Man's Crisis of Faith in the Latter Half of the 24th Century

Posted on Wed Nov 11, 2020 @ 6:13pm by Lieutenant Nicole Anderson

715 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: Archangel
Location: USS Victory

Chief Medical Officer's Personal Log:

A week in the Sol system is usually considered to be a vacation in paradise, but that didn't seem to be the case this time. The tension in the air was almost palpable at Starfleet Headquarters. Our debriefings were terse, long, and seemed to wander across all manner of topics, only a few of which seemed related to our involvement in Section 31's failed coup.

The general population of Earth seems blissfully ignorant of the situation, as do most of Starfleet's regular officers, as Starfleet Intelligence had no desire to make public anything that happened. However, rumors persist, as they always do, and more and more people seem to be on edge. I assumed it was due to the shakeup from the coup, however the Captain isn't as sure and seems to be on edge as well. Then again, when isn't she these days?

For most of us, the trip back to the Delta Quadrant has been a blissful vacation from the insanity of recent weeks. Dare I tempt fate and say these three weeks en route back have been on the verge of boring.

My savior from cabin fever has been, of course, Camille. Between a holodeck adventure, our ‘date nights’, as she calls them, and just being able to see her smile over dinner most nights, I’ve managed to avoid killing anyone on board. I need to be careful of my change in behavior from my charmingly sardonic self, however. At last week’s staff briefing, Lieutenant Tanaka said I looked “pleased.” And AJ even said I was “practically cheerful.” Camille says “my true personality is shining through.” I told her she’s been plying me with too much chocolate and turning me sweet, so I’ll have to redouble my efforts to maintain my generally cantankerous disposition. She rolled her eyes adorably.

Since her sister’s wedding, we’ve had several discussions about religion and faith. My people, ostensibly, rejected religion in favor of mathematics. I asked how she had faith in something she has no scientific evidence of. She smiled and said, “that’s what faith is about.” I mulled that over for a while. My people study numerology, what humans call a “pseudo-science,” but there are calculations and empirical evidence to back it up. Still, it’s odd to hear humans refer to it as a “belief system.” Camille asked me if there was anything I had faith in, I said I had faith in her. I know that no matter what the situation, I can count on her to follow her heart. She smiled and said I was sweet. There’s that word again. She’s ruining me. [sigh] I love her.

We swapped books. I read her Bible, she read the Doctrine of Lollo. She found my book fascinating. I found hers interesting. Many contradictions, many odd morality tales, or in some cases, lack of morality tales. We had a long, drawn out discussion about a chapter called “Genesis” and the origins of the universe. I scoffed at the idea of the universe being created within a Federation week.

She sat back and asked how old the universe was. I, of course, said, “approximately 13.5 billion years old.” She said, “non, mon chere, it is 13.5 billion years old, from our position on Earth.” I’d never heard it phrased that way, although that does sound like a typically Terran-centric phrase. But we discussed it further and she explained that space does not expand linearly, but rather more like an elastic being pulled from a stationary point. The further away from that point you are, the older the universe appears. Scientists have charted the growth of the universe and found an exponential growth, and when traced back to its origin, the universe was exactly…..6 days old.

She used math to explain her faith. I was impressed, shocked and fascinated all at once. More discussions about the nature of the universe ensued. I still don’t know, though, if I believe in the whole ‘god’ and ‘devil’ thing. The idea of some omnipresent ‘bad guy’ plotting to overthrow the omnipresent ‘good guy’? How would that even play out these days? And if it did, would we know who won?

 

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