God (RDM)

"I am an instrument of God" --Baltar in The Hand of God

This page is about the Cylon God. For the gods worshiped by the Colonials, see Religion in the Twelve Colonies (RDM)#The Lords of Kobol.

The humanoid Cylons worship a deity they call only by the name of God.

The Cylons justify or attribute much of their actions, including the genocidal attack against humanity, as a requirement of their God.

The Cylons profess a series of commandments given by their God. However, the specific commandments have not been revealed in full as yet in the series.

Most Cylons espouse monotheistic views, but often with subtle differences in interpretation. For instance, Leoben Conoy's "We are all God" philosophy is reflective of Gnosticism.

While very knowledgeable of the Lords of Kobol, the Cylons feel that the Colonials worship false gods (Home, Part I).

To minimize bias, the article notes quotes from several characters on the concept of God in the Re-imagined Series.

Monotheistic References

• "Oh, my God". "Thank God," or similar exclamations in the Miniseries -- William Adama, the mother of the baby in the Miniseries, Gaius Baltar, Jackson Spencer, the man on comlink to Laura Roslin
• "That, and God wanted me to help you." -- Number Six, Miniseries

• "Maybe the Cylons are God's retribution for our many sins. What if God decided he made a mistake and he decided to give souls to another creature, like the Cylons?" -- Leoben Conoy, Miniseries

• "God didn't create the Cylons. Man did. And I'm pretty sure we didn't include a soul in the programming." -- William Adama, Miniseries

• "And what I want most of all is for you to love me... Don't you understand? God is love." - internal Six, Miniseries

• "God has a plan for you, Gaius. He has a plan for everything and everyone. Gaius - are you even listening to me?" -- internal Six, "33"
• "Procreation is one of God's commandments." -- internal Six, "33"
• "God is watching out for you, Gaius." -- internal Six, "33"
• "A connection, maybe, but not God. There is no God, or gods, singular or plural. There are no large, invisible men (or women, for that matter) in the sky, taking a personal interest in the fortunes of Gaius Baltar." -- Gaius Baltar, "33"
• "Be careful. That which God gives He can also take away." -- internal Six, "33"
• "It's God's punishment for your lack of faith." -- internal Six, "33"
• "God's got nothing to do with this." -- Gaius Baltar, "33"
• "It's God's choice. He wants you to repent." -- internal Six, "33"

• "Pilots call me "Starbuck", you may refer to me as 'God'." -- Kara Thrace, "Act of Contrition"

• "God answers everyone's prayers." -- Leoben Conoy, "Flesh and Bone"
• "God, you stink. Can we get some air in here? Between you and the humidity..." -- Leoben Conoy to Kara Thrace, "Flesh and Bone"
• "I was right. See, our faiths are similar but I look to one God, not to many." -- Leoben Conoy, "Flesh and Bone"
• "To know the face of God is to know madness. I see the universe. I see the patterns. I see the foreshadowing that precedes every moment of every day. It's all there, I see it and you don't." -- Leoben Conoy, "Flesh and Bone"
• "I am more than you could ever imagine. I am God." -- Leoben Conoy, "Flesh and Bone"
• "I'm sorry, you're God? Wow... nice to meet ya. That's good, that's good. We'll give you a couple of minutes for that." -- Kara Thrace, "Flesh and Bone"
• "It's funny, isn't it? We're all God, Starbuck, all of us. I see the love that binds all living things together. ... I know that God loved you more than all other living creatures and you repaid his divine love with sin, with hate, corruption, evil. So then he decided to create the Cylons." -- Leoben Conoy, "Flesh and Bone"
• "It's your chance to find out if you're really God or just a bunch of circuits with a bad haircut. ... Somebody's programmed you with a fairy tale of God and streams and life ever after but, somewhere in that hard drive that you call a brain is a beeping message: 'Error, error, does not compute. I don't have a soul, I have software. If I die, I'm gone.'" -- Kara Thrace, "Flesh and Bone"
• "And this time, your role...you have to deliver my soul unto God. Do it for me. It's your destiny, and mine." -- Leoben Conoy, "Flesh and Bone"
• "He's not afraid to die. He's just afraid that his soul won't make it to God." -- Kara Thrace, "Flesh and Bone"

• "Oh good, I suppose God doesn't want me to destroy the base, because he's the Cylon god, right?", Gaius Baltar, "The Hand of God"
• "God doesn't take sides. He only wants your love. Open your heart to him and he'll show you the way." -- internal Six, "The Hand of God"
• "He didn't speak to me. God didn't speak to me. So I was totally lying. I just picked that spot at random." -- Gaius Baltar, "The Hand of God"
• "He doesn't always speak in words, Gaius." -- internal Six, "The Hand of God"
• "Are you telling me that God guided my finger to that target for some... arcane scriptural purpose?" -- Gaius Baltar, "The Hand of God"
• "You are part of God's plan, Gaius." -- internal Six, "The Hand of God"
• "So God wanted me to destroy the Cylon base." -- Gaius Baltar, "The Hand of God"
• "You did well. You gave yourself over to Him." -- internal Six, "The Hand of God"
• "Yes, suppose I did. Yes, there's-- there's really no other logical explanation for it. I was - [Six: Am.] - I am an instrument of God." -- Gaius Baltar, "The Hand of God"

• "I know you're very close with Adama -- and I know he's a good man, and I know he's had to make some very hard choices... Lord knows I have." -- Helena Cain, "Resurrection Ship, Part II"
• "Tens of thousands of Cylons are about to die, tens of thousands, Gaius! God will not forgive this sin!" -- Number Six, "Resurrection Ship, Part II"
• "Do you think God will forgive us?" -- Gaius Baltar, "Resurrection Ship, Part II"
• "God forgives all." -- Gina, "Resurrection Ship, Part II"

• "God loves me!" -- Number Three, "Downloaded"
• "You've committed a monstrous and unforgiveable sin, and you and your entire wretched race are going to suffer God's vengeance!" -- Number Six, "Downloaded"

Judeo-Christian References

Baltar in "Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part II"

The Re-imagined Series contains few references to Judeo-Christian concepts such as Jesus and Satan.

• "Jesus." -- Colonel Tigh, Miniseries

• "I was... [Six: Am.] I am..." -- Gaius Baltar, "The Hand of God" (full quote in previous section)

• "Come on, Jim. Wallace Gray is no 'prince of darkness.'" -- Playa Palacios, "Colonial Day"

• "I figured, the devil you know..." -- Laura Roslin, "Colonial Day"

• "God is love" -- Number Six, Miniseries, (1 John 4:16)

The "I am" statement in "The Hand of God" is noteworthy because of the self-description that the Judeo-Christian God gives to Moses in the Book of Exodus, "I am that I am". The Christian messiah, Jesus, has a series of "I am" statements in the New Testament of the Bible. The Bible contains over 300 "I am" statements. The Hebrew name for God, Yahweh, is derived from the Hebrew word for "I am" or "to be".

The five priests of the Temple of Five worshiped a "god whose name must not be spoken." In Jewish tradition, the name of God (Yahweh) is not spoken. In a deleted scene (Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I), Elosha states that the exodus from Kobol was precipitated when "one jealous god began to desire that he be elevated above all the other gods, and the war on Kobol began." The 1st commandment requires the faithful have no other god before Yahweh.

A number of elements from the show derive from Mormonism, the religion of series creator Glen Larson. In particular, the concept of a lost Thirteenth Tribe is from Mormon legend. The Quorum of Twelve is also a Mormon concept.

A curious parallel to the series is found in the messianic figure of the Old Testament, Moses, who led the Israelites out of the Egyptian captivity into the promised land. He actually did not live to lead the Israelites into the promised land because he doubted the water coming from the stone (Numbers 20:12). This parallels the Pythian prophecy of the leader (presumed to be Laura Roslin) ,who, according to the Sacred Scrolls, will not live to see the promised land of Earth (The Hand of God).

The name of Pergamus Flats (a location on New Caprica) is similar to Pergamus, a city mentioned in Revelations 2:12.

In the Original Series

Main article: Religion in the Twelve Colonies (TOS)

God is addressed directly by Commander Adama shortly after the Battle of Cimtar, asking God to take the burden of saving humanity from him if possible (a similar plea to what Jesus of Nazareth asks of God to do before his trial and crucifixion). God, as well as the Lords of Kobol, are asked to bless the [[seal]ing of Apollo and Serina (Lost Planet of the Gods, Part II). Given that the Ninth Lord of Kobol was mortal, the Lords of Kobol may be more akin to saints, whom the Colonials worship as Roman Catholics venerate saints, whom Catholics believe intercede in prayer for their benefit.

In the Original Series, Lucifer was a name of an IL-series Cylon. Lucifer is also a name for Satan.

Count Iblis is a Satan-like figure, and Iblis is the Satan of Islam.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was reportedly an inspiration for some of the Original Series, as series creator Glen A. Larson is a member of this faith.

Official statements

• In an interview with BattlestarGalactica.com on December 28th, 2005 RDM was asked about fan speculation that the Cylon God may be Count Iblis in the Re-imagined Series:

Q: "There's speculation that Count Iblis' counterpart in this series is the as-yet-unseen Cylon God. Is there any possibility that elements of the original series "War of the Gods" storyline may weave themselves into the new series?

RDM: While I have thought of incorporating the Count Iblis/Ship of Lights mythology from the original show into the series, I've pretty much decided not to go there for now. The theological construct we've been establishing seems more interesting to me at this point and I don't think Iblis will be part of the current show."

• RDM noted in his podcast of "Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part II", that the original ending of Season One called for actor Dirk Benedict to appear to Baltar on Kobol and introduce himself as "God". Numerous prohibiting factors prevented this storyline from making it on camera, chief among them was Moore's confessed inability to write a feasible conclusion to the surprise revelation at the time. Another mitigating factor which influenced Moore to drop the idea was that when he revealed his idea to the other writers, the entire writing team found the idea simply revolting, so Moore acquiesced.

• In an interview at beliefnet.com (http://www.beliefnet.com/story/166/story_16650_3.html) RDM makes the following statement in response to the question:

Q: " In “Galactica 1980,” we actually meet the “Imperious Commander” of the Cylons who turns out to be the Devil in the guise of a humanoid. Will we ever meet the maker of the Cylons in this version?

A: I think if we ever found an answer to why the Cylons have a god or who the god is--you know, the guy steps out from behind the curtain--I think you’d be disappointed. They’re in an interesting place in that their faith is as legitimate as the human faith. Human beings have souls given by the gods, and Cylons have a soul given by their one true god and that has to be just as valid. That means there is a plan for their soul and something for them after they die too. It’s a fundamental element of their faith. "