Thursday, 19 October 2017

Uses Of The Bible

First read Sean's article here.

Simon Hollister asks a Venus colonial whether she believes in God and, when she says no, he replies:

"'You're wrong...Venus is your god...An Old Testament God...merciless, all-powerful, all-demanding. Get hold of a Bible if you can, and read Job and Ecclesiastes. You'll see what I mean. When is the New Testament coming...or even the prophet Micah?'"
-Poul Anderson, "The Big Rain" IN Anderson, The Psychotechnic League (New York, 1981), pp. 201-280 AT p. 232.

She replies that, after the Big Rain, Venus will be the Promised Land.

That is quite a good Biblically-informed dialogue:

the Old Testament;
divine characteristics;
Job;
Ecclesiastes;
the New Testament;
Micah, prophesying the Messiah;
the Promised Land.

I am particularly impressed with Hollister's understanding of the role of Micah.

3 comments:

  1. Biblical images and metaphors are woven into Western culture. You really can't avoid using them, often unconsciously.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mr Stirling,
      I agree but the significance of Micah is a neat knowledgeable touch.
      Paul.

      Delete
    2. Gentlemen,

      And we see non Christian HINDUS using such Biblical metaphors in Harry Turtledove's story "The Last Article." Of course that came largely as a result of India being ruled by Christian Britons.

      Sean

      Delete