Christian Sci-Fi

Postby **madphilb** » Sat May 31, 2003 3:01 pm

Has anyone noticed the almost complete lack of Christian Sci-Fi writing, etc. that there is?

If anyone is looking for a good read in that area, I'd recommend "Arena" by Karen Han**** (got my library to get it for me

).

There are a few others I think, the "Oxygen" series I think is one of them, but I haven't read it.

Anyone know of any others?

(BTW - I have a rant/idea as to why there isn't much sci-fi, but I'm sure you all don't want to hear it!

PHIL

Postby **ShiroiHikari** » Sat May 31, 2003 3:06 pm

I've noticed the lack of good Christian entertainment -period-. I mean, even the music leaves much to be desired lately.

But hopefully Christian entertainment will evolve. At least I hope so.

Postby **inkhana** » Sat May 31, 2003 3:12 pm

No! NO! Don't beat me with your club of rant! LOL j/k

I've not read Arena, but if it makes you feel any better, I have in the works a Christian sci-fi story which is closely tied into Revelations (long story). I'm probably going to work on rewriting it as soon as I finish the first issue of my manga. But as far as I know, there is definitely not an abundance of Christian sci-fi (not that I'm knowledgeable in that area). I'm sure there are other people here who have written sci-fi too, though...*looks into the audience...*

Postby **Straylight** » Sat May 31, 2003 3:12 pm

You know what? I saw a thread about this whole lack of Christian sci-fi on a different forum. Seems like quite a big issue...

As for entertainment - I would disagree. I can find enough Christian entertainment for my tastes anway. :p There are Christian channels on skydigital... however most of my Christian entertainment comes in the form of books and music.

I have an entire sci-fi thing in my head about what would happen if God suddenly ceased to exist. It is very abstract.... the laws of physics degrade and the universe collapses, and ultimately fails to recover, leaving nothing left. The main moral of this story will be that God is in fact holding the universe together and nothing can exist without Him.

Kinda long though.... I reckon most anime fans/sci fi fans have a big epic story in their heads.

Postby **inkhana** » Sat May 31, 2003 3:32 pm

Personally, I like big epic stories...

I think your idea is cool. I think it would be neat for more people to post their work in the writing section, but I'm kind of afraid to, frankly...I'm kind of hesitant to post my pics for the same reason. I trust the people on here, but what about those who are lurking around? *shakes head* That's a pretty sorry way to be, I know...I just can't (and have never been able to) stand the thought of someone stealing my stuff...

Ink

Postby **madphilb** » Sat May 31, 2003 4:00 pm

I've had a few ideas, starting with a variant on Pilgram's Progress (though this is one of my newer ideas). Basically it would involve a universe where everyone is dying of a sickness, though most don't know it and many will deny it (sound like "sin" to you?

). The main character hears about this and seeks out the Emperor/King of the Universe who's supposed to have a cure. The story would follow the character on his trip across the Galaxy, running into all sorts of strange creatures, many of which try to talk him out of his strange quest.

I jot notes down here and there, like I said it's a newer idea.

Another idea is about an AI that learns about the Bible and concludes that following Yeshua (Jesus) is the only way (the AI's given name would be Adam).

I don't consider myself much of a writer, but I don't write much (aside from e-mail/forums) so I can't be too sure. I did enjoy my Eng. Comp. class from my 1 semister of College.

I also have a fantasy series idea that started off as something completely different once upon a time. Long time ago (in high school) I played D&D, the idea I had was for a group of people to be at a camp and transported (a section of the camp) to the D&D universe where they'd have to try to find a way home (initally called Dragon Quest, as they would have to seek out dragons for the key home). The old cartoon series of Dungeons and Dragons is a bad rip-off of my idea (though they didn't get it from me).

I've morphed the idea a couple of times.

The 1st morph of it made the world they where transported to an alternate world where magic was allowed to flourish, but that was comming to an end, and the people would have to choose between following God (and giving up magic things) or following Satan. The group that was transported would be the ones to pass the message along to everyone (and be given some abilities, many based off miracles in the Bible. One would literally change the world with spoken Hebrew.)

The lastest morph of the idea is the one I think I like the best. The universe it totally fantasy, a group of people are called to an ancient temple. Similar to the last version, magic is to be fully replaced by faith in God (many already have gone in that direction, such as a band of elves where one of the group comes from that gave up magic many generations ago as well as an ex-mage who gave up his craft when finding texts on God). A man seeks to keep things as they have been, a man known as Viv Ivi.

Again, these are just some ideas. I should spend some time writing, I might be able to make something of these (with God's help and guidance).

PHIL

Postby **Straylight** » Sat May 31, 2003 4:07 pm

I played D&D.......

D&D is great .. it really gets those creative juices flowing :p

And yes, we need a writing forum :lol:

Postby **madphilb** » Sat May 31, 2003 4:30 pm

Originally posted by djnoz
D&D is great .. it really gets those creative juices flowing :p

You're either being sarcastic or you've missed all the "D&D is evil incarnate" stuff.

I played in the 80's, D&D was popular, and so where articles about kids not being able to tell the difference between fantasy and reality (see the Tom Hanks movie "Tunnels and Trolls")... the satanic voices comming from the garbage can where the D&D books where thrown away, etc.

Roll Playing games are pretty cool... haven't done anything like that in years. They even have a couple of Christian based pen & paper RPGs around. Sad thing is I couldn't get any of my friends to sit down long enough to learn the Redemption CCG let alone a RPG! :bang:

PHIL

Postby **Straylight** » Sat May 31, 2003 5:00 pm

I am not being sarcastic :lol:

I really like D&D, and want to try and leave the somewhat uninformed accusations against it out of the conversation. D&D is like a tool, it's what you make out of it that determines whether it is good or evil. Like a lot of things in life.

Glad to see another D&D fan around here.

Postby **ShiroiHikari** » Sun Jun 01, 2003 8:46 pm

D&D just isn't for me. I get creepy feelings about it, so I don't play.

Eh, djnoz, I'm glad you can find Christian stuff that you like, but I have a hard time finding stuff that I like. Eh...I might get into that discussion more later.

I write too, but I don't call myself a writer. One of my ideas, my first story, has to do with this kid that, basically, is a robot of sorts. It's...big. Long. Complex. That tends to happen when you keep developing everything for over three years O___O

My other story is about a martyr. There's a lot more to it than that but I dun feel like explaining it right now...

Postby **Shinja** » Sun Jun 01, 2003 8:57 pm

i know alot of Christians who play D&D but personally, it freaks my group. but yeah there isnt much christian SciFI stuff out there, except for Brave Saint Saturn, which is a triolgy of space rock about life, hope, dispare, and coming home. its awsome i cant wait till thier third cd is finnished

http://www.bravesaintsaturn.com/

Postby **Gypsy** » Mon Jun 02, 2003 1:13 pm

A few of us have made our own GURPS stuff. I'm not very familiar with the system of D & D, but I do agree it is what you make it - to an extent. Even the most fun, innocent games can become consuming, and that's where it goes wrong. In our GURPS games, we leave the magic part of it out, which actually forces you to be more creative. But yes, rpgs are fun.

Postby **Master Kenzo** » Mon Jun 02, 2003 2:36 pm

Anyone ever heard of Left Behind?

Postby **Ashley** » Mon Jun 02, 2003 2:40 pm

Yes...I liked it for a while, but after about book 7/8 I started not. It began feeling tiresome and tedious, and I've read a few articles on how it's not exactly accurate either. But, that's just me.

Postby **Master Kenzo** » Mon Jun 02, 2003 2:54 pm

Well, I enjoy the series, and I'm constantly lending the books to my friend...who is exhausting my entire collection now.

Postby **Gypsy** » Tue Jun 03, 2003 7:59 am

As far as being accurate, we do have to keep in mind that both the authors did not mean for it to be so, since it is a peice of fiction. I like the series pretty well, but I stopped picking out favorite characters a long time ago because they always DIE. But yeah, I can see where the Left Behind series could count as Christian sci-fi.
Also, I know many people lump sci-fi and fantasy together, so many consider C.S. Lewis to be a sci-fi writer (although his most famous work was Christian fantasy). Stephen Lawhead is also and excellent author. He wrote a few series, one in particular called "The Pendragon Cycle." It's about the main characters that make up the stories of King Arthur. Like the first book is about Merlin's parents. He tells the story very realistically, not using magic at all, but explaing how Merlin's mother came from Atlantis and his father was a Celtic bard.

Postby **Ashley** » Tue Jun 03, 2003 8:22 am

Oo, I'll have to look that last one up. I heard someone mention this title earlier, but another aft-overlooked book of Sci-Fi would be Oxygen by John B. Olson and Randall Ingermanson. My aunt gave it to me as a late Christmas gift, and to be honest, there are very, very few books that hold my attention like that one did. It's set in 2012, as NASA prepares to go to Mars. One of the astronauts is a Christian, but she is very quiet about her beliefs (it's explained). Then something goes horribly wrong with the mission, and the rest is a fast-pace, hold-your-breath-and-hope-for-the-best race to save the team's life. Highly recommended!

Postby **madphilb** » Tue Jun 03, 2003 2:56 pm

I can't belive I forgot about Lawhead!!!! :bang:

He's got two sci-fi books that are downright killer (one's better than the other).

Actually it's 3 books, but two are a pair.

Dreamtheif is pretty cool, did a pretty good job of taking... well, I won't ruin it for ya all... but it's pretty good.

The other one is the Empyrion series.... 2 books, 1) The Search for Fierra and 2) The Siege of Dome.

I think I've read the Empyrion series at least 4 times! (actually, I think it would make a kinda cool 1st person shooter, kinda along the lines of how they did Enter the Matrix, but that's another forum :sweat:

)

PHIL

Postby **MasterDias** » Tue Jun 10, 2003 1:29 pm

Originally posted by Gypsy
As far as being accurate, we do have to keep in mind that both the authors did not mean for it to be so, since it is a peice of fiction. I like the series pretty well, but I stopped picking out favorite characters a long time ago because they always DIE. But yeah, I can see where the Left Behind series could count as Christian sci-fi.
Also, I know many people lump sci-fi and fantasy together, so many consider C.S. Lewis to be a sci-fi writer (although his most famous work was Christian fantasy). Stephen Lawhead is also and excellent author. He wrote a few series, one in particular called "The Pendragon Cycle." It's about the main characters that make up the stories of King Arthur. Like the first book is about Merlin's parents. He tells the story very realistically, not using magic at all, but explaing how Merlin's mother came from Atlantis and his father was a Celtic bard.

That was one of the reasons I got tired of Left Behind. I'm not too thrilled with series where the main characters die unpredictably all the time. That and the series got tedious after the fourth book or so.

I haven't read any of Lawhead's books yet but I did take a look at them the last time I went to the library. They look interesting.

Postby **madphilb** » Tue Jun 10, 2003 4:52 pm

I suppose there are different ways to look at what "Christian Sci-Fi" is.

The Left Behind series (if you want to call it "Sci-fi," though personally I wouldn't label it that) is one way, very obvious it was written by a Christian, sporting very obvious Christian themes and scriptures.

The other way is more subtle. For instance, Arena by Karen Han**** (hope I got the spelling correct) is written more like C.S. Lewis' Narnia series. Lawhead's Emphyrion series is a bit like that, though it does feature a God/Father/Creator type figure that's a big part of Fierra's culture.

A while ago (I think it was while I was delivering papers) I listened to quite a bit of radio, including the local Christian stations (as poor as their programming was, esp. in the wee hours of the morning/night). One of the radio bits talked a bit about how in sci-fi movies and stories people tend to have "out-grown" God. The bit itself wasn't too bad, nothing like some of the culture bashing that goes on at times, but it had a good point, mostly that there is little Christian influence in such things.

Take the world of the Star Trek series (esp. the Next-Gen on) and you've got little or no religion in the traditional Christian sense. Much of that comes from the lack of a Christian influence in the lives of the writers.

Somewhere we've lost something. People like Lawhead, Lewis, Tolken... they all where able to write fiction that not only is well read, but well read by all.

Oh well, didn't mean to get all "ranty" on ya'll....

PHIL

BTW - I hightly recommend the Emphyrion series!

Postby **Raskle** » Tue Aug 03, 2004 9:11 pm

you silly people!
check out C.S. Lewis' writing. especially "that Hideous Strength"--the 3rd in his sf trilogy. just don't read late at night--Out of the Silent Planet and Perelandra are the 2 others. They combine matters of the spirit realm with science/space travel. Dr. Ransom rocks. 2nd book, I must warn you, overdoes it in description of the planet, in my opinion. There are some nice parallels with angels of the planets and how ours was corrupted...

Postby **glitch1501** » Wed Aug 04, 2004 3:38 am

im in the middle of reading "out of the silent planet" and its great so far
but another christian scifi book is "moongate" by william proctor, its pretty good

Postby **Technomancer** » Wed Aug 04, 2004 5:23 am

You might also want to try "A Canticle for Liebowitz" by Walter Miller. Set in a post-apocalyptic world, it chronicles the (fictional) monastic order of St. Liebowitz as it plays its role in the rebuilding of civilization (much like the monks of the Dark Ages).

Postby **Mangafanatic** » Wed Aug 04, 2004 6:52 am

I'm really mad at Christian authors. Mainly because they don't write very well. J/k.

There are some true quality Christian authors. Unfortuneately, very few of that tiny percentage write Sci-fi. I have yet to find a christian science fiction writer who compares with any of the secular writers who use the same genre.

Postby **soul alive** » Wed Aug 04, 2004 8:25 am

a few months ago i read "Beyond the River" and "The Remnant" by Gilbert Morris. they are set in the future on earth and carry the progression of New Age to a possible conclusion with Nazi-like control of things which involves the death or banishment of people who disagree with those in charge, especially Christians.
i won't spoil any more of the books than that - you can check them out at amazon.com if you really want to know more. while the books being sci-fi is questionable, they are fantasy. they are also probably out of print, but you can always interlibrary loan them. they are fairly well written, but one problem i had with the books was that they were not edited very well, and the missed capitalizations and punctuation problems were distracting to me (but then i'm like that :sweat:

)
not everyone may enjoy these books, but it doesn't hurt to check them out.

Postby **Raiden no Kishi** » Wed Aug 04, 2004 9:29 am

Anyone play BESM d20?

Rai

Postby **termyt** » Wed Aug 04, 2004 10:48 am

That seems a bit off topic, but I have. Perhaps you could start a thread in the RPG section?

Postby **Raskle** » Wed Aug 04, 2004 1:30 pm

hey--you might consider Madeleine L'Engle's sf trilogy to be Christian (A Wrinkle in Time, A Wind in the Door, A Swiftly Tilting Planet). I think she leans toward catholocism in some of her other books, but the Biblical references are there all the same. They're about good overcoming evil and, though maybe aimed toward a younger audience, truths and nifty meetings with angelic beings abound. Many Waters involves a little sf (computer/time travel) in a journey back to pre-flood times when Seraphim (? can't remember--but angels from God) and Nephilim still walked openly on Earth.

Postby **Swordguy** » Wed Aug 04, 2004 3:09 pm

i actuly have a sci-fi sort of film i me and a few of my friends are making it is sort of a Christian alagory. only have about 5 min of flim do to technical dificultys. it actuly came from a few of the storys i made in my mind when i was small

i have the first part of the story wrote out but not at my disposal right now so i might exsplane more later

Postby **Mangafanatic** » Wed Aug 04, 2004 7:54 pm

Yeah, Madeline L'engle is a great writter. Some of her later books got a little weird though. . . They sorta bothered me, so I dropped off after a Swiftly Tilting Planet.

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