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Religion of the Series Essay

In many ways Battlestar Galactica is as much a biblical story as a space saga. Interspersed between fights and battles, there lies Messiah's, talk of gods, and a search for salvation. Commander Adama is much like Noah and his rag tag fleet represents the collection of animals that Noah sought to save after the great flood destroyed the world. The great flood of the Battlestar series is of course the great Cylon attack that wiped out the human colonies and sent man fleeing to the stars in search of survival. Much as in the bible many human languages were created to prevent evil from ruling the world; in Galactica many colonies have been created and even Adama does not know the way to the source of all human life; Earth. So in this way human knowldge and communication abilities are decentralized according to both the bible and in Galactica. If man himself doesen't know the way to his own homeworld it makes it difficult for the cylons to destroy it just like having a thousand langues on Earth would make it hard for a devil or charlatan to spread lies during biblical times.

The Cylons themselves live on a planet named Gamoray. This itself is named after the famed biblical city that was destroyed by God for its sin. In the Galactica saga with the aid of Commander Kain in the Living Legend man reins hell down on the capital city much as hell was reined down on Gamoray according to the bible. Even after nearly conquering the universe, in the Cylons have their judgement day during this attack.

In the bible angels are mythical creatures of power, and disguise. In Galactica they appear as beings of white light that have power over life and death. They resurrect Apollo when he appears to be dead and do battle with Lucifer when boundaries are overstepped. In life and in death the characters of Galactica live as beings of names from the stars. There is Apollo, Cassipio, and Aurora which all represent man's early interest in celestial object and names based on things in nature. To name a person for an object of nature has been a common practice for North American Indian religions, and human religions of many cultures and periods. In Galactica through names and birth individuals proclaim their faith in the heavens through personal names.

The fatal peace treaty with the Cylon's that man signs because it seemed a good idea is much like the forbidden fruit that seemed like a good idea to the biblical Adam. Man lowers his guard and his promience in the universe and his innocence is what is ultimately lost. By the end of the Battlestar saga man has faced down the devil in space, and shared knowledge and wisdom to lesser cultures throughout the cosmos. In Galactica men became like gods as they learned the power to help cultures develop on Terra, and in areas under Eastern Alliance rule. After witnessing man's own destruction before the cylons, man learns to intervene and help prevent nuclear annihilation on another world.

Of course throughout the saga, Baltar serves as the ultimate antichrist that everyone loves to hate. Scheming to eradicate his own race he is consuled by the devil himself. Summing up in Galactica there exists Baltar the antichrist, Count Iblis the Devil, Commander Adama as Noah, and Apollo as a Jesus figure that dies and is then resurrected. Through such characters there exists a great migration of man, a peace treaty which is a great forbidden fruit, a resurrection after death, and numerous heroes and villains that fight the battles of good versus evil. And isn't that in essence what the Bible is a story of.

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