Occasionally, some web venture of mine or another gains some small amount of notoriety. Every Christmas, for instance, I am flooded with requests for my live baby wrapped in cellophane product. And then there was that whole “can I buy an iTari?” thing.
The latest thing people seem to be noticing — months after I’d filed it under “amusing only to me” — is my Church of Spock. I was actually contacted by a guy in Chicago, who works for WGN (a “superstation” that I have on my DirecTV lineup) and the Chicago Tribune. I’m not sure in what capacity he intends to feature me, but he sent me some “interview” questions relating to my “church.” I checked up on him, and he is legit… he even won a couple of local Emmys for his news coverage.
I thought I might share with you his questions and my answers:
Why did you create the church of Spock?
I didn’t so much “create” the church as discover it. It occurred to me, after numerous viewings of the original Star Trek and the six movies featuring that crew, how similar the life and teachings of Spock were to that of another famous folk hero.
In Spock, we have a man who lives among other men, but is not entirely human. He has special abilities that set him apart from the rest. And while he may occasionally come off as “preachy” for pushing his father’s beliefs (logic over emotion, infinite diversity in infinite combinations), his main interest is using his abilities to better serve mankind. Spock died to save an entire world, only to rise, miraculously, to live again. Truly an inspiring story.
If you’re asking me why I worship an imaginary man who lives in the sky, came back from the dead and has magical powers, I don’t really have an answer for you.
What can people find in this church, that they won’t find in a conventional church or “new age spiritualism.”
Spock taught us to respect the diversity of the universe, but there is no respectful way to say this: our church kicks all the others’ asses in terms of media representation. Our sermons come in neat, one-hour packages, and while some of the visuals may seem a little dated, I’ll take a cloaking device over a burning bush any day.
How does one participate in the Church of Spock?
Like all religions, we believe that the answers come from our sacred texts – in our case, the 78 books of The Original Testament and the six Motion Pictures. There are those who greet one another with a “live long and prosper” and Spock’s unmistakable hand gesture. There are those who can dispense verbatim quotes and stardates from memory. And there are those who adorn their bodies with the trappings of our faith (pointed ears, blue uniforms, etc.).
Really, though, it’s not about all of that. The only true requirement is to follow the essence of his teachings. Logic conquers all. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, or the one. Celebrate diversity, explore the unknown in peace, but never forget how to render a man unconscious with your bare hands.
What is it about Trekkies that Trekkies don’t understand?
I am not sure I understand the question. Trekkies probably understand themselves just fine.
We in the Church frown on the word “Trekkie,” however. Over the years it has developed serious negative connotations, and conjures images of overweight losers living with their parents. We prefer to be called “Trekkists.”
Obviously the ears are a hit, but what is it about Spock that makes him stand-out?
The perfect balance of staggering intelligence, spiritual tranquility and a really sexy bowl cut.
What would Spock think of traditional religion? What would he think of secularism or atheism?
Spock lauded the value of “infinite diversity in infinite combinations.” However, one thing was made abundantly clear over the course of The Original Testament: the value of logic is meant to be held above all else. I suspect Spock would seriously question many, if not all, of this world’s religions. He would probably judge them as useful in terms of entertainment value and the dispensing of morality through parable. But overall, he would probably laugh at what this world calls “religion.” Except, you know, that he never actually laughs.
I may just need for background—-tell me about yourself….what do you do for a living, for fun…where do you live etc etc etc.
I am a 30 year-old defense contractor living in southern Maryland. I have one beautiful wife and no children, beautiful or otherwise. I spend most of my non-working, non-sleeping time involved with various creative pursuits. I have published two books (a novel and a collection of essays). With programmer/designer Mark Darin, I created the hit graphic adventure game Brain Hotel, which PC Gamer UK magazine called “brilliant.” I have received varying degrees of Internet praise and attention for my fictitious and satirical creations, from the realistic “Real Baby” doll (a live, black market baby) to the iTari (a slick, Apple-style repackaging of Atari’s classic 2600 console).
As soon as I have details on an article or something, I will naturally be posting them here.