comes to believe that a planet full of intelligent, rational lizards is actually of Satanic origin.

David Brin

Earth. New York: Bantam (1990)

neutral

2038

[Jesuits are mentioned only in passing.] Pg. 208:
At minimum you've drawn an intriguing sophistry to delight your fellow Franciscans. And those neo-Gaian Jesuits, if they haven't thought of it already.

Frank Herbert

Dune. (1965)

-

14000

The two central religious groups portrayed in Dune are the Fremen (Zensunnis), who are based to some extant on Muslims, especially Sufis, and the Bene Gesserit. "Gesserit" may be a transformation of "Jesuit." There are many obvious similarities between the powerful Bene Gesserit order and the Jesuit Society of Jesus. The appendix section detailing religious history of the far-future setting in the novel specifically cites Islam and Catholicism<http://www.adherents.com/lit/sf_jesuit.html> as important predecessor religions of the future religious environment.

James Morrow

Towing Jehovah<http://www.adherents.com/lit/sf_jesuit.html>. New York: Harcourt Brace and Co. (1994)

?

1994

One of the main characters in the book is Thomas Ockham, of the Society of Jesus. This is a very well-developed character, playing the role of the religious seeker in this novel about an expedition to retrieve a giant corpse from the Arctic, which many believe is the body of God.

Mary Doria Russell

The Sparrow. New York: Ballantine (1996)

positive

2019-2021
and
2059-2060

This is one of most popular SF novels in recent years to explore religious themes. The "Sparrow" is famed as being the "Jesuits in Space" novel. It involves a Jesuit expedition to the first extraterrestrial sentient society that humans encounter. The author read dozens of biographies by current and former Jesuits in preparing to write this novel.

Mary Doria Russell

Children of God. New York: Ballantine (1997)

positive

2061

Sequel to The Sparrow.

Winston P. Sanders

"The Word to Space" (first published 1960). Reprinted in Mayo Mohs (editor), Other Worlds: Other Gods: Adventures in Religious Science Fiction. Garden City, NY: Doubleday (1971)

positive

2100

This is yet another story with a Catholic clergyman/linguist. Radio transmissions from the alien world Akron are detected from Earth, and scientists are excited to learn for the first time about an alien culture. Until, that is, the informative broadcasts are replaced by endless Akronite religious propaganda. A Jesuit linguist solves the problem for Earth and manages to do some reverse missionary work at the same time.

Dan Simmons

Hyperion. New York: Doubleday (1989)

mixed

2750

One of the main characters in this Chaucer-Cantebury-format novel is Paul Dure, an archaeologist, ethnologist, and eminent Jesuit theologian<http://www.adherents.com/lit/sf_jesuit.html>. Must of the lengthy section this character narrates deals with his work missionary and Catholic religious leader on the planet Hyperion.

To be added in more detail: "The Star," one of science fiction grandmaster Arthur C. Clarke's most famous stories. The narrator is implied to be a Jesuit in this story about spacefarers far from Earth who discover the actual Star of Bethlehem.

Cheers,

Melissa

Melissa Conway, Ph.D.

Distinguished Librarian

Head, Special Collections & Archives

P.O. Box 5900

UCR Libraries

University of California

Riverside, CA   92517-5900

951-827-3233

951-827-4673 FAX

melissa.conway at ucr.edu

Alternate mailing address:

Special Collections & Archives

UCR Libraries

3401 Watkins Dr.

University of California

Riverside, CA   92521

http://www.facultydirectory.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/pub/public_individual.pl?faculty=1934

http://www.uctv.tv/science-fiction/

-----Original Message-----
From: sfcc-bounces at lists.ucr.edu [mailto:sfcc-bounces at lists.ucr.edu] On Behalf Of Michele R Combs
Sent: Thursday, October 04, 2012 12:00 PM
To: SFCC at lists.ucr.edu
Subject: [SFCC] SF research question

Hello Collective Wisdom --

I'm hoping that some of you may be able to help me with this.  As many of you probably know, Mary Doria Russell's novel The Sparrow has a Jesuit as the main character.  The short story "The Star" (by Arthur C. Clarke) features a chief astrophysicist who is a Jesuit priest.

What I'd like is to find any/all other examples of, well, let's call it "Jesuits in Space" for lack of a better term.  Does anyone know of others?

Thanks --

Michele

+++++++++++++++

Michele Combs

Lead Archivist

Special Collections Research Center

Syracuse University

315-443-2081

mrrothen at syr.edu<mailto:mrrothen at syr.edu>

scrc.syr.edu

library-blog.syr.edu/scrc

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