Battlestar Galactica Episode Talks Religious Freedom

Philosophy and religiosity are just some of the things tackled in this Battlestar Galactica episode from season four. This fourth episode of the last season focuses on character development, showing each character and his struggles with identity, principles, pain and belief. While topics of religious persecution were presented, some dealt with other things inherently pertaining to the practice of one’s beliefs in deities.

A scene was shown wherein Baltar’s teachings were cornered in a discussion. He was asked, given the premise that Baltar’s one God forgives all faults, then it ultimately doesn’t matter anymore whatever you do. Since these things regardless of degree of fault or error will simply be erased and forgotten. This evidently struck a chord with Baltar, with him claiming that such an interpretation would render them all perfect. And that statement is obviously false, given all that has happened and continued to happen. 

Also, there are some similarities in this Battlestar Galactica episode and some biblical narratives. The scene where Baltar went to disrupt some people engaging in mercantile functions before being picked up by security closely resembles the passage wherein Jesus went to overturn the tables of the merchants who turned the temple into a marketplace. There was also a line wherein Baltar asked Head Six if he could be a man. The similarities with common literature allows for a better comprehension of the social issues and dilemmas that exist in their time and place. In fact, even with the theme of science and fantasy, the same moral problems that people encountered even in biblical times are still the same ones encountered by humans and their co-existence with other beings, calamities and themselves.

Another important notion touched upon by the episode is the concept of religious freedom. The remaining human survivors came from the Twelve Colonies, where the polytheism is deeply rooted and practiced. Baltar on the other hand espouses monotheism, teaching about one deity, to which he is met with ridicule, ignorance and intolerance. Even when the whole race faces extinction from a common threat, people cannot still adhere to the principle of respecting others for their beliefs and their practices. One would readily think that in times of turmoil, people would certainly act more civil and caring towards one another. Although readily accepting any kind of belief is not expected of modern and rationally thinking individuals, but to condone beliefs just because they are different seems an archaic trait and most of us believe that with proper education these should dissipate. This series shows that even years and years in the future, the same ignorance that plague the community of humanity still would trouble them. With spacecrafts and space travel, you would have expected otherwise. 

The comparisons and contrasts drawn between espousing and persecuting religious belief and practice are manifested in this episode. It even hints at the notion that some people are persecuted for merely having a belief different from what is commonplace and usual. Being different has always invited ridicule, but to a dangerous extent, also harm and danger. This Battlestar Galactica episode attempts more than just to drive the story of the series.