- This article summarizes information on the Colonial faith of the Original Series. For information the faith of the Twelve Colonies of the Re-imagined Series, see Religion in the Twelve Colonies (RDM).
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The religion of the Twelve Colonies of Man[1] is described in sparse detail.
Long before the Thousand-Yahren War, humanity lived on Kobol. Also with them were the Lords of Kobol.[2]
The nature of the Lords of Kobol is not clearly defined. They may be gods, secular or religious rulers (like kings or Popes), or something more akin to Catholic saints or Bodhisattvas. Adama implies that the Lords of Kobol held special powers by questioning whether Iblis, who has exhibited several mystical/superhuman powers, is related to the Lords of Kobol (War of the Gods, Part I). However, The Lords of Kobol are likely mortal, since at least one of them, the Ninth Lord of Kobol,[3] has a tomb in the largest city, Eden.
The Book of the Word is apparently the central tome of scripture, which tells of the exodus of humanity from Kobol after it is left in ruins from a series of ecological disasters.[4]
The Colonials continue the architectural concepts from Kobol, eons later. On the colony of Caprica, some buildings of the city are in the shape of pyramids, such as the ones seen behind Serina as she reports on the anticipated peace conference events.
Some colonists from Gemoni are members of the Otori Sect.
Each member of the Quorum of Twelve is given a medallion as a symbol of their Kobollian authority. These medallions also serve as key to enter the Tomb of the Ninth Lord of Kobol and disabling its booby traps.
Adama appears to fill the role or a priest in certain circumstances and religious rituals ("Saga of a Star World" - deleted scene, "Lost Planet of the Gods, Part II"), though whether his position entails actual membership in a priesthood or not is unclear.
Notes[edit]
- Despite the presence of the Lords of Kobol, the Original Series heavily implied that the basic structure of the human religion is monotheistic, as noted in numerous references to "God." These could be continuity errors, ad-libs by the actors, or hints as to the true nature of the colonial religion.
References[edit]
- ↑ Please note the difference in spelling. The Twelve Colonies of Man is the Original Series counterpart of the Re-imagined Series version, the Twelve Colonies of Kobol.
- ↑ While the Re-imagined Series parallels its version of the Lords of Kobol to that of the Olympian pantheon, the Original Series suggested that its faith (or, at least its appearances) paralleled that of Egyptian mythology. The pyramids, and the use of an Egyptian Pharaoh's mummy headdress for the Ninth Lord of Kobol emphasizes this parallelism. However, the series heavy use of Mormon theology (see Battlestar Galactica Frequently Asked Questions, E21. Are there parallels between Battlestar Galactica and Mormonism?and The Millennial Star, Battlestar Galactica and Mormonism) and occasional use of references to Greek and Roman mythology (such as in names like "Apollo" and "Athena") also indicates that the colonial religion is not merely a copy of Egyptian religion, but borrows from several sources.
- ↑ Given that there was a "Ninth" Lord of Kobol, it can be suggested that there were other Lords of Kobol, but no further information on the Colonial religion is given in the single season of the Original Series, or its spinoff, Galactica 1980.
- ↑ This concept may be reflective of the then-waning ecology movement that began in the late 1960s in America.