In science fiction, a very common theme - especially in post-singularity writing - is life extension technologies. Thus, someone who is ninety has the body of a spry, twenty-five year old. People live hundreds of years if they recieve proper treatments.
In the Bible, long, long lives happened far back in the past. The present, and the future, was a fallen state where man loses lifespan in relation to much time has passed from that original source moment of creation.
I find it interesting, and telling, that science fiction sees the future as a place full of long, long life, while Christianity yearns for a mythical past before Mankind's terrible Fall.
Are either truly correct? I don't know. But, it is telling that the two fields turn to different places in humanity's timeline for their point of best, happiest, longest life.
I think the whole reason Christianity focuses so much on a utopic past and a utopic future is because it's a great way to get people to listen to you and follow you. If you can make people feel like where they are now temporally is a shithole, and that there was a perfect past that we "messed up" and a perfect future that is "on the way" and that we have to earn our way into it, you can control them.
ReplyDeleteI think you're missing the point of my post, Sparrow.
ReplyDeleteI see it is a reflection of the same impulse that searches for a kind of Eden. In one, the Eden was lost, in the other, the Eden is yet to come.
They mirror each other in this regard.
The proverbial "shithole" you reference is only the near-future SF, and the near-past Christianity (corrupt middle ages) though.
I just think it's fascinating how the timelines of the two fields kind of mirror each other.