ABSTRACT
In reflecting the diversity of human societies, but also in mining their imagery, myths, and stories, SF has a long history of describing, interpreting, and critiquing existing religious traditions. In some cases, that engagement has been a form of advocacy by followers of specific traditions. In other cases, the often uneasy relationship of science and religion plays out in critical, even caricatured, treatments of specific traditions or of religion in general. The “What if?” function of speculative fiction is hardly limited to considering existing religious traditions. Whether imagining what religious systems might guide alien races or positing new forms of human religion (as just two possibilities), SF has been creative and reflective in considering alternative approaches to the sacred. This inventiveness extends the range of what might function religiously, while raising questions about how new religious systems achieve authentic or authoritative status. Familiar elements of religious symbolism, myth, and practice get redeployed in unfamiliar ways, often through the creation of new kinds of sacred texts. On occasion, SF texts themselves may achieve a semblance of sacredness when fans attempt to emulate the religious systems they describe.
