Cult of Baltar

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The shrine in the cultists' commune.

The Cult of Baltar are a group of Colonials within the The Fleet who believe Gaius Baltar to be a messianic figure for the "one true God".

This cult, which began sometime after Gaius Baltar's capture by the Colonials and likely as a result of both Baltar's book and legal proceedings, contains a majority of nubile, white-toned, well-proportioned young women, with a smattering of male supporters, also white-toned and athletic. Members of this cult use an abandoned dry stowage compartment on Galactica as their commune, where they have erected a shrine with a large, string-lighted star and a photo of Baltar taken during his position as president of the Twelve Colonies.

Baltar's initial reaction to this cult is one of fear and loathing; he initially desires to leave, finding himself willing to be despised and hated by his fellow men than being stuck in the commune, which he likens to a "looney bin". However, he soon finds himself convinced by Virtual Six to embrace his new role as the cult's leader, particularly when Jeanne's deathly-ill young boy, Derrick, miraculously and completely recovers from his viral encephalitis (He That Believeth In Me).

Baltar's salvation and indoctrination

The first indications of this cult are shown to Baltar himself just before his trial, as five devotees (including Jeanne) visit him in the brig, and over 30 wrote to him (Crossroads, Part I).

Jeanne and two cultists (Crossroads, Part II).

During the trial, Jeanne and two women are first seen together as spectators to Gaius Baltar's trial (Crossroads, Part I). These women earn a stare from Laura Roslin during Lee Adama's testimony, which Jeanne (the then-de facto leader of the cult) returns.

After applauding Baltar's not guilty verdict, they are later seen when Galactica experiences power-loss after their FTL jump to the Ionian nebula, and whisk Baltar away to his "new life" (Crossroads, Part II), brining him to the commune. At the commune, Baltar's needs and appetites are provided for by the cultists. At Virtual Six's urging, Baltar begins to reiterate his views on the class warfare within the Fleet, the "aristocracy", and the fact that there is only one true God. Baltar further contends that the Lords of Kobol and other religious trappings were created by the ruling elite to suppress the lower-class.

His role as the messianic idol in this cult is emboldened by his prayer, where he offers to exchange his life so that Derrick may live, and the fact that his prayer appears to result in Derrick's miraculous recovery (He That Believeth In Me).

Notes

• Prior to "He That Believeth In Me", the trio of women, including Jeanne, were dubbed "Baltar's Angels" in the predecessor to this article. This was a Battlestar Wiki descriptive term, and a deliberately silly pastiché of the title Charlie's Angels.