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I was going to say that in full fairness, their gods are actually false though…
Unless, are we considering the Ori (+Ancients = Alterans) to be closer to a literal form of god? We might need to nail down a definition on this first. Then again, they killed their asses, so perhaps humans were the real “gods” all along?
(Until we wake up, finding ourselves covered in goo and having serviced the machines by being their batteries, amidst all the weirdest, physics-defying plotlines…)
Unless, are we considering the Ori (+Ancients = Alterans) to be closer to a literal form of god?
Sure, the Ori are closer to gods than the Goa’uld because they actually have abilities that are effectively supernatural to our perspective. Whereas the Goa’uld just rely on stolen technology to do everything that appears supernatural. But the show made sure we understood that fancy abilities like that of the Ori still does not make one a god. They just know more about the secrets of the universe than we do.
We might need to nail down a definition on this first.
You are right, they did cover how the definition of a “god” is a little fuzzy. But regardless of what you define as a “god”, what the Ori were demanding was wrong, and they should be resisted.
DANIEL: I think maybe I know what the Ori are – who they are. And I’m not denying they are very powerful beings, but if I’m right, they’re not gods. They’re like the ascended beings I know: they simply have a greater understanding of the knowledge of the universe. DOCI: What is a god, but a being that is worshipped by those beneath? Is great knowledge, power, understanding not enough for you to revere the Ori? DANIEL: Respect, yes, certainly. But that doesn’t mean I would murder innocent people in their name.
One possibility as to what defines a “god” is a creative function. Like for a Professor Moriarty, the crew members of the Enterprise along with its computer were collectively together the effective “god”. Although the counter-crosswise power differential in the relevant episodes of TNG was an interesting exploration of the concept: even though Captain Picard and even more so Geordi Laforge could have shut down Moriarty “at any time”, at least under normal conditions, the plot set up conditions that were highly abnormal to place Moriarty and the crew on more equal footing, even if only temporarily.
A more common refrain is that a “god” is something that is worshipped by some group of people - like a crocodile or hippopotamus could be considered a “god” to primitive proto-humans in that light. It is thus a device only useful as a quick explanatory function (don’t mess with the god - it’ll fuck you up with its huge powerful jaws or clawed feet!) until a society outgrows the need for such, and relentless curiosity demands a more precise understanding of what the large powerful being actually is.
But then after that, are there other “gods” - akin to whether there exists any magic as a source of wonderment - as one evolves further upwards? I guess we’ll find out!! :-D
I was going to say that in full fairness, their gods are actually false though…
Unless, are we considering the Ori (+Ancients = Alterans) to be closer to a literal form of god? We might need to nail down a definition on this first. Then again, they killed their asses, so perhaps humans were the real “gods” all along?
(Until we wake up, finding ourselves covered in goo and having serviced the machines by being their batteries, amidst all the weirdest, physics-defying plotlines…)
Sure, the Ori are closer to gods than the Goa’uld because they actually have abilities that are effectively supernatural to our perspective. Whereas the Goa’uld just rely on stolen technology to do everything that appears supernatural. But the show made sure we understood that fancy abilities like that of the Ori still does not make one a god. They just know more about the secrets of the universe than we do.
You are right, they did cover how the definition of a “god” is a little fuzzy. But regardless of what you define as a “god”, what the Ori were demanding was wrong, and they should be resisted.
One possibility as to what defines a “god” is a creative function. Like for a Professor Moriarty, the crew members of the Enterprise along with its computer were collectively together the effective “god”. Although the counter-crosswise power differential in the relevant episodes of TNG was an interesting exploration of the concept: even though Captain Picard and even more so Geordi Laforge could have shut down Moriarty “at any time”, at least under normal conditions, the plot set up conditions that were highly abnormal to place Moriarty and the crew on more equal footing, even if only temporarily.
A more common refrain is that a “god” is something that is worshipped by some group of people - like a crocodile or hippopotamus could be considered a “god” to primitive proto-humans in that light. It is thus a device only useful as a quick explanatory function (don’t mess with the god - it’ll fuck you up with its huge powerful jaws or clawed feet!) until a society outgrows the need for such, and relentless curiosity demands a more precise understanding of what the large powerful being actually is.
But then after that, are there other “gods” - akin to whether there exists any magic as a source of wonderment - as one evolves further upwards? I guess we’ll find out!! :-D