Joss
Whedon once stated, “I guess the thing that I want to say about fandom is that
it’s the closest thing to religion there is that isn’t actually religion.” When
reading Jindra’s article on Star Trek as a religion, this notion is clear. She
presents Star Trek as a religious experience. When we look at other fan
cultures, similar experiences can be seen.
Jindra
talks about the Star Trek fandom
going beyond the show and creating different mediums such as novels and dictionaries.
There is also talk about the conventions and the online networks that allow for
fans to meet up in some way or another to discuss Star Trek. These notions are not all that far from what goes on
with traditional religions. There are followers or fans of mainstream religions
who congregate and go beyond simply reading a bible.
When
looking to other fandoms outside of Star Trek that can fall into a “quasi-religion”,
two seem to stand out for me: Doctor Who
and Star Wars.
I
first want to look at the example of Star
Wars. Being a pretty solid fan now, I still find it interesting to see
something like the existence of a Jedi Church with members that practice
Jediism. According to an article by the Daily Mail, there are 5,000 members in
the US and 175,000 in England among increasing numbers in other countries.
These members believe in the Force but in the way in which they can find it
referenced in the Bible. They see the parting of the Red Sea as being done with
use of the Force. This religion also has its own set of ethical systems and they
have the belief in doing right “for humankind” which means partaking in
community service. There is even a book that helped to start this religion-“Finding
the Force of the Star Wars Franchise: Fans, Merchandise, and the Critics”-which
provides a code of conduct.
The
video above presents the argument for Doctor
Who as a religion. Like Star Trek,
Doctor Who deals with alternate
universes and aliens. This video talks about the different religions throughout
the world and the definition of religion. It states that all religions provide
answers for questions like what humanity’s purpose is and why evil exists. The
Doctor is presented as a force of good who loves humanity and is its sworn
protector. He could be anywhere at any time and is called upon in times of
need. The video helps to answer the questions that humanity cannot and values
experience above all else. He goes on to discuss how it’s the fans that create
religion. He refers to Emile Durkheim in stating that religious ideas are born
out of the effervescence of social environments which applies to the Doctor Who fandom. Plus, fans have been
greatly affected by the Doctor and this can be found on all sorts of social
media sites.
Like
Star Trek, both Doctor Who and Star Wars
have gone beyond being just shows and/or films and into a different territory.
All three have fans that have pushed to get more from the shows and created their
own storylines and magazines. Each of these three have spin-off films, shows,
and novelizations. According to Jindra, Star
Trek “had features that paralleled a religious-type movement: an origin
myth, a set of beliefs, an organization, and some of the most active and
creative members to be found anywhere” (Jindra 43). Doctor Who and Star Wars
have these elements too. Star Wars has
a church for their beliefs on top of the spin-offs and conventions. Doctor Who has all that and even had
live telecasting for the announcement of the twelfth doctor.
These
are not the only fandoms that most likely apply but they are two that, for me,
stand out a great deal seeing as I love all three.
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